Sir Keir Starmer is under pressure to consider the “overwhelming evidence” from New Zealand to consider banning smart phones from schools.
In an exclusive interview with The Independent, New Zealand’s education minister Erica Stanford said she has heard “overwhelmingly positive feedback” about the world-leading phone ban in her country, with more engagement and less cyberbullying in schools.
The New Zealand National Party government now hopes to take it further and introduce a ban on social media for under-16s.
It comes as Sir Keir’s government is under increasing pressure to introduce similar measures in English schools, with the Tories and campaign groups pressing for a ban.
New Zealand’s government introduced a ban on mobile phones in schools last year.
Ms Stanford told The Independent: “I’ve been told students are much more focused on their learning in class, they are engaging with their peers, reading more books, spending more time playing outside and there are fewer reports of cyber-bullying.
“I am committed to ensuring children are not only safe but remain focused in the classroom. Taking away the distraction of cell phones ensures better engagement in class and improves student achievement and wellbeing.”
In the UK, a recent push by the Tories to add an amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which would require schools to prohibit phone use during the school day, was shut down by the government.
Tory leader Kemi Badenoch has urged ministers to reconsider after Sir Keir Starmer labelled the amendment as “completely unnecessary”, claiming “almost every school” already bans phones.
Ms Badenoch claimed: “The prime minister is wrong: not all schools do this. Only one in 10 schools is smartphone-free.”
Despite the government’s stance, education secretary Bridget Phillipson has commissioned a review into “whether schools in England are banning children’s phones and whether bans are effective”.
In New Zealand, the National Party’s election promise was greeted with scepticism, criticism, and an assumption that students would become sneakier. Now, it’s being praised by students and educators.
Anna Wilson, acting principle of Wellington East Girls’ College in the nation’s capital, said the state-funded school has seen only positive results from the ban.
She said: “We see a lot more social interaction at break times, such as playing cards, volleyball on the courts, joining in on lunchtime activities and clubs that are student-led.”
