A city’s head teachers have called on parents not to let their children have a smartphone before they are 14.
St Albans Primary Schools Consortium urged parents to wait until their children were in Year 9 at secondary school before they were given a device.
The letter to parents across the Hertfordshire district was signed by 20 of St Albans’ 24 primary school head teachers.
It said phones could expose children “to a number of negative risks”.
The letter said: “We understand the importance of being able to contact your child as they become more independent, walking to and from school, in order to give you peace of mind and for children to be able to call in emergencies.
“Children’s phones do not need to have access to the internet in order for you to keep them safe, however.
“The use of smartphones is now a feature of daily life for most adults and over the last few years the age at which children are given their first smartphone has dropped significantly.
“We know that in our schools some children as young as Key Stage 1 have smartphones.”
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