Which countries in Europe have banned or want to restrict smartphones in schools?

As more European countries consider the future of children’s lives online, some have put forth measures that would stop them from using their smartphones in schools.

A UNESCO report on global education released in 2023 called for phones to be used in class only to support learning. A new analysis this year from the UN agency found that more than 60 countries now have such measures in place. 

Some reports have said that smartphones can cause distractions while children are learning, though experts say there are arguments in favour of their use in school as well.

“Nobody has the answer to whether banning them in schools is a good thing or a bad thing,” said Ben Carter, a professor of medical statistics at King’s College London who studies the impact of technology and devices on children.

He said that some teachers use them as teaching aids or to deliver homework, while others argue that they can create distractions.

“When they're using their smartphone for completing homework, if they’ve got their notifications on, they'll get told about the WhatsApp message that's just been sent by another person from a different class,” Carter said, adding that the evidence on banning them is mixed.

Here’s a look at some of the European countries that have banned smartphones in schools or where the legislation stands.

In France, cell phones have been prohibited in primary and secondary schools since 2018. This year, the government went further to restrict cell phones in nearly 200 schools as part of a test of a “digital break”.

This means that 50,000 students had an extended phone ban throughout the school day to reinforce the 2018 law.

A Labour MP in the UK recently proposed a new bill that aims to tackle addictive phone use in children which