IT is one of the most difficult decisions parents face – when to give in to their younger children’s constant demands for a smartphone.
Astonishing recent figures from communications regulator Ofcom show that 20 per cent of children have a smartphone by the age of three, rising to 55 per cent between the ages of eight and 11.
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The entire parent population of Greystones in County Wicklow has agreed not to buy smartphones for their children until they enter secondary school Credit: Alamy
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Natalie Coffey, with son Max, who lives in Kilcoole two miles from Greystones, hopes the ban will be implemented at her son’s school and beyond Credit: Gary Ashe
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Anja Schubert, with her daughter Anna, who has lived in Greystones for 25 years, says: ‘I signed up. It gives me three more years of my daughter not having a smartphone’Credit: Gary Ashe
But residents of a seaside town in Ireland decided they didn’t want their little ones to spend their most formative years staring at a tiny LCD screen.
The entire parent population of Greystones in County Wicklow has come together to agree not to buy their children smartphones until they enter secondary school.
All eight primary schools in the town, 15 miles south of Dublin, have already banned pupils from bringing electronic devices into the learning environment.
However, school associations of parents then went further and initiated a voluntary ban among themselves.
It is a revolutionary approach that would probably be welcomed by parents in Britain.
This week’s research by Vodafone found that some parents found it just as difficult to choose when to give their child their first mobile phone as choosing the right school to send their children to.
And in July, the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) called for phones to be banned from classrooms around the world.
Mental health crisis
When The Sun visited Greystones, locals were grateful for the opportunity to free youngsters from the pressure of being permanently connected to social media.
Anja Schubert, who has lived in Greystones for 25 years, says: “I signed up.
“It gives me three more years that my daughter doesn’t have a smartphone.
“I imagine most people would be pressured to buy their child a phone because their peers have one.
“So the more children there are, the easier it is for us.”
More than 70 percent of parents in Anja’s daughter’s class signed an agreement not to buy their children a smartphone.
After children reach high school, only five percent of parents say they are willing to hold back on the tide.
Greystones mom Caroline Nolan has signed a contract with her two boys’ infant school, St. Laurence’s.
He won’t give his sons a smartphone until they finish the sixth grade, which is for 11- to 12-year-olds.
She says: “As a family, we’ve talked openly about how they won’t have phones until the end of sixth form, before entering freshman year.
“And that’s something we’re pretty strict about.
“But I think collectively in the community, when everyone’s doing it, it takes the pressure off.”
The rise of social media is linked to the mental health crisis facing teenagers.
An NHS report last November found that a quarter of 17 to 19-year-olds in England have a probable mental health disorder, up from one in six a year earlier.
Dad Johnny Hayden said the Greystones area had recently been hit by two suicides as a result of bullies.
And he believes that reducing the number of smartphones will benefit the mental health of young people.
He says, “Two girls recently committed suicide due to harassment in the area.
“It’s scary because it’s something that happens between the social world and your child — something that you don’t really have a role in, because they don’t want you to see it.
“It’s something that really scares you.”
A Greystones parent believes junior year of high school is a good age to get a phone.
He said: “I think the social life of teenagers has changed to where they need a phone.
“But in general, my rule is: don’t get a smartphone until they start freshman year.
“I have three girls.
“My youngest doesn’t have a phone.
“He uses his mother’s to play games, but doesn’t have his own phone until he’s in his first year.”
Other cities in Ireland are now considering implementing similar policies.
Natalie Coffey, who lives in Kilcoole two miles from Greystones, hopes the ban will be implemented at her son’s school and beyond.
She said: “I would be delighted if it was brought to the area now.
“It does the same for everyone, so there’s no real conversation about it.
“This is done at all levels. I think it’s a great idea.”
Fine Gael politician Mary Seery Kearney said the collaboration should be a model to be rolled out more widely across the country.
She said: “By coming together, parents, teachers and principals have designed and introduced this code, which means that all children in the area who attend the same schools will not experience the dreaded ‘Fear of Missing Out’ — or FOMO — if they don’t have a phone or tablet. Neither will any of their classmates.”
Many other countries have already taken the lead.
France banned phones in classrooms in 2018, Italy did so last year, while the Netherlands and Finland introduced restrictions this year.
But one Greystone mum admitted she was divided about restricting mobile phone use.
Liz Keogh says: “In some ways smartphones are ruining children’s lives.
“It can be good and it can be bad.
“But if children are left out or if they feel excluded by schoolmates, it can be amplified by the phone and they sometimes feel so alone.”
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Dad Johnny Hayden told how the Greystones area has been hit by two recent suicides as a result of thugsCredit: Gary Ashe
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Greystones mum Caroline Nolan signed a contract with the school for her two boys and won’t give them a smartphone until they finish the sixth form, which is for 11-12 year olds Credit: Gary Ashe
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Source: HIS Education