‘TECH GIANTS MUST FOLLOW OUR LEAD’

News that Simon Henderson, Eton College’s headmaster, has banned phones at night for his Year 9 pupils to protect their mental wellbeing gets a “whoop whoop” from me. It shouldn’t take guts to suggest 13- and 14-yearold boys should not have access to smartphones 24/7, but it does.

Mr Henderson admitted he was expecting “outrage”. In reality, pupils welcomed his intervention, which is a narrative I’ve heard often.

Since writing a piece for this paper six months ago questioning the social norms around smartphones and social media usage, I’ve been plugged into a wave of action by both parents and schools.

One deputy head teacher whose secondary school recently banned phones during the day told me that despite the “Oh, Miss!” reaction in public, many of her pupils expressed relief to her in private.

Through the Facebook group, which I set up as a forum for parents to discuss these issues, I’ve learnt of several “parenting pacts” – where classes or year groups agree not to give phones and social media accounts until a specific age.

Another conversation in my area is the possibility of a communication curfew across several schools. What bliss for parents and kids if the Whatsapp groups go quiet after 8.30pm or 9pm, so children can go to bed knowing they are not missing the all-night social – something experts are warning is leading to anxiety and insomnia.

At open evenings for secondary schools, of which I’ve been to a fair few, smartphones and social media is the one topic parents always bring up. Head teachers who aren’t taking a strong stand face a lot of questions. I’m yet to hear a parent complain because their daughter won’t be allowed to post a selfie on Insta during her lunch break.

Yet, the job is made harder as firms constantly fine-tune their technology to create addictive platforms. Things like Snapchat’s “streaks” (popularity rewards) have been called out by parents and psychologists for whipping up competitiveness, as has the much-discussed Fortnite.

Parents and teachers can go so far in setting boundaries, but as is being highlighted by this paper’s Duty of Care campaign, it’s time for tech giants to admit their behaviour must change in what is fast becoming a public health issue.