Parents told to pay £25 to ‘lock up’ their kids’ phones in magnet pouch during school to stop them using it in lessons
PARENTS are being told to pay £25 to lock up their kids’ phones in a magnet pouch during school.
Cardinal Newman Catholic School, a secondary in Hove, East Sussex, is introducing the no-phone policy later this year.
Students will place their cellular devices in the wallets at the start of the day and not be able to access them until the end.
Parents will have to fork out £25 for the magnet-secured pouch as part of the school’s uniform policy.
A letter to parents from head teacher Claire Jarman seen by The Argus said staff were spending too much time on policing phones.
“As a school we are increasingly concerned about the impact of smartphones on our young people.
“Students receive up to three strikes per half term until they are required to hand in their phones to staff. Speaking bluntly, this is not working. Too many students at Cardinal Newman School are disregarding the rule and failing to hand in when required.
“This is, in turn, creating a huge workload for our staff – time and energy we would prefer to be focusing on supporting students in more positive ways.”
One mother said she supported the policy, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Writing on a Facebook group, she said: “This seems like a reliable way to monitor phone use. Kids don’t need their phones during the school day, but they do on the way to and from.”
A spokesman for the school said: “Parents are not simply purchasing a pouch, but a comprehensive phone-free programme which ensures their child can now learn and socialise in a distraction-free environment.”
The cost of the phone case comes on top of other expenses for parents like uniforms or shelling out for books and stationary.
Meanwhile, one town in County Wicklow has have all agreed not to give their kids devices which include smartphones, smart pads, and apps.
The initiative was the brain child of Rachel Harper, the headteacher at St Patrick’s Primary School, who got in contact with the various parent associations at the eight schools in the area.
Ms Harper told ITV News last year: “You wouldn’t let your child open the door to a stranger, but giving them a smart phone is similar – at the click of a button they can reach adult material that’s far beyond their years and once they see it you can’t take it back.”
Another school which banned phones, The Romsey School, in Hants, has stood by their decision despite parents disliking it.
One parent, who did not want to be named, told The Sun: “It is causing havoc with the school.
“Why not put all phones in a box at each lesson and collect them at the end? It’s unacceptable and unnecessary stress for all involved.”
Parents say the rules have also caused problems for their kids who need phones for online banking, public transport, food and keeping safe.
The Sun has contacted Cardinal Newman Catholic School for comment.
Schools and phone banning guidance
SCHOOLS were instructed in February to ban mobile phones from classrooms under new Government guidance.
The crackdown aims to tackle “unnecessary distraction” during lessons and throughout the rest of the school day.
It is currently up to individual schools to decide their own policies on mobile phones and whether they should be banned, with many already introducing prohibitions.
But the guidance issued today, which is non-statutory, aims to provide “clarity and consistency” for teachers and staff.
Education Secretary Gillian Keegan said it will give teachers across England the “tools take action to help improve behaviour and to allow them to do what they do best – teach”.
Schools are advised to implement various strategies for implementing the ban, ranging from confiscation of devices to detentions.
