Original subtitles

This programme contains scenes that some viewers may find upsetting

So, us and the kids at the school,

it's only been a week without our phones,

but I'm already very, very aware of how addicted I am to it,

and that's what I see with my kids, as well. We were like,

"Right, at eight o'clock I want all your phones in the kitchen charging,

"nothing upstairs." SHE LAUGHS

They were like, "What? Why did our parents sign up for this?"

SHE LAUGHS

Emma and I are taking part in a total smartphone ban experiment.

I'm literally like, "Have it."

We've locked up our devices for 21 days...

Love you.

..and asked a group of 12-year-olds to do the same.

How are you feeling, Miles? Fine.

Yeah? Yeah? Cos I get five quid a day, so...

THEY LAUGH Oh, do you really?

Eyes closed.

The impact this has on our mental and physical health

is being monitored throughout.

Nothing can go wrong, right? Like, I can't get electrocuted?

SHE CHUCKLES No.No, no, no.

We've heard some of the devastating consequences of early phone use...

I don't think social media is a safe place.

I used to have, like, three panic attacks a day,

and, like, I would go on my phone,

and that probably didn't help.

I ended up talking to somebody not so nice

who definitely wasn't who they said they were.

..we've learnt alarming facts from experts.

So, we know that one in ten nine-year-olds

have already seen pornography.

SHE GASPS Oh, my God.

And witnessed first hand the distressing content

our kids can access on their phones.

Oh, my God.

There's not a chance are they having it.

I feel like we've blindly been letting our kids on their phones.

We need to be more aware,

but other people need to take responsibility

for what they're creating,

for what they're allowing on their apps.

Will locking away their devices make our kids happier,

healthier, and more ready to learn...

Oh, my God. I've just put my life in there. It's completely gone.

..and prove that smartphones should be banned

until our children are at least 14?

Wow, it's already Day Seven.

I had a funny dream last night, and I had my phone in there.

At the Stanway School in Essex,

the phone ban has been in place for a week.

This experiment is important for schools everywhere,

because we're at the front line of the issues

of young people with mobile phones.

We are seeing more and more students with mental health issues,

more students with sleep deprivation,

and these are all issues that we're trying to deal with.

The students haven't found parting with their devices easy.

Uh, no. Obviously, uh, it's weird.

You're in the no-phone universe - what could happen?

Poor phone.

We could literally, like, cancel this any time

if it seriously doesn't work out.

Is that...? That's possible, right?

My phone!

Oh, come back to me.No! HE CHUCKLES

Oh, my God. Like, this morning,

Jacob was doing something really dumb,

so I was going to take a video of him, and then I go,

"where's my phone to take a vid?"

And I realised.

It would be so weird, not having a phone till you're, like, 18.

My dad got his first phone at 18. And like, that's kind of crazy.

There are these tribes out there,

like indigenous people, who live without phones.

The, the... How did we get onto tribes?

Now it's sort of setting in,

I'm 100% sure I'm going to come out of it better in the long run,

but I think I might get to the point

where I'm absolutely just bored.

I think it's pretty obvious that I was way more worried than Emma

when we first started this.

I was thinking I was going to find it really horrible and really difficult,

and I hated it, "I'm really attached to my phone, blah-blah-blah."

But I feel quite all right,

and I've really enjoyed being present.

It's just typical, isn't it,

that Matt has been like a duck to water with it,

and I was super excited,

and the minute I didn't have it, I was filled with anxiety.

SHE LAUGHS I felt like I couldn't cope.

These school kids

are going to be missing their interactions with their friends,

I bet they're going to be dying to get back on their phone.

You know, so are we going to make any lasting change with these kids?

Goodbye!

I don't know.

SCHOOL BELL RINGS

So, good morning, in we come.

Morning, morning, morning.

Morning, Maddie.

Morning, Harry.

Morning, Sam.

Over 90% of 11-year-olds own a smartphone,

and, incredibly, half of our nation's nine-year-olds do, too.

I think there's no question at all.

We're giving children smartphones far too young.

As a doctor, I have seen time and time again

teenagers and adolescents have their mental health problems

get significantly better when they cut out the smartphones.

To give us a deeper understanding of the effects of smartphone use,

the University of York are analysing the children's sleep,

wellbeing and health data,

and carrying out an anonymous school-wide survey on phone use.

It is our responsibility, like, as research scientists,

to really get a handle on the psychological costs

and the benefits of smartphone use.

And to know what the appropriate legislation and safeguarding

needs to be put in place in order to protect our young people.

We're now over a third of the way through the experiment.

Day Eight.

I think we're doing rather well.

Yesterday, I actually played Lego Mario with Isaac.

# Happy birthday, dear Scarlett, happy birthday to you. #

Why is it a phone? THEY LAUGH

Smartphones are one of the world's best distraction devices.

So children are growing up now never needing to be bored.

I usually go out, but it's a bit hard to plan something

because I can't message anyone. Yeah, yeah.

Yeah, I don't want to knock on someone's door saying if...

Whether they're in or out.

I just want to text them on my phone. That would be so weird!

There is a desire to change their relationship with these devices,

so we need to help them.

You know what you want to do after school.

Like, when I get home I'm like,

"Call my mates, see who's online, get some food", that's my day.

But now, without a phone,

I'm just missing out on all the fun that they could be having,

which kind of makes me jealous.

Miles has struggled through the first week of the phone ban.

If my parents weren't here,

and I could get my phone back, I would stop doing it. They're like,

"Oh, it's good for you, or it's going to be better for you."

Phones cause a lot of problems for schools,

but a lot of our pastoral issues that we deal with

have actually started outside of the school -

that's access to material they shouldn't have,

whether it's just addiction to the phone, and lack of sleep...

So, in essence, we're breeding and growing

a society of children who are not used to being able to manage that.

Oh, my lord.

I can't be bothered.

At school, in the day, I have stuff to do,

but when you get home, like,

it's your choice what to do, that's what's kind of harder.

So, Miles, tell me, how are you feeling?

I'm just bored. Absolutely nothing to do.

You can help make dinner.

Yeah, but I just don't want to do...

Yeah, well, it's Friday tomorrow.

Yeah, and then I'll have to do nothing all weekend!

Miles, you can do this.

Be strong. No...

But what is there to do all weekend?

Smartphone usage is clearly ingrained

in the lives of our 12-year-olds...

..but recent studies show that a fifth of three and four-year-olds

have their own device, too.

Dr Nichani is a consultant paediatrician

who has been actively researching screen use in the under-fives.

What I'm seeing at the coalface in my clinics

is the advent of

nonverbal children,

so, in other words, two or three-year-old toddlers

who walk in, normal mobility, normal coordination... Mmm.

..and they don't say a word. Right. They have this glazed look,

they don't look at you,

they're looking at inanimate objects in the room.

And, for a lot of these children, I've discovered that they are

spending most of their waking hours on a screen, in front of a screen.

Primary school teachers tell me children are coming with

developmental language difficulties,

behavioural problems, temper tantrums,

and nursery workers are now saying

that they're having tantrums when they're dropped off

because their screens are taken away,

rather than because the parents are leaving.

For zero to two, the only screen use should be video chat.

Between two and five, the maximum time for giving a device

should be no longer than 30 minutes during the day.

Right, OK. But it's not calling parents lazy... Mm.

..it's become, just daily, to just...

"Have this while I do this."

The only way to develop language is by talking to your child,

by interacting with your child.

Do you see this as a growing issue?

I'm very frightened by the gravity

and the severity of this issue

and what it's doing to our society, to our children. Mm.

Brain scans on heavy phone-using young children have also shown

structural changes in areas that lead to impulsivity,

inattention, and behavioural difficulties.

These are the same areas of the brain

that are affected in children with ADHD.

Due to his research, Dr Nichani believes phones should be banned

for children until they are even older than 14.

So, the government, in my opinion should ban a smartphone

for children under 16, and there needs to be decisive action -

a total ban, not just guidelines -

because I'm really concerned that...

..human beings...

..as we know them, and starting from early childhood,

will be changed for the worse.

I think, everywhere I look,

this is so much bigger and more than I anticipated.

You know, as parents we feel at a loss.

I feel like we...this does need to be bigger than us.

It does need to be bigger than individual,

needs to be societal change.

And that's why we need this experiment.

This programme contains discussions of suicide and scenes some viewers may find upsetting

CALLING: Dude on the phone!

Thank you.

It's the second week of the smartphone ban...

I'm missing my phone the most.

I miss it way more than Isaac.

..and nearly halfway through the experiment

for this class of year eights.

How are you? It's my birthday tomorrow. Tomorrow?

Yeah. Happy birthday tomorrow. Thank you, sir. How old?

Oh, 13. Oh, the big 13.

The age group that we're doing the experiment with

is a very impressionable age group.

When you're 12, 13 years old, there are so many influences.

Social media can create norms that are not realistic.

Explicit images...

The average age children first see pornography is 13,

with 10% having viewed it by the age of nine.

Young people's understanding of what a relationship is

is now being dramatically influenced by online pornography.

Smartphones are bringing a whole new world of dangers

to our children, and that's quite frightening, actually.

64% of young people have seen porn online.

Using blank phones given to us by the production team,

Matt and I want to see for ourselves just how easy it is

for children to access.

"This website contains age-restricted materials including nudity

"and explicit depictions of sexual activity."

And there's two to click -

"I am 18 or older, enter",

or "I am under 18, exit." Is that it?

So then, we click on that, "I am 18 or older," and we're in.

So that's all you have to press.

OK, first up is an image of a girl getting choked in the back of a car.

Next one, it's "bookworm",

"Little Stepsister Tries Sex."

And there's lots of, like, one woman and loads of men. Yeah.

It looks like YouTube. Yeah.

And it wouldn't feel like you've stumbled upon something

you shouldn't be watching... No. ..because...

It kind of feels familiar. ..it's so similar.

So, this is a video, "A Cuffed Sex Slave Gets Dominated."

SHE GASPS Oh...Oh, my God.

Oh, my God. No...

No, no, no, no, no.

Oh, please turn that off.

Yeah. See, that's horrific. I mean, the, uh...

That... That's like the movie Seven. Yeah.

That is absolutely horrific.

It makes me want to vomit. It's horrendous.

So, anybody...

..of any age can view this,

as long as you just say that you're over 18.

You say you're over 18, and there you are.

You could be an 11, 12, 13-year-old kid,

and you don't know what sex is, and this is the first thing you see.

This is what you think is...normal.

Yeah. I can't think of a more damaging thing...

..than your first image of sex being this.

I think it's hard to see what we've seen on porn sites,

and not be worried about your kids seeing any of that.

As much as we think we know what's going on,

we really haven't got a clue.

And we, as parents,

have not been across what our kids are doing and restrictions...

..as much as we should've been.

Doing this, I've actually felt really guilty about how...

..how little input and knowledge I've had on it

for this amount of time.

Come in. Hi.

Hello.

Miles has struggled to adjust to life without his smartphone,

something he's come to discuss with Dr Chatterjee.

We're almost halfway through this whole experiment,

how are things going? When I got home from school,

I just felt a bit queasy, and I was like, "Ugh."

It gave me, like, a weird feeling in my stomach.

That sounds a little bit as though you were having feelings of anxiety.

Have you had that before? Never.

I only got it since the challenge started.

Something that a lot of people don't realise is that,

yeah, you can have anxious thoughts,

but you can also feel it in your body.

So, I think this queasiness and this sensation in your stomach

was actually your body having that kind of reaction.

Yeah.

I love using my phone,

but I've learnt, like, I use it more than I thought.

I like...I use it a lot,

and I didn't know how much it would affect me when it got taken away.

Day 11. Halfway!

Whilst a smartphone-free existence has its challenges,

many of the kids are now starting to feel the benefits.

I'm a lot more active than usual.

We've been playing, like, board games, going out for a bit,

and just having fun.

Because of the addictive nature of these devices,

a lot of childhoods these days are not based around play,

certainly not play with other human beings.

We need to practise interacting with other people.

I've quite enjoyed not having a phone,

and I've really enjoyed, like, being more sociable.

These devices are basically tools to not be present.

Hmm...

Everything good in life comes from an ability to be present.

We're just over halfway!

When I'm coming home, I'm sort of spending more family time.

When I look at a phone, it seems a bit weird, really,

cos I haven't really had one for a while.

How's it going? Bit worn out.

THEY LAUGH

Yeah, it's been hard work.

I think we underestimated

just how much we'd have to step up as parents.

Miles was fidgety.

It was like you could see... Yeah.

..his frustration, and he just didn't know what to do

with himself... Yeah. ..and that was quite hard for us to watch.

Proper withdrawal symptoms, right?

He did. He went through cold turkey, I think.

SHE LAUGHS Yeah, he had, like, real anxiety,

butterflies. He is used to having had that. Yeah. Yeah. So... Yeah.

..to suddenly remove all of it at the same time... Yeah. ..must be...

And as parents, we gave him a phone for his birthday.

We think we're giving him a wonderful present... Yeah.

..when actually, are we?

It's made me feel that it's not in their best interests

to just hand them this expensive... It's like it's access all areas,

isn't it? ..piece of kit, yeah. Yeah.

It's crazy when you think about it. Yeah.

Right, what cars are we having? Uh, Del Boy's van and DeLorean.

BOTH: Go!

I think Harry's coping quite well, actually.

It's been nice, cos we're sort of doing other things

that we don't normally do.

HE LAUGHS It actually sort of feels like

you got a bit more of Harry back.

Next Tuesday, my phone will be back in my hands.

Are we going to lose you again?

Probably for a little while.

Oh...

Now, I'm thinking,

I don't really want Harry having his phone back.

And it's sort of...

It's causing me a bit of a dilemma.

Me and Nanna are very proud of you,

cos what you've done is a very important thing. Yeah?

For Matt and I, this experiment has already been eye-opening.

We're shocked by some of the disturbing content

we've seen on social media

and how much time kids, including our own, spend on it.

I think us not having our phones

and being able to observe our kids' behaviour with devices...

We've had lots of time to observe.

We've had so much time to observe and watch them.

Just looking at how much time

they spend on each app... Mm.

..was like, "whoa."

This could be ten hours a week

that someone's on this, one of our kids is on this.

You know, what are they going to see in that time?

Cos they're going to see what I've seen. Mm.

You know, and they're going to be affected by it. Yeah.

And this evening,

we've travelled to meet Mark and Lisa,

a couple whose family have been devastated

by a social media challenge gone wrong.

Hello! Hi. Hi.

Matt, nice to meet you. Hiya, Matt. Hello, Emma. Hi, Emma.

Nice to meet you. Please come in.

Thank you. Ah, thanks.

What was Isaac like?

He was a...

He was a smart kid, he was intelligent. Yeah.

Yeah, he was very, very smart. Yeah. He used to come in to us,

early hours in the morning, with, like, "fact of the day".

Yeah. THEY CHUCKLE

He used to like, you know, playing football in the garden with us.

Yeah. Always trampolining.

Trampolining, and he loved rugby, as well, at school. Yeah.

Yeah, what can you say? He was just a normal kid.

LAUGHTER AND EXCLAMATIONS ON FOOTAGE

How old was he when he first got a phone?

Er, 11? Ours were 11, as well, when they went to secondary school.

We did the same thing. Yeah. We were like,

"When you go to secondary school."

Yeah. Yeah. "If ever you need us, keep you safe." Yeah. Yeah.

He kept asking us for TikTok, because his sister's two years older

than him... Yeah. ..so she already had it. It was all very innocent.

We... We used to check the phone.

The schools gave them lots of education about, you know,

"Beware of these weird people online" and all that.

Yeah. And he knew all about that.

You think you can do all the right things... Yeah.

..and we thought we WERE doing all the right things.

Yeah.

So, what exactly was the challenge that Isaac was doing?

It was the "blackout challenge". Right.

It was something where you restrict the airway, and then you pass out.

Right.

Would you mind telling us about what happened that day?

Typical day.

Both of them come running out of school.

Got home.

Isaac went upstairs,

so I started doing dinner. And then it's around about...

..half-past five-ish, something like that, I called up the stairs,

and he would normally come bounding down the stairs for food.

I noticed that the bathroom door was closed.

So I knocked on the door, and there's no answer.

Panic set in.

I ran downstairs.

I got a hammer, and I hammered the door.

And that's where I found Isaac.

That's where my world fell apart.

Isaac was just laid out -

tubes in him, and ventilator, and all that.

Yeah, they couldn't save him.

I went outside, and there's a chapel,

and I just sat down outside for ages, just crying

and thinking, "God, please, God", you know.

The shock of losing your child is just...it's indescribable, you know.

Yeah. I'm still dealing with it, you can probably tell.

I can only imagine, yeah. Ah, it's horrendous, mate. Yeah.

Honestly, it's so bad.

When police looked at Isaac's phone,

they found two previous attempts at the blackout challenge.

And they said, "Will you be OK to watch it, play it?" The thing is...

It's really hard... Yeah. ..to watch him on the screen. Yeah.

Once he did it, and he came round, he was laughing,

so then the anger kicks in, thinking,

"How can you be so stupid?"

But obviously, they don't see the dangers.

It went down with the inquest as misadventure.

He didn't mean to kill himself. Yeah.

Lisa and Mark believe Isaac may have seen the challenge on TikTok,

but the police were unable to ascertain

what videos had been viewed, and the coroner ruled that

Isaac's death was a result of misadventure.

When you're a parent, you love your kids

and you want the best for them,

you know, and you try everything you can,

and yet in their pocket is this other world. Mmm.

What, did we do something? Like, did we? Oh, mate.

You do, yeah, you do question yourself as,

as the parent, have you, have you failed?

Yeah. Have you failed the safety of your child?

You go through everything. It's... I wouldn't wish it on my enemy.

All the rules you have are what we have. Yeah.

That... I think that's why I've been so quiet, actually, is that...

Yeah, we were, we're just a normal family.

What would you like to happen, like, when it comes to these apps?

Definitely the algorithms

need to be put under control, definitely.

There's nothing there that can stop anyone going on and doing it.

It needs to be parents, schools, the platforms and the Government.

They all need to be in line, and they all need to realise

that we need to work together to protect the children.

Yeah.

It's not going to be a simple task,

but unless we do it, there's going to be more dead children.

Yeah. Absolutely.

You can't imagine what that's like, you know.

And...

And then having to deal with it forever.

Well, living with it, yeah.

Yeah. When they were saying, you know,

how they kept thinking, "what did we do wrong?"

You know, "how did we fail?" and you know,

and it's... You just want to go, "you didn't."

You know, you didn't.

There is somebody somewhere that can change that.

So that no other parents have to lose kids.

So that no other kids have their life cut short.

It's just not right.

You all right, baby? Yeah. You sure?

We're in the final week of the experiment.

You do want coffee, babe, yeah?

Yes, please.

And at the Stanway School in Essex, it's lunchtime.

Look, everyone's started coming in now.

Yeah. They're going to be shocked by the lunch queue.

Snapchat or TikTok,

because I reckon all my texts will be on there.

Do you feel like you concentrate better? Do you not?

My sleep's better. I think I'm more sociable,

concentrate better and sleep better.

Like, in lessons,

I don't know why, but I'm more focused.

At the start of the phone ban, Scarlett was one of

the highest users of her smartphone.

I used to have like three panic attacks a day,

and then my anxiety just sometimes happens.

I would go on my phone

and that probably didn't help as much.

Imagine a whole month without your phone.

I wouldn't do it. Guys, it's my baby.

That's sad, Liana. It's like a baby.

No, that is sad. I like my phone, but I'm not obsessed with it.

I have felt less anxious without my phone.

I haven't had any anxiety or panic attacks.

I think it's gone really well not having a phone.

Hi. Hello.

How have you been getting on? Really well.

And how are the kids getting on?

I don't think any kids have given up. Yeah.

I'm taking Instagram off my phone. Are you?

And I'm going to put it on my iPad, which I don't take out.

I'm not wasting my...any free time with scrolling

and looking at other people's lives that don't benefit me.

That was almost inspirational.

SHE SHRIEKS HE LAUGHS

What do you mean, almost?

BELL RINGS

School is done for another week...

..which three weeks ago would've meant extra screen time.

I'm so hungry.

But now for Jess,

Theo and Isaac it means more face-to-face time.

Oh, look at that guy. Look, he's surfing with a...

How do people do that?

Uh, what's it called? Practice.

Are you excited to get your phone back?

Oh. Um, a bit.

There are things I've missed about it. Mmm.

But, I don't know.

I feel like in the past week I actually haven't really...

Hasn't crossed my mind. I don't know if that's just

because, like, I've been filling it up with, like, doing other things.

But I definitely think I'm going to delete, like, TikTok

and... Really? Yeah.

I usually get quite worried before I go to bed. Yeah.

And I'm still suffering with that but, it's like...

Yeah. ..I suppose it's kind of helped.

I definitely feel happier without my smartphone.

I just feel like it's sort of made more time

for things that I actually want to do.

Go!

But to get rid of my smartphone completely... I don't know.

It's a new school week

and tomorrow is the last day of the experiment.

So the University of York are back, retesting

the children for any cognitive or health changes.

Ready to reveal the findings as the phones are returned.

But the teachers at the Stanway School don't

need to wait until the results are in.

One thing that I noticed early into the experiment,

was that, as the students were coming in,

the students who didn't have their phones, seem readier to learn.

They were alert. They had already spent five,

ten minutes before form time talking to their friends.

They hadn't spent that time on a phone.

On the gate, in particular, more sprightly.

The eye contact. Yeah.

When you stop in the corridor, when you're speaking to them,

when you're checking up on them,

their eye contact skills in just a couple of weeks

seem better than they used to be.

Scarlett, her confidence seemed low and her anxiety seemed high.

Now she seems like a different student. Yeah.

It's not even on 90, love. Look, the 90's over here.

She's so confident. She comes up to me and has a chat.

She seems to be going into lessons fine,

chatting away to friends,

and that seems to be a really remarkable change. Yeah.

Ryley is a completely different student,

and I think we've seen that

a bit in the corridors. I mean, you, you're...

I was going to say, I mean, I taught him last year,

and the last three weeks he's been so much calmer.

Mmm. He really has.

Miles has been struggling. Mmm. Yeah.

And he's found it hard,

but every day goes past he's developed that resilience

and he isn't giving in.

No. And we're nearly done. Yeah.

And to see that transformation is, it's wonderful. Mm. Really is.

Guys! I'm back!

Whilst benefits of a smartphone-free life are clear for the kids...

JJ!

..this whole process has been a revelation for me and Matt.

Over the last three weeks we've learnt a lot

and we've seen a lot.

After meeting Mark and Lisa and Jenna,

we got home and I was like,

"Right, restrictions on literally everything."

I've not been able to stop thinking about it.

Like, it's not... I don't think there's a day gone by

that I haven't thought about them since.

It was a complete waste of life that will happen again.

So however good your kids are,

however much you trust them,

you can't trust what they're being shown and that is a reality.

We keep thinking of these tragic stories,

terrifying statistics

and real lack of meaningful age verification.

With brick phones as an alternative option

we're asking ourselves,

why isn't there a smartphone ban for children until at least 14?

And today we have access to

the one place that could make that happen.

I call the minister Peter Kyle.

We are meeting Peter Kyle.

I want to see a future where technology enriches

the life of every single citizen.

He is at the heart of government

and it's his job to keep us all safe online...

..but so far he's resisted calls for a smartphone ban.

I think I was quite naive going into this,

and I think what we've seen and learnt

over the last few weeks has really kind of knocked me for six.

How explicit some of the content is.

How easy it is to access it.

Everywhere we look seems to point towards...

..surely these phones shouldn't be in young people's hands.

So why isn't there a ban on them?

We have this world where social media it just sort

of evolved from within society,

then we have to find ways to make it safe.

Now we're not there yet.

We're taking steps towards getting there.

Now, what I'm not doing is saying that it's going to be a panacea,

and that all things are going to be perfect to start with.

It does feel like we have to do it really quickly,

because in the time that we're trying to figure it out...

..devastatingly, young people are dying still.

And I know you know that because I know that you meet

the parents of children who have passed away.

Yeah. No, I do.

You cannot meet those families without being absolutely shaken to

the core for what's happened to them

and what's happening in general.

You know, we have to move forward.

Also, I've inherited a legislative...

..a programme of law making which hasn't fully run its course yet.

A lot of them coming in next year,

but I've tried really hard to be creative

to use the powers that I do have to start this chain in motion.

I don't envy you. Making an addictive substance,

giving them a little bit of it doesn't seem to work.

You know, like moderation is a very hard thing to...

Mm-hm. ..to navigate.

If we take solid steps forward and we keep that energy

and momentum going forward, we can make changes,

not just in this area, but in lots of different areas.

But I think the Online Safety Bill

and the online safety environment that we're going to have,

particularly from next year,

we will have probably the most stringent rules,

regulations and sets of protections of any country.

By next summer, every company that's selling porn or has

a platform which provides porn,

will have to do meaningful age verification.

Why can't we move quicker?

Because at the pace we're going,

we're so far behind technology anyway,

that we're never going to catch up.

When it comes to actually stopping kids have handsets in

the first place, as I said, I'm really open-minded to it.

I just need to see that it's the right tool,

in the right circumstance. Now, personally right now,

I don't think that that's the right way forward.

But, as I said... Why don't you think it's the right way forward?

Because it's very hard to outlaw people of

a certain age having a handset.

So if we pass a law and parents do feel the pressure

just to go and buy them for one kid,

and one kid goes to class, then the law becomes meaningless.

Yeah. And I really don't want to pass a law where one of

the first examples that young people experience is breaking a law.

So getting this balance right is really difficult.

He said that he wasn't closed off to the possibility of a smartphone ban.

Yeah. He said he was open-minded to that,

which I think was a massive thing for him to say.

Yeah. It would definitely take more than him,

but that is I think where a collective needs to come in.

Yeah. Because we can't wait really for their timelines,

because damage is being done now.

People are being hurt now. And they need to play their part.

Well, I just don't believe it.

21. We're going to get my phone back.

So today is the final day of the experiment,

and I have to admit I'm very excited to get my phone back.

Really excited, but I feel like I could go longer

without my phone. I don't mind if I didn't get it back today.

Got to go quickly. I want to get to school and get my phone back.

Bye, Harry. Bye, Mum. Bye. Bye. Bye.

Bye, have a nice... Ooh, not even a kiss.

Bye. See you later.

Here we are, the final journey back to school.

I'm really looking forward to it. Yeah?

Yeah. Quite excited about today.

And not, like, getting my phone back.

Yeah. I'm looking forward to seeing the kids.

BELL RINGS

We constantly have issues with students that are up late at night

on a smartphone, so their sleeping pattern's get affected.

Their relationships, their mental health.

This experiment,

it's a chance to have genuine research into

an area that doesn't seem to have it at the moment.

Hi. Hi, everyone. How's it going?

You good? STUDENTS: Yes.

21 days ago we were sat in this room

and we all thought it was going to be a very long three weeks,

and suddenly here we are.

And most importantly, none of you dropped out.

I've got to say, we're feeling pretty great, aren't we?

We are, yeah. Yeah.

During the experiment,

the school-wide survey has explored exactly how students at

the school normally use their smartphones.

38% of students are using their phones

for four or more hours per day.

17% of them are using them for six hours or more.

30% of students use phones after 10pm.

Wow.

We dedicate so much time to their education,

but this device is having equal,

if not more when you add in weekends, time in their lives.

Mm. Yeah. How are you all feeling about these devices

coming out of the box today?

I do miss my phone a lot,

but my mum says I've been a much better child, apparently.

Oh, really? EMMA LAUGHS

It's nice to actually be able to engage with Harry a bit more.

I'd come home from work

and there'd be like one-word answers all the time.

But now, we can actually sit and have a proper conversation.

Yeah. The amount of time we get to spend together as

a family has increased loads, hasn't it?

He's involved, he's setting the table,

he's helping make the dinner.

So would you say that you feel like you've got your kids back?

Absolutely, yeah.

Hearing so many positive stories from the families is encouraging.

You ready to hear the results?

But what evidence has the University of York study revealed?

You said you have slept, on average,

one hour extra per night.

Wow! And I'm convinced that one of the ways we tackle

the mental health epidemic in this country with children

and adolescents is to get them sleeping better.

Yeah.

Before you started,

you guys were worried about social connections, weren't you?

But what actually happened is that you said

you felt more socially connected during the ban.

And I guess that's probably due to

the increase in real-world interactions.

Before you gave up your smartphones,

you had more symptoms linked with anxiety and depression.

Since you gave them up your moods have improved.

The students reported

a 17% decrease in symptoms that link to depression

and an 18% decrease in symptoms linked to anxiety.

I've seen individual improvements with patients in the past,

but this experiment with an entire class,

it definitely has surpassed what I thought I was going to see.

The group also showed a 3% boost in working memory,

and for this time span it's just incredible.

And that's a short time, isn't it? Yeah. Yeah. Pretty profound.

I think that's brilliant. Less than three weeks. Yeah.

In terms of common principles we can adopt,

you could have screen-free meal times for example.

What about having no technology in our bedroom.

I think we as parents are going to have to help our children

reset their relationship with technology.

Despite the clear benefits, it's so tough to take smartphones

away from kids who already have them.

It does feel like Government intervention

is needed to help parents,

and let children live smartphone free.

OK, so hands up if you think that kids under

the age of 14 need a smartphone.

So no-one.

APPLAUSE

Right, the bit that 50% of the room have been waiting for.

The experiment is over!

Ooh!

APPLAUSE

First up to get their phones back are the teachers.

Alex. Alex, up you come.

Come on. Here we go. How have you felt? I loved it.

Yeah. Yes. Thank you very much. Thanks, Alex.

APPLAUSE

Laura. You ready? Yes. Yay!

Ta-da. There we go. Well done. Thank you very much.

John, come on.

I think that one's mine. Any notifications? I don't know.

Have a look. Don't need to.

Yes, John. Yes. Don't need to. Yes! Well done! There we go. Love it.

All right, kids, are you ready?

STUDENTS: Yes.

Harry W. Yes!

Here we go. Come on, mate.

Yeah, that's it. There we go, mate. Ah!

Thank you very much. Thanks, Harry.

My dad is really proud of me.

Giving up my phone for three weeks.

Three weeks, wow! It's such a long time.

How are you feeling, Theo?

I think I'm going to, like, limit my time on certain apps.

Well done, mate. Good work, Theo.

Next up, it's Jessica.

You've had a great time without it, haven't you?

I have actually. Yeah. It's been really nice.

I feel like I've sort of opened up

a bit more into the world around me.

Jessica, well done. Thank you. Well done, well done.

Well done.

INTERVIEWER: Do you think that smartphones should be banned

for children under 14 years old?

I do. I do think we should.

Isaac.

Are you looking forward to having your phone back?

Yes, and no. I just feel like, I don't really need it any more.

Really?

APPLAUSE

Scarlett.

I've missed it. Oh! You're like... Ooh, eyes on the prize that is.

I'm not looking at you, Emma Willis. I'm looking at the box.

Sorry. Yeah. Sorry, I just wanted to see it.

Have you had benefits?

Yeah. I think that I've slept better.

Like, my mental health's been better.

And I've been a lot better at school like concentrating,

and I've been kinder to my family. Yes.

Oh, really! Wow, they're massive. APPLAUSE

I feel like I'm not going to use it as much.

If I started off with a brick phone,

then I wouldn't want a smartphone,

but it's cos I've had a smartphone,

and there's like, quite a big difference.

Last, but no means least, Miles.

How you doing, man? How you feeling? Fine.

I would probably say that we should keep our phones now,

but in next generations to come

make it so they can't have their phone.

How you feeling about yours?

I feel all right about it.

Yes, Matt. Yes. Yes.

Just going to put it straight in my back pocket. Yeah.

APPLAUSE

A huge thank you to everyone,

especially the Stanway School

and all the people that took part in this experiment.

We really, really appreciate it.

We have learnt so much about smartphone use. So much.

And the real impacts it has on our kids

and their development, and their mental health.

It's been staggering.

And I think the one thing that we really want to get

out of this experiment is that we really hope that it will get

the ball rolling and change will begin.

Because I think what we all want is that for our kids

to be able to be in the tech world from the right age,

but be absolutely safe within it.

If we can all kind of put that pressure on,

hopefully, we can make positive change.

APPLAUSE Thank you all so much.

This moment is huge.

It goes so far beyond this school and these kids.

We have allowed this technology into every aspect of our lives.

But we've just shown the impact of this.

So the question for all of us is, what are we going to change?

When I think about the idea of a smartphone ban to the age of 14,

I think that's a very wise decision.

We are exposing them to

so much stuff that they can't process or they shouldn't be seeing,

and we are allowing that to happen.

As long as we have ultimate safety

for our children online, that is the end goal.

It's got to be tech companies, it's got to be Government.

Everybody needs to play their part.

Government can't turn a blind eye to this any more.

You've got to look at it and go, "this is a massive problem."

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