Most people will be familiar with the feeling or temptation of needing to check your phone when an alert comes through. Just imagine what this is like for a young person in a secondary school, and the impact these small distractions can have on their learning, social development, and their mental health and wellbeing.

Current research suggests that young people are spending an increasing amount of time on screens and mobile devices, and the Department for Education has linked this to a range of challenges, such as higher levels of anxiety, self-esteem issues, social and behavioural development, and lower levels of attention. We also know that nationally the rising use of mobile devices is parents’ top concern for their child’s mental health and wellbeing.

While students should not be using mobile phones in the classroom at Abbey College, we know that it can still be too easy to be quickly look at a notification or be distracted by notifications going off. With this in mind, we have been working closely with students, parents and staff to explore and trial ways to help remove the distractions of mobile phones from our classrooms.

From the second half of Summer Term 2025 we will be rolling out a pilot of using HuSH pouches with students in Years 7 to 9 and New Horizons. The HuSH pouches have already been trialled at other schools in our region with success and good feedback from their students.

The HuSH pouches will give our students a phone-free school experience while they are at school – meaning they are guaranteed at least six phone-free hours a day to support their wellbeing and concentration.

What is the aim of this scheme?

At Abbey College, our aim is to provide our students with the best possible environment for learning. As a ‘phone-free school’, we are aiming to counter the impact that rising mobile phone usage is having on mental health, wellbeing and concentration, and create a better environment for learning, social interaction, and the development of character.

The use of HuSH phone pouches will support this by:

• Providing students with extended, uninterrupted time free from distractions, notifications and social media to enable them to develop essential social skills.
• Supporting students to better focus throughout the school day.
• Enhancing our current Ethos and Safeguarding systems, making it easier and clearer for students to follow our school rules and expectations.

Schools that have adopted this policy have been extremely pleased with the outcomes; pupils are showing greater levels of independence and less anxiety. Schools who have been using the phone pouches for a while have identified the following progress:

• 65% of schools saw an improvement in academic performance
• 74% of schools saw an improvement in student behaviour
• 83% of schools saw an improvement in student engagement in the classroom
• 90% noticed a significant improvement in the wellbeing of students over time

What is a HuSH pouch and how will it work?

A HuSH pouch is a lockable protective pouch that mobile phones and other smart devices can be placed into. Each student will be given a HuSH pouch to use each day at school.

When students arrive at school, they will be asked to turn off their phones, place their phones inside their HuSH pouch, and lock it. Members of staff will greet students as they usually do as they arrive at school, and students will quickly show our staff that their HuSH pouch has been locked. The HuSH pouches can only be unlocked using specific devices that members of staff will have access to and will be made available to students at the end of the school day.

During the school day, except for in emergencies or exceptional circumstances, the pouches will remain locked, meaning it will not be possible be tempted by the distractions and notifications from the phone. In line with our current processes, parents should contact the school office if they need to contact their child or make alternative urgent arrangements during the school day.

As students leave school, they will quickly press their HuSH pouch into one of the unlocking devices and be able to take their phone out and use it again.