Phone bans in schools: what the evidence says

How many schools ban phones now?

A lot more than five years ago. UNESCO's education monitoring team tracks the laws and policies of education systems around the world. By the end of 2023, 30% of them banned smartphone use in school. A year later the figure was 40%, after 19 more systems added a ban.

Picture the change from a child's side. Two years ago the phone sat in a blazer pocket all day and buzzed through double maths. Now, in many schools, it goes into a locker, a pouch or a box by the classroom door at 8.40am and comes back at home time.

What are the rules in England?

Schools in England are expected to prohibit the use of mobile phones throughout the school day. The Department for Education first published guidance in 2024 and revised it in January 2026. It became statutory on 29 June 2026, which means schools should follow it from 1 September 2026.

The guidance leaves the method to each school. Some ask for phones to be switched off and kept in bags, some use lockers or pouches, and some do not allow phones on site at all. If you want to know exactly how your child's school does it, the policy should be on its website, and the DfE has published advice on how schools should explain it to parents.

What are the rules in the US?

There is no single national rule. Decisions sit with states and districts, and a growing number of states have passed laws or policies restricting phones during the school day. UNESCO's tracker includes a map of the US state systems with bans, which is the quickest way to see where your state stands.

Do phone bans actually work?

Here the honest answer is: it depends what you mean by work. A ban removes the most obvious distraction from the classroom. That can be a real benefit on its own.

Whether bans raise grades or improve mental health is less settled. Studies point in different directions, and a ban that ends at the school gate cannot do much about the hours between 4pm and midnight. UNESCO's own headline puts it carefully: smartphones in school only when they clearly support learning. That is an argument for purpose, not for a phone-free childhood.

What does a ban not fix?

A ban controls where the phone is. It does not teach a child what to do when the phone is in their hand. The scam message, the group chat that turns nasty, the fake video everyone is sharing: those arrive after school, on the bus, in bed.

That is why the most useful thing a school can do alongside a ban is teach the habits that work anywhere: stop before sharing, check who sent it, tell an adult when something feels wrong. Our free Think Before You Share activity is built for exactly that lesson.

How can parents back up the school's policy?

Match it where it makes sense. If phones are away during lessons, keep them away during homework. Agree where the phone sleeps at night, ideally outside the bedroom. Most of all, explain why. A rule children understand gets followed when nobody is checking. A rule they think is arbitrary gets worked around.

Try this at home or in class

Ask your child to design the school's phone policy themselves: where phones go, when they come out, what happens if someone breaks the rule. Then compare it with the real one. Children are often stricter than the adults, and the conversation tells you a lot about how the day actually feels to them.