A school has joined a campaign urging parents to wait until the end of Year 9 before getting their children a smartphone.

Homefield Primary School in Worthing’s Chesswood Road has joined the campaign for a Smartphone Free Childhood.

The school is encouraging parents to join in by signing a pact to wait until the end of year 9 before getting their child a smartphone.

Head of pastoral care at Homefield Primary, Paul Barnard, said: "I struggle myself as an adult to regulate my smartphone use, so how can we expect young children to do this?

“Smartphone Free Childhood says evidence has shown that at the age of 12 the average child spends up to 29 hours a week on their smartphone.

“What is that doing to their developing mind not to mention all the other things they are missing out on whilst on their phones? Our school is keen to support parents and work on solutions and alternatives to smartphones with parents."

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Parent Amanda Walderman, who has twins Rufus and Moe Brody-Walderman at Homefield Primary, said it was interesting to see the impact of smartphones, as the first generation to grow up with them are now adults.

Ms Walderman said: "It seems there is evidence that there is a correlation between smartphone use in children and mental health issues. I am keen to do something about this. I don't want to wait for corporate tech companies to fix this. I have signed the pact and am working with the school to take collective action to help protect the mental health of my children."

Recent polling by ParentKind.org.uk found that 94 per cent of parents of primary school children believe that smartphones are harmful.

But peer pressure to get a smart phone means that only 11 per cent of children are smartphone free by the age of 12.

The parenting pact is an online tool that provides parents with a sense of solidarity and community in delaying their child's first smartphone.

In the first ten days after launching the campaign over 30,000 parents signed the pact with the parents and carers of nearly 2,000 children in 200 schools across West Sussex among them.