England Makes Phone Bans Statutory

The UK government will amend the children’s wellbeing and schools bill to turn guidance discouraging mobile phones in schools into a legal requirement, after peers delayed the bill. The move is framed as pragmatic to secure passage but signals a shift from school‑level discretion to statutory enforcement of device rules. — Making voluntary device guidance into law changes the balance between school autonomy and state regulation, and sets a precedent for legislating tech‑use in children’s settings.