Mobile Phone policy

Approved by: AGC                        Date: March 2021

This policy is effective from March 2021

Introduction and aims 

At Co-op Academy Broadhurst we recognise that mobile phones, including smart phones, are an important  part of everyday life for our pupils, parents and staff, as well as the wider school community.  

Our policy aims to:

• Promote, and set an example for, safe and responsible phone use
• Set clear guidelines for the use of mobile phones for pupils, staff, parents and volunteers
• Support the Academy’s other policies, especially those related to child protection and behaviour

This policy also aims to address some of the challenges posed by mobile phones in school, such as: Risks to child protection

• Data protection issues
• Potential for lesson disruption
• Risk of theft, loss, or damage
• Appropriate use of technology in the classroom

Roles and responsibilities

All staff (including teachers, support staff, and supply staff) are responsible for enforcing this policy.  

Volunteers, or anyone else otherwise engaged by the Academy, must alert a member of staff if they witness,  or are aware of, a breach of this policy.

The Headteacher is responsible for monitoring the policy every 3 years, reviewing it, and holding staff and  pupils accountable for its implementation.  

Use of mobile phones by staff

Personal mobile phones

Staff (including volunteers, contractors and anyone else otherwise engaged by the Academy) are not  permitted to make or receive calls, or send texts, while children are present. Use of personal mobile phones must be restricted to non-contact time, and to areas of the Academy where pupils are not present (such as the  staff room and offices).

There may be circumstances in which it’s appropriate for a member of staff to have use of their phone during  contact time. For instance:

• For emergency contact by their child, or their child’s school
• In the case of acutely ill dependents or family members

The headteacher will decide on a case-by-basis whether to allow for special arrangements.  

If special arrangements are not deemed necessary, Academy staff can use the school office number 0161  681 4288 as a point of emergency contact.

Data protection

Staff must not use their personal mobile phones to process personal data, or any other confidential Academy information.  

Staff must follow guidance set out in the Data Protection Policy.

If staff access emails on their personal mobile phones they must have a separate work area that has an  additional password to access.

Safeguarding

Staff must refrain from giving their personal contact details to parents or pupils, including connecting through  social media and messaging apps.  

Staff must avoid publicising their contact details on any social media platform or website, to avoid unwanted  contact by parents or pupils. This is also stated in the Acceptable Use Policy and Safeguarding Policy.

Staff must not use their mobile phones to take photographs or recordings of pupils, their work, or anything  else which could identify a pupil. If it’s necessary to take photos or recordings as part of a lesson/school  trip/activity, this must be done using school equipment.  

Using personal mobiles for work purposes

In some circumstances, it may be appropriate for staff to use personal mobile phones for work. Such  circumstances may include, but aren’t limited to:

• Emergency evacuations
• Supervising off-site trips
• Supervising residential visits

In these circumstances, staff will:

• Use their mobile phones in an appropriate and professional manner, in line with our staff code of conduct
• Not use their phones to take photographs or recordings of pupils, their work, or anything else which could  identify a pupil
• Refrain from using their phones to contact parents. If necessary, contact must be made via the school  office

Wherever possible the school mobile phone should be used.  

Work phones

Some members of staff are provided with a mobile phone by the Academy for work purposes.

Only authorised staff are permitted to use Academy phones, and access to the phone must not be provided to  anyone without authorisation.

Staff must:

• Only use phone functions for work purposes, including making/receiving calls, sending/receiving emails or  other communications, or using the internet
• Ensure that communication or conduct linked to the device is appropriate and professional at all times, in  line with our staff code of conduct.

Sanctions

Staff that fail to adhere to this policy may face disciplinary action. Please see the Academy’s staff disciplinary policy for more information.  

Use of mobile phones by pupils

Pupils may only bring a mobile phone to school if they are:

• Travelling to school by themselves  
• Staying with a parent or relative in a different house that night and going straight from school

Pupils must hand their phones into the office before they come into the academy and collect them from the  office after leaving the Academy at the end of the day (they must use the external office door)

Pupils must not use their phone inside the Academy building or grounds.

Sanctions

If a pupil is found in possession of a mobile phone it will be confiscated, sent to the office and the parent must  collect it from the office at their earliest convenience.

The pupil may also incur a sanction in line with the Academy’s behaviour policy.

Staff have the power to search pupils’ phones, as set out in the DfE’s guidance on searching, screening and  confiscation. The DfE guidance allows staff to search a pupil’s phone if they have reason to believe the phone  contains pornographic images, or if it is being/has been used to commit an offence or cause personal injury.

Certain types of conduct, bullying or harassment can be classified as criminal conduct. The Academy takes  such conduct extremely seriously, and will involve the police or other agencies as appropriate.

Such conduct includes, but is not limited to:

• Sexting
• Threats of violence or assault
• Abusive calls, emails, social media posts or texts directed at someone on the basis of someone’s  ethnicity, religious beliefs or sexual orientation

Use of mobile phones by parents, volunteers and visitors

Parents, visitors and volunteers (including governors and contractors) must adhere to this policy as it relates  to staff if they are on the Academy site during the school day.

This means:

• Not taking pictures or recordings of pupils, unless it’s a public event (such as a school fair), or of their own  child
• Using any photographs or recordings for personal use only, and not posting on social media without  consent
• Not using phones in lessons, or when working with pupils
• Not taking phones out in areas where children are present. Only using phones in the staffroom or an  office.

Parents, visitors and volunteers will be informed of the rules for mobile phone use when they sign in at  reception or attend a public event at school. They will be given a Health and safety/Safeguarding leaflet that  explains this.

Parents or volunteers supervising school trips or residential visits must not:

• Use their phone to make contact with other parents
• Use their phone while children are present
• Take photos or recordings of pupils, their work, or anything else which could identify a pupil

Parents or volunteers supervising trips are also responsible for enforcing the Academy’s policy for pupils  using their phones, as set out in section 4 above.

Parents must use the Academy office as the first point of contact if they need to get in touch with their child  during the school day. They must not try to contact their child on his/her personal mobile during the school  day.

Loss, theft or damage 

Pupils bringing phones to school must ensure that phones are appropriately labelled when they are handed in  to the office.

Pupils must secure their phones as much as possible, including using passwords or pin codes to protect  access to the phone’s functions. Staff must also secure their personal phones, as well as any work phone provided to them. Failure by staff to do so could result in data breaches.

The Academy accepts no responsibility for mobile phones that are lost, damaged or stolen on school  premises or transport, during school visits or trips, or while pupils are travelling to and from school.  

We will make sure pupils and parents are aware of the disclaimer above by:

• Sharing this policy on our website
• Including a disclaimers in our permission forms for bringing a phone to school

Confiscated phones will be stored in the school office in a secure location/locked cabinet. Lost phones should be returned to the office. The school will then attempt to contact the owner.

Monitoring and review 

The school is committed to ensuring that this policy has a positive impact of pupils’ education, behaviour and  welfare. When reviewing the policy, the school will take into account:

• Feedback from parents and pupils
• Feedback from teachers
• Records of behaviour and safeguarding incidents
• Relevant advice from the Department for Education, the local authority or other relevant organisation

Permission to bring mobile phone to school

The school has agreed to allow ______________________________________ to bring their mobile phone to school because they:

• travel to and from school alone
• are staying with a parent or relative at a different address, going straight from school

Pupils who bring a mobile phone to school must abide by section 4 of the school’s policy on the use of mobile phones and hand their phones into the office on arrival for safekeeping. The school reserves the right to revoke permission if pupils do not abide by the policy.  

Parent/ Carer’s signature: ______________________________________________________