The mother of murdered teenager Brianna Ghey is calling on the government to introduce a ban on mobile phones in schools – a move she says will not only safeguard children, but also improve their behaviour and engagement in class.
In February 2023, Brianna, 16, was stabbed to death by two 15-year-olds after being lured to a park in Warrington.
In the lead-up to the attack, her killers had spent time on the dark web. At the same time, Brianna was also trapped online, struggling with a phone addiction.
Her mother Esther Ghey’s Phone Free Education campaign is driven by her personal experiences as a parent and the impact Brianna’s phone use had on her education.
“All the arguments that me and Brianna had were down to her phone use,” Esther said.
“But even in school, she had issues and I used to have phone calls from the school saying that Brianna wouldn’t put her phone away.”
Brianna, who was transgender, struggled with an eating disorder and also self-harmed.
Her mother says the constant time she spent online exacerbated those issues, while impacting her behaviour at school, where she had 120 safeguarding logs and 116 behaviour incidents recorded by her teachers.
“It was so difficult as a parent, because I felt in one way that I was failing and then in another way, and this is really difficult for me to speak about, I was so annoyed with Brianna,” she recalled.
“I thought, why can’t you just go to school, get your head down and just focus on your education, because this is important.
“Only now, after two years of being immersed in this world, do I realise that actually, it’s so much harder than that.”
Research by the Children’s Commission has shown that 79% of secondary schools are still allowing pupils to bring their mobile phones into school, and even into classrooms.
How phone ban is working at Brianna’s old school
Esther is campaigning for government guidance on phones to become statutory, with funding also set aside for the equipment to help schools implement the ban, arguing the lack of legislation is “setting children up to fail”.
At Birchwood Community High School in Warrington, where Brianna was a pupil, they introduced a ban on phones last September.
At the beginning of the day, pupils turn off their phones and place them in pouches, which are locked. At the end of the school day, the pouches are then unlocked.
The headteacher, Emma Mills, said introducing these measures has come with several benefits.
“It’s had an impact in all areas of school, and it’s actually had a really positive impact in ways that I didn’t foresee,” said Ms Mills.
“Attendance has improved this year. In terms of behaviour, behaviour has improved. We’ve had no permanent exclusions this year in school, which is actually the first time since I’ve been headteacher in six years, there’s been no permanent exclusion.”
This summer, the school also saw its best-ever GCSE results in the core subjects of Science, maths, and English.
‘They can live without their phones’
For Ms Mills, another significant change has been the atmosphere in the school.
“They’re not as worried, they’re not as distracted,” Ms Mills said.
“They’ve realised that they can live without their phones. Something else we’ve really noticed is that it’s a bit louder in school at breaks and lunch times. It’s because they’re talking more, they’re interacting more, and they’re communicating more.”
The positive impact of a ban at Brianna’s old school has served as encouragement to Esther, who has written an open letter addressed to Sir Keir Starmer and Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson, asking for government support.
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High-profile signatories include the actress Kate Winslet, as well as actor and film producer Stephen Graham.
For Esther, who will deliver the letter to 10 Downing Street next month, the campaign is not just Brianna’s legacy, but also creating societal change.
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“I think it’s important that we teach young people to live in the real world,” she said.
“It’s going to impact society at one point and I think this small amount of investment in students now will have a massive impact in the future.”
