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Secondary education

Connect with other parents whose children are starting secondary school on this forum.

Original poster

Strict no phones rule at secondary school

316 replies

mrstidytraxxxx · 01/07/2023 20:28

DS is starting Y7 in September. The school has a strict no mobile phone rule on site. If a student takes a mobile onto school grounds and it is found, it is confiscated for a minimum of 48-hours.

We live approximately a 30-minute walk from secondary school. There are buses, but these are apparently unreliable.

Either myself or DH will take DS to school at present (primary school is less than 10-minute walk away) and he walks home by himself, with one of us meeting him at home.

When DS plays out with friends, he has his mobile with him and knows we use Google Family Link to check he is where he says he is and he is happy with this arrangement. Obviously, we will not be able to continue like this for school journeys from September.

I would like to get a GPS tracker, either key-ring or watch, to make sure where he is on the way home.

Can anyone recommend an Android-compatible GPS key-ring or watch, that does not alert if it moves too far away from the mobile it is connected to, preferably subscription free?

Thanks in advance.

OP posts:
Original poster
mrstidytraxxxx · 01/07/2023 21:37

@MumblesParty We had the parent induction this week and the no phones on school grounds rule was emphasised more than once.

@PurpleParadise Teachers being recorded in class was one of the examples of the behaviour they were trying to stop with the phone ban.

DS is very much a rule follower; he's announced he doesn't want a locker, because he's been told by visiting secondary school teacher that if he loses the key, there are no spares and he won't be able to get his things back!

I understand the schools reasoning for the phone ban and I am not "desperate" to track my son, nor am I a "paranoid parent", I simply wanted a way to sporadically check he was on his way home whilst adhering to the school rules.

OP posts:
SirCharlesRainier · 01/07/2023 21:39

Wow, this thread has been an eye-opener for me. Poor kids today. No wonder there's a mental health crisis and and anxiety is through the roof.

SirCharlesRainier · 01/07/2023 21:40

wildfirewonder · 01/07/2023 21:37

As I said, my view is it engenders a false sense of security and reduces real trust between parent and child

Once they are out of your sight, you don't know where they are, you know where their tracker is. I'm assuming you haven't implanted it.

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Christ, don't give them ideas.

usernother · 01/07/2023 21:40

@redskytwonight
But back in the day there were more public phone boxes and schools also had payphones. So if you spontaneously decided to stay for an after school club (or had just forgotten to tell your mum) or if you'd waited over an hour for a bus and had no idea if one was ever going to turn up .. you had another means to contact your parents.

We didn't have a landline phone in the house. My mum had no idea where I was if I was late in from school or when out anywhere. Imagine that now Smile

wildfirewonder · 01/07/2023 21:41

SirCharlesRainier · 01/07/2023 21:40

Christ, don't give them ideas.

Show quote history

I was just watching one of the Bourne films where the agent cut out their tracker!

usernother · 01/07/2023 21:42

@wildfirewonder
Once they are out of your sight, you don't know where they are, you know where their tracker is. I'm assuming you haven't implanted it.

I'm sure that was a black mirror episode

Original poster
mrstidytraxxxx · 01/07/2023 21:42

Kitfish · 01/07/2023 21:31

You asked for advice on a good tracker. I would recommend the Tractive XL dog tracker, although it does require a subscription. I used this with my son fro 2-3 years when he was travelling 13 miles on public transport to school. Battery lasts a week between charges so it can be chucked at the bottom of the bag and forgotten about Mon-Fri. Connects to PC ot tablet or phone and gives very clear indication of location. Also silent and discreet so no chance of it being confiscated.

Thanks, I'll look into this.

OP posts:
PickySlackTastic · 01/07/2023 21:43

A strict no phones rule at secondary means that the phones are completely out of sight on school grounds. Ideally turned off, but more usually on silent.

CurlewKate · 01/07/2023 21:54

@NoCoincidence "No one is sitting watching the tracking constantly, you just use it if there's a reason to."

What would that reason be?

ManyATrueWord · 01/07/2023 21:55

What about one of those watches that can make calls? Can't confiscate a watch.

wildfirewonder · 01/07/2023 21:55

ManyATrueWord · 01/07/2023 21:55

What about one of those watches that can make calls? Can't confiscate a watch.

They do confiscate them just as for phones at our school.

ManyATrueWord · 01/07/2023 21:57

I'm sure they would if it was a smart watch but you can get ones that only do one or two numbers. I've seen them used in difficult custody cases so child can call a parent.

mathanxiety · 01/07/2023 22:02

mrstidytraxxxx · 01/07/2023 21:37

@MumblesParty We had the parent induction this week and the no phones on school grounds rule was emphasised more than once.

@PurpleParadise Teachers being recorded in class was one of the examples of the behaviour they were trying to stop with the phone ban.

DS is very much a rule follower; he's announced he doesn't want a locker, because he's been told by visiting secondary school teacher that if he loses the key, there are no spares and he won't be able to get his things back!

I understand the schools reasoning for the phone ban and I am not "desperate" to track my son, nor am I a "paranoid parent", I simply wanted a way to sporadically check he was on his way home whilst adhering to the school rules.

This sounds like a ridiculous school.

Are you sure you want your child to spend his teen years there?

Prescottdanni123 · 01/07/2023 22:04

Kids should be allowed to take their phones to school. It should stay switched off and in their bags unless they are allowed to have them out at lunch time/break time etc. But they should have their phone with them in case they find themselves in a situation on the way to school or on the way back home where they need to call for help. Yes I know it wasn't that long ago that no one had a mobile phone and had to make do without one, but now society operates on an assumption that all teens have a phone and therefore we have done away with phone boxes on every street, less community police officers about etc etc.

LolaSmiles · 01/07/2023 22:10

A strict no phones rule at secondary means that the phones are completely out of sight on school grounds. Ideally turned off, but more usually on silent
This is how it's been at every phone-free school I've worked at.

If a phone is switched off and in the bag nobody knows it's on site. The pupil is responsible for the phone and making sure it isn't lost or damaged. Nobody sees or hears the phone on the school site.

Mumtothreegirlies · 01/07/2023 22:11

This was the rule at my eldest daughters school and she took it and kept it on silent in her inside blazer pocket

HappiDaze · 01/07/2023 23:13

So long as the phone is turned off whilst in school and kept in their bag then that's fine

They can then turn it back on once they've left the premises

If the DC is stupid to take it out whilst in school then it will get confiscated and they'll soon learn not to do it again

Livinginanotherworld · 01/07/2023 23:16

I wonder how we all managed before mobile phones were invented 🙄
you surely don’t need to put tags or trackers on your kids ffs !

HappiDaze · 01/07/2023 23:18

It depends how reliable the DC is

My DS would keep his phone on silent all day

DD would always forget to put it on silent so had to turn it off completely because obviously it would get confiscated

The point is they are learning to be responsible and to move away from their helicopter parents apron strings

Soon you'll only be tracking them via find my friends to see where there are a midnight

HappiDaze · 01/07/2023 23:19

Good luck when you get to that hurdle

HappiDaze · 01/07/2023 23:20

Livinginanotherworld · 01/07/2023 23:16

I wonder how we all managed before mobile phones were invented 🙄
you surely don’t need to put tags or trackers on your kids ffs !

I know right that's so completely ridiculous in Secondary School esp if the go off their normal path to hang out with friends.

Heavens forbid

FKATondelayo · 01/07/2023 23:27

Quite surprised by the responses here. My kids school, like most in my area, ban smart phones (as in total ban, kids aren't allowed them at all). Brick phones are allowed if turned off and not used in school. Bag checks are done semi-regularly. It's much better - no distractions and reduces muggings (inner London).

CurlewKate · 02/07/2023 00:12

Can somebody please explain the circumstances in which the ability to track a teenager would be useful or beneficial?

Calloffruity · 02/07/2023 00:28

CurlewKate · 02/07/2023 00:12

Can somebody please explain the circumstances in which the ability to track a teenager would be useful or beneficial?

Yes. My 12yo gets a bus to and from school. Last year she was distracted on the way home and ended up getting off about 3 stops late. She rang me a bit upset and I was able to look at the tracker, see exactly where she was, and remind her which way to walk.

Another time she decided to walk home with friends but they were seriously dawdling, hanging around in and out of shops, walking a funny way. It was getting quite late and we needed to go out with DD. We were able to see exactly where she was, drive and pick her up on our way out.

Calloffruity · 02/07/2023 00:33

And to add, DH and I are on the tracker too so we can all see where each other is. We are a close family unit, it's nice to know where everybody is and sometimes useful, none of us have anything to hide so why not take advantage of the technology