Baroness Laing of Elderslie
To ask His Majesty’s Government what assessment they have made of the dangers of screen time for children.
The Minister of State, Department for Education (Baroness Smith of Malvern) (Lab)
My Lords, the Government recognise concerns about the impacts of screen time and are committed to protecting children online. We are continuing to explore how the evidence base on the impact of screen time on children can be improved, because the science is uncertain on the relationship between screen time, social media use and child development. We are assessing evidence gaps and will consider what, if any, further research and action are needed.
Baroness Laing of Elderslie (Con)
I thank the Minister for her Answer and appreciate what she says about conflicting evidence, but does she agree with me that there is a problem and that teachers need help solving it? Given that situation, will the Government now advise schools to strictly limit screen time for children, including the screen time in which it is expected that they will do their homework, and thus strengthen the ability of individual teachers to deal with what is undoubtedly recognised as a problem?
Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)
The noble Baroness is right that teachers, parents and early years settings are concerned to make sure that they get the use of screens right and bear in mind what the evidence tells us—for example, that overuse of screen time will tend to displace other important activity, such as physical activity or sleep. That is why the Government have already issued advice to parents on those issues and updated our advice for early years settings. It is also why we are clear that mobile phones have no place in schools, for example, and that new criteria around filtering and monitoring standards should be in place. We will continue to support our teachers, as well as parents, in trying to get the balance right for all our children.
Lord Storey (LD)
My Lords, the Minister will be aware that the Department for Education is requiring the reception baseline assessment for four and five year-olds to use the format of touchscreen devices. There is concern that the introduction of a screen-based element to assessment for the youngest children will encourage and embed an approach to early years education that is at odds with a healthy approach to child development. There is considerable evidence that even limited screen use by very young children carries negative impacts spanning cognitive, linguistic and emotional development, and educational attainment. Will the Minister tell us how we can allay those fears?
Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)
There are two separate points in the noble Lord’s question. I very much agree that the safety of our youngest children in particular should be a priority and that we should continue to monitor and review early years safeguarding requirements and guidance. As I suggested earlier, we have already updated the guidance regarding online safety and appropriate device and screen usage in early years settings. That is linked to advice from the World Health Organization on appropriate usage, particularly sedentary usage, of screen time. The point about assessment is different. My understanding is that the tool the noble Lord references will be used on a short-term basis and largely by teachers, working alongside students. We do not want to be in a position of suggesting that there is no use for technology and screens as we develop our assessment, whether for young children or older children. However, his broader point is right. That is why the Government have provided advice already and are continuing the research necessary, to be clear about what is appropriate use for children.
Lord Laming (CB)
My Lords, the Minister may well have seen an interview with some young people at the end of last term. They are in a school where there has been agreement between the school, the parents and the young people that there will be no screen time, other than for educational purposes, in the school. The thing that was most striking about the reaction of these young people was how they had made a whole range of other friends. Previously, when they had breaks they would always go on their phones—and their thumbs would be going at 90 mph—but once that was not allowed they actually talked to their fellow pupils and developed a whole range of new friendships. It is a very important part of children’s social development.
Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)
The noble Lord, with his very extensive knowledge, makes two important points. First, when we are talking about the impact of screen time we need to involve young people in describing and thinking about where there should be controls and what the alternatives are. Secondly, to go back to my point about screen time displacing other activity, there are fears that screen time displaces appropriate sleep, appropriate physical activity and, sometimes, as the noble Lord has rightly said, the interesting conversations that we are able to have with our colleagues that I am so much looking forward to now that we have returned from the Summer Recess.
Lord Watts (Lab)
My Lords, does the Minister agree that it appears that mobile phones have replaced dummies, with children using them at a very early age? Do we not need to get across to parents that this is not a good idea, given that we know that young children’s brains are developing faster than at any other time in their lives?
Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)
This is precisely why advice is provided by the Government—for example, through the Chief Medical Officer; by ParentZone through videos that it has produced specifically to focus on screen time, with practical advice to parents on how to set boundaries; and the early years guidance that I was talking about that links to the World Health Organization guidance, which, as the noble Lord says, identifies that there is really very little benefit, particularly from sedentary use of screen time, for very small children. I hope all those things will support parents in making the appropriate decisions to support their children in doing things other than simply looking at screens.
Baroness Barran (Con)
Given what the Minister has just said and the points made by the noble Lord opposite, what is stopping the Government following the French health ministry in banning screens entirely in childcare settings for children under three?
Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)
I think here, once again, it is important that we are clear, first, about the evidence of the impact of screens and, secondly, that there are times when there are benefits from the active use of screens. I know that noble Lords opposite have pushed on bans—whether that is for mobile phones in schools or apparently a new ban now—but, while all of us are concerned about this, it is a complex area in which there are benefits as well as disbenefits. It is appropriate for us to build our policy developments and the practice in our schools and early years centres on evidence and that is why the Government are also working hard to build the evidence base in this area.
The Earl of Clancarty (CB)
My Lords, many young people watch a variety of shows on their small screens, including new films. How are the Government encouraging these films to be seen more widely in the cinema, where they belong?
Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)
The noble Earl has tempted me very far out of my policy area, I have to say. My understanding is that cinemas have seen a growth in people going to see films there. Certainly, I know that young people in my life are very keen to carry on going to the cinema as well as watching a whole variety of media in different ways on their screens. The important thing is that we have control over the content of what they are watching, and that is why the Online Safety Act is so important. As I said previously, we are also clear that excessive time spent on a screen can prevent you from doing a whole range of other things which are also fun and important for your life.
Lord Berkeley of Knighton (CB)
My Lords, does the Minister agree that if schools—especially those for younger children—were to place more emphasis on reading books, that would help ameliorate the problem to a certain extent? There is a follow-on problem in that many state schools, especially those for younger children, have very poor libraries, which need a lot more books.
Baroness Smith of Malvern (Lab)
The noble Lord makes an important point about reading, which is why I am sure he is pleased that the Government have announced that 2026 will be a national year of reading, with lots of opportunities through our schools, communities and libraries for children to learn about the benefits of books and reading.