The research
Knock sits downstream of better-funded organisations doing real work: Smartphone Free Childhood, the Department for Education, Ofcom, Parentkind, Ipsos, and the team at Ecclesfield School in Sheffield. Every statistic on this site links back to a primary source. If you find a citation we've got wrong, please tell us at hello@knockphone.co.uk.
Parentkind National Parent Survey 2025, conducted by YouGov
84% of UK parents whose child does not yet have a smartphone support banning smartphones across the school day.
Parentkind's 2025 survey, fielded by YouGov, found a clear majority of parents back a school-day ban. The number rises further among parents whose children do not yet have smartphones. Use this figure when describing parent appetite, not pupil opinion.
Ipsos polling, September 2024, 2,175 GB adults
A majority of UK adults back banning under-16s from social media and say 11 or 12 is the right age for a first smartphone.
Ipsos polled 2,175 GB adults in September 2024. Majorities backed banning phones in schools, restricting under-16s on social media, and naming 11 or 12 as the appropriate age for a first smartphone. Use this figure when describing what adults think is the right age, not what children own.
Ofcom Children and Parents Media Use and Attitudes Report, May 2025
30% of UK children aged 6 to 7 own a smartphone, and 67% of 13 to 15 year olds are active on social media.
Ofcom's 2025 children and parents report is the canonical source for UK ownership rates and social-media use by age band. Re-read it whenever a stat is cited on the site. Use these figures when describing the current state of childhood smartphone ownership.
House of Commons Library research briefing
Department for Education guidance published in February 2024 directs schools in England to prohibit the use of mobile phones across the school day.
The DfE's February 2024 guidance, summarised in the House of Commons Library briefing, asks schools to prohibit phones across the school day. Use this when describing the policy context schools are working inside.
Smartphone Free Childhood
Smartphone Free Childhood has organised over 500,000 parents across regional WhatsApp communities in the UK.
The Smartphone Free Childhood movement, founded by Daisy Greenwell and Clare Fernyhough, has organised over half a million UK parents through regional WhatsApp groups since early 2024. Use this when describing the scale of the parent movement SoCel sits inside.
Ecclesfield School, Sheffield, in collaboration with Sheffield Hallam University, Revealing Reality and Liz Hunter
Ecclesfield School in Sheffield ran the S35 Unplugged pilot with 75 pupils. This is a school case study, not a population study.
Ecclesfield School ran the S35 Unplugged pilot with 75 pupils in Sheffield. The work was supported by Sheffield Hallam University, Revealing Reality and the school's head, Liz Hunter. The pilot generated rich qualitative findings about how pupils experience life off their smartphones for a sustained period. It is a school case study, not a population study, and must be described as such on the site.