Freedom Of Information Request from policyexchange.org

[Timetable]

Hi All,

 

Has anyone received a request for information on mobile usage? Just seems a bit random. Below is what they require.

 

Under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act 2000, I am writing to request information regarding your school’s policy on the use of mobile phones by students on school premises.

For the purposes of this Request, by ‘mobile phone’, we mean any wireless handheld device which allows users to transmit and receive voice, video, or other data. This definition also includes ‘smart phones’ which can perform many of the functions of a computer, often including a touchscreen interface; the ability to access the internet; the ability to download apps; and the ability to connect to other devices, such as a smart watch.

Please provide the following information:

1. Is student possession and/or use of a mobile phone during the school day banned or partially banned? Please provide a copy of any relevant policy documents/guidance/codes of conduct.

2. Which of the following most closely matches your school’s policy on mobile phones for students:

a) Not on school grounds.

b) Collected or placed in locker at start of day.

c) Not allowed to be used during day.

d) Not allowed to be used, unless teacher allows.

e) Only breaks and lunch, unless teacher allows.

f) Only breaks and lunch.

g) Can use any time.

3. How many mobile phones were confiscated from students during the Autumn Term 2023, and for how long, on average, were these phones confiscated for? If you have any records regarding phone confiscations for the Autum Term 2023, please provide a copy of these records.

4. Does your school’s policy on mobile phones for students also apply to other portable smart technology, such as smart watches? If there are separate policies for other portable smart technology, please provide a copy of any relevant documents/guidance/codes of conduct.

Please do share a copy of any other relevant policies/documents relating to the matters in question. I kindly request you provide all information in a digital, written format, or provide links to available information.

If you are unable to provide all of the information requested, please respond to as much as you can within the boundaries of the Act. Please respond within 20 working days as per the conditions of the Act.

Please do not hesitate to contact me on this email address should any aspect of my request require clarification.

[TechMonkey]

Aren't some of those questions unduly vague or repetitive? Provide the policy as well as tell me what it says, and give me anything else.

[supportman]

Just ignore them, most organizations do these days.

[enjay]

This is a topic which is constantly bubbling away. Every so often the media jump on it for it a bit and report on some schools banning them while others use them in class, then it all goes quiet again. Wait a few months and repeat.

 

I agree with @TechMonkey it seems a bit odd they're asking for a summary of the policy and the policy itself. I wonder if they're angling to see if schools have "unwritten policies".

[elsiegee40]

Freedom of Information means you supply requested documents. It doesn’t mean you supply opinion.

 

Very much like our friend Mr Maloney wanting his life made easy by filling in his website for him, this is asking you to make their life simpler by doing the dirty work.

 

You don’t have to do that. If the answer is in a policy then supply the policy. If there’s no documentation to cover a particular question then you can’t supply it, surely?

 

Supply the policy. They read it. Everyone at the school abides by the policy.

Edited January 3, 2024 by elsiegee40

[Rob_D]

Compared to some of the FOIs that come up this seems pretty simple and light-weight.

1 and 4: link to where you've got the policy published on your website, 2: pick the answer that covers you. 3 is the only one that might require some leg work.

[elsiegee40]

Compared to some of the FOIs that come up this seems pretty simple and light-weight.

1 and 4: link to where you've got the policy published on your website, 2: pick the answer that covers you. 3 is the only one that might require some leg work.

 

It is possible that schools don’t keep records that would help with 4. A teacher taking a phone an dputting it on their desk for the lesson may not record that this was done

[Rob_D]

It is possible that schools don’t keep records that would help with 4. A teacher taking a phone and putting it on their desk for the lesson may not record that this was done

You mean 3 (the question about confiscations)?

True, but I'd have thought most schools that had a policy of confiscating phones would have recording for some instances. Say if a repeat offender had their phone locked in the office safe for the day/week. That would probably have to have some kind of paper trail. Then it comes down to if it's possible to interrogate that documentation for the data the FIO wants.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought you'd would still have to provide the information you had even if it was only a partial data-set.

[elsiegee40]

You mean 3 (the question about confiscations)?

True, but I'd have thought most schools that had a policy of confiscating phones would have recording for some instances. Say if a repeat offender had their phone locked in the office safe for the day/week. That would probably have to have some kind of paper trail. Then it comes down to if it's possible to interrogate that documentation for the data the FIO wants.

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought you'd would still have to provide the information you had even if it was only a partial data-set.

If you keep the data then you have to provide i and yes I do mean 3, but I don’t have mod powers to do late edits any more

Edited January 4, 2024 by elsiegee40