To not let my 8yo have a phone?

[wingingatlife]

Dd1 is in year 4 and is desperate for a phone but I've firmly said no and she's making out she's the "only one" without one. I know some of her friends do have one but they have divorced parents and so have their phone to stay in touch with the other parent when away iykwim and I understand the logic behind that but i can't fathom the need otherwise for an 8 year old to have their own phone (or tv in her room but hey, different topic). I've said she can have one when she goes into year 7. She has no social media account or access at all.

At what age do you think is alright for a child to get their first phone?

Brick type phone whenever they start playing out/walking to school.

Get them used to making sure credit is topped up and the phone is charged up and being available to be contacted.

Then they can have a smartphone for starting secondary school.
If she just wants to play games, get a cheap tablet.

My 8 year old also wants one and we are the only parents not getting her one (absolute bollocks) There's no way on earth! She lost her iPad (I know exactly where it is but she's not getting it back) and when she did know where it was her behaviour was awful and she got so absorbed in it she forgot everything else and argued something shocking when screen time was over. Now in fairness this may not be typical as we are 90% of the way through an ASD diagnosis with possible ADD and PDA thrown in, however listening to some of the other mums in her class it does seem to be a frequent problem even with no additional needs

Just to hopefully make someone smile. DGD aged 9 was asking her parents for mobile and not getting the answer she wanted. She asked me when I first got a mobile and she was rather bemused when I told her I was over forty when I got my first one!