At St Anthony's, pupils are prohibited from using mobile phones, smartwatches, cameras or any other recording equipment at school.
Taking photographs, filming or recording on school premises is a breach of privacy, data protection and child protection legislation. Using photographic images or voice recordings of pupils or staff without their permission is prohibited. It is a breach of privacy, data protection legislation and child protection legislation.
Some pupils in Year 5 and Year 6 walk to and from school unaccompanied but written consent from parents/carers is required. These pupils have permission to bring a mobile phone into school, should their parents wish them to.
The mobile phones must be switched off on arrival at the school gate and handed to the class teacher on arrival at the classroom. Devices will be stored in a safe place for the duration of the school day.
The class teacher will return devices to the children at the end of the school day but phones must be placed straight into school bags as they must not be turned on until a pupil has left the school premises.
When there is a medical need for a device (eg for a diabetic child), then phones are permitted but these are locked down for all purposes other than the medical apps.
What sort of phone shall I give my child?
We encourage parents and carers to carefully consider whether or not to give their child a smartphone with access to the internet and apps. There are many alternatives to smartphones, some of which have been developed with young children in mind. To find out more about 'first phones', 'follow on phones' and 'smartphones', please explore the Smartphone Free Childhood website.