Students at Framwellgate School Durham will face a total ban on mobile phone access while on school grounds starting Monday 1 June 2026. The new policy requires students to keep their devices out of sight from the moment they arrive at the site until they depart for the day.
The headteacher, Michael Wright, has informed parents that the school is moving to a stricter enforcement approach following government guidance issued in January 2026. That guidance suggests that all schools should operate as mobile phone-free environments by default. Furthermore, the government announced on 20 April 2026 that it intends to make these guidelines a formal legal requirement through the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Act 2026, which received Royal Assent on 29 April 2026.
To help prepare for the change, parents are asked to ensure their children have a school bag to store their mobile phones during the day. The school has clarified that keeping a phone in a trouser or blazer pocket will not be considered acceptable. Parents can expect to receive a letter during the week beginning 11 May 2026, which will contain further details regarding the policy.
The headteacher has warned that any student caught using a mobile phone on the school site after the upcoming May half-term break will likely face very serious sanctions. The decision to tighten these rules comes as Ofsted began inspecting schools on how they implement and communicate their mobile phone policies earlier this year.
Framwellgate School Durham, which is part of the Excel Academy Partnership, is currently working through a rebuild of its facilities. While the new school building is expected to be complete by September 2027, the school has decided to implement these stricter mobile phone rules now to ensure consistency across its current site.
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