School smartphone bans seen as ‘punitive’ by young people, study says

Outright bans may have unintended negative consequences for young people, University College London report warns

School smartphone bans are overly simplistic" and are not supported by young people who regard them as punitive" rather than helpful, according to research by University College London.

The UCL report was published on Tuesday, the day after a statutory ban on smartphones in schools in England came into force, making individual schools and trusts legally responsible for being phone-free throughout the day.