Smartphone at school - inappropriate content sharing

[Sagarmatha]

This is a question I'd appreciate help answering.

A child aged 12 to 16 shares sexual or other inappropriate content, eg, video of beheading or torture with another child while on school premises because the school allows smartphones at school.

The recipient does not own a smartphone and comes home traumatised and discloses all to his or her parents.

What is the legal position here?

Given the school's requirement to safeguard all children, could the parents take legal action against the school?

Does school allow smart phones to be out/on whilst in school? Are you 100% sure that the content was shared in school, as opposed to on the way/on the bus etc? Have you spoken to the school about the incident- and what do you hope to achieve by taking legal action?

Schools have complaints procedures - I’d always follow them and all the way through. First step speak to the school, second step if not happy then go to the complaints policy and follow it to the letter.

Legal action to what end?

This is hypothetical. I want to understand the legal position if this were to happen on school premises.

So say the school allows smartphones on premises. They are meant to be in bags but are used surreptitiously by many. In loos and between lessons etc. This is common in many schools.

And say it definitely happened on school premises because parent drops child at school daily.

Nothing more than getting smartphones banned in all schools.

If this could happen I'd like to know.

Why do you want smart phones banned on all schools?

Where should i start?!?!?

One child shows another something on their phone ? They can’t share it if the other child doesn’t have a phone ??

One reason is in my OP though.

Are you a teacher ?

Why legal action? School cannot control everything that happens regardless of if phones are allowed or not.
You reassure your child that what they saw wasn't real and they are safe etc and then report the incident to the school. They can then deal with it inline with both behaviour and safeguarding policies. If you are not happy with their response then you go down the complaint procedure.

They play a video of a man having his face ripped off under severe torture just as described here

jrnl.ie/6405648

Receiving child watches it with the owner of the smartphone during break time.

Comes home and tells Mum.

Legal viewpoints welcome, please, given this to me is a safe guarding breach.

I’d imagine that the parents could complain about the child to the police but it’s not the school’s responsibility.

I don’t know if school internet usage agreements cover personal devices - especially if the sender uses their own data rather than the school network. It might be worth reading the school document on this.

What about children who have a medical need for a smartphone? Or would they be exempt?

If they use the school network then internet is restricted. Can’t blame the school when they’re using their own data

We’ve been using them in class for revision but they all log onto the school network

Yes.

I see- share as in looking at another persons screen not share as in sending electronically.

It’s the other child’s fault and not the school’s imo.

Why not, if the school allows smartphones on prem?

The government already bought in legislation around phones in schools. Unfortunately, as pp suggest... No matter what the rules are in school, young people will find a way and they don't only socialise at school. Better to teach child about internet safety than simply ban.

Because they’re not using the school network. If they were stood at the school gates looking at it, would it be different?
You’d contact parents

So what if a medically exempt student used their smartphone to share something?

What if a child brought a book or magazine into school that showed something inappropriate and shared it? Should books and magazines be banned? What if a refugee student shared an anecdote from his own history about torture with another student? Should students be banned from interacting completely?

Do you work in a school op ?

No.

Then you want something banned without any experience of how many schools actually use them ?