Parents commit to keeping children smartphone-free

Hundreds of parents in South Yorkshire have signed a pledge to delay giving their children a smartphone until they reach the age of 14.

Almost 2,500 parents in the region have signed up for the scheme, led by the national Smartphone Free Childhood campaign.

If follows increasing concerns that the use of smartphones can have a damaging impact on children's mental health and leave them more vulnerable to cyber-bullying and harmful material.

Ruth Fitzell from Smartphone Free Childhood South Yorkshire said: "It started with my own kids, there's just no way in the world I want them to have a super-power computer in their pocket 24-7."

Fitzell, who previously presented a petition to Sheffield City Council calling on schools to curb smartphone use, was keen to stress that the campaign was "pro-childhood" and not "anti-tech".

"You can have responsible tech use whereby you give your kids access to a safe space without giving them a smartphone," she said.

"We have a laptop in the kitchen and the kids can use it.

"I can see what they're using and we can have a conversation around it.

"Digital literacy is absolutely essential."

Research by Ofcom found nearly a quarter of UK five-to-seven-year-olds now had their own smartphone, and Fitzell said "safety" was one of the main reasons parents did not wait until 14.

"It's become incredibly normal to give your child a smartphone and say, 'I need to get in touch with them on the way to and from school'.

"But I think there's great solutions - an old basic phone, which has become kind of trendy, that has calls and texts only, allows you to know where they are."

By signing the pledge, parents can see on the Smartphone Free Childhood website how many other parents at their child's school have also signed up.

Josephine Ogle and Iwona Spencer both have children at primary school age and have signed the pact.

Ogle said "peer pressure" was a big factor for children and adults.

"It's very reassuring that there are other parents in my child's class that have signed up," she said.

"Spreading the word and supporting each other is the way forward."

Spencer added: "The pressure of having the latest, the newest and the best has to change for parents and obviously this is the way to do it."

Sheffield parent Alice Burls recently signed up to the scheme and delivered a presentation to other local parents at Greenhill Library to encourage more to get involved.

She said: "The main issues are exposure, children are easily exposed to violent content on smartphones that we're asking them to cope with.

"Over 80% of children are bullied online.

"They should be able to come home and feel safe but they can't."

More than 180,000 parents have signed up to the pledge across the UK which covers more than 15,000 schools.

Earlier this year, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson wrote to all schools in England encouraging them to follow new government guidance and be phone-free for the entire school day.

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