Wouldn’t it be great to have a safe mobile phone where families could see all the texts and calls the child has received, that could block all non-essential calls during school hours or after bedtime?
When WhatsApp stopped asking for age verification for new users, it meant any child with a smartphone could share photographs and videos with anyone anywhere in the world without their parents' knowledge. Parents looked to schools for help and advice and many responded by directing them to ParentShield.
Seema Solani, principal of Haberdashers’ Aske’s Hatcham College, wrote: ‘Over the next few months your child may be spending more time than normal on the internet, working on their homework, playing games, maybe watching documentaries with you. We recommend that all parents install ParentShield on the device used by their child in order to safeguard and protect them.’
A lifeline or a distraction?
The company polled 17,000 UK schools. Just 6% of those schools reported collecting all phones at the start of the day and handing them back to students at home time but this becomes a huge logistical challenge, and practically impossible in a large school.
While an increasing number of schools favour a total ban on mobile phones, half of primary school students and 85% of secondary school students believe mobile phones should be allowed. One primary pupil said: ‘In an emergency on the way to or from school, a phone is the best way to get in touch with your parent/carer.’