One of England’s biggest school academy trusts to ban phone use

One of England’s largest school academy trusts is set to ban phones during the school day. Ormiston Academies Trust confirmed to the BBC it was phasing out access to smartphones for around 35,000 pupils at its 42 state schools across the country.

A spokesperson for the trust told the BBC that “teaching and learning, behaviour and children’s mental health are all impacted negatively by mobile phones”.

Earlier this year, the Department for Education under the previous Conservative government updated its advice on mobile phones to give school leaders in England the power to ban their use during the school day.