Ofsted chief backs headteachers taking ‘tough’ decision to ban phones in schools
26 March 2025, 17:14
Sir Martyn Oliver told parents at a Q&A in London that he had walked into schools in ‘utter chaos’ where phones were rife.
The chief inspector of Ofsted has said smartphones should be banned in schools in England.
Sir Martyn Oliver said the watchdog will back headteachers who take the “tough” decision to ban phones as he warned that exposure to online content on devices can be “harmful” and “damaging” to children.
Sir Martyn, who used to be chief executive of a large academy trust, said he had walked into schools in the past in “utter chaos” where phones were “rife”.
In a Q&A with parents in London, the Ofsted boss said: “Headteachers already have the power to ban them and they should ban them.
“Ofsted will support schools in banning phones.”
Speaking at an event run by charity Parentkind on Wednesday, Sir Martyn said children with developing brains do not need to be “bombarded by non-human algorithms that might be preying upon them”.
He added: “It’s harmful and it’s damaging. So I do believe they should be banned.”
Schools in England were given non-statutory guidance under the former Conservative government in February last year intended to stop the use of mobile phones during the school day.
Conservative Party leader Kemi Badenoch questioned why the Government opposed a Tory amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill to require schools to ban the use of phones.
In the Commons on Wednesday, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the proposal as “completely unnecessary” as he claimed “almost every school” already bans phones.
When asked about phone bans in schools, Sir Martyn said: “I think it’s crucial that Ofsted doesn’t ask schools to do beyond what the Government asks them to do, but I would absolutely support headteachers to take that tough decision even if it led to a spike in behaviour, for example, in the first instance.”
He added: “I’ve walked into – I can’t remember exactly how many – special-measures schools in utter chaos, but it’s an awful lot.
“Some of them you could easily describe as in some of the most challenging circumstances in the entire country when I went in to sponsor them and there were phones rife everywhere.
“And within those schools, within days of banning phones, and as hard as that is initially, you get an immediate sense of calmness across the school.”
In a speech on Wednesday, the Ofsted chief called on parents to engage with schools “in the right way” rather than joining a social media “pile-on”.
He warned that social media can “hand a microphone to the pub bore, a megaphone to the bully and help the rabble-rouser find his or her rabble without leaving their armchair”.
Sir Martyn said: “The world seems to be getting more antagonistic and adversarial. So you can understand why a school leader might be wary of engaging with parents.
“But I always found that the way to defuse tensions, tackle rumours and build common purpose with parents is more communication, not less.
“More openness, not less. And more information sharing, not less.
“So I say join the PTA, don’t join the pile-on.”
Earlier this month, Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said she had tasked officials with exploring how to “more effectively monitor” what is happening in schools in England around the use of smartphones.
In a speech to school and college leaders in Liverpool, Ms Phillipson said: “The Government’s position is clear, you have our full backing in ridding our classrooms of the disruption of phones.”
