Sheffield school takes step back in time to offer children of today options other than smartphones
A Sheffield school has launched a four‑year project designed to give young people real alternatives to smartphone‑based lives.
The initiative at Ecclesfield School, Operation 80s/90s Childhood, builds on the school’s successful ‘S35 Unplugged’ project, where students voluntarily gave up smartphones for three weeks.
Many reported better sleep, improved mood and more time with family - but found it difficult to maintain those benefits once returning to smartphone use.
In response the school has launched this new initiative designed to rebuild the offline world around its students.
This year’s programme includes:
New lunchtime clubs focused on retro tech, creativity and hobbies
A physical music library of vinyl, CDs and cassettes
A repair workshop for radios, cameras and 80s/90s gadgets
A major community event on 12th February: Back to Childhood: A Night of 80s/90s Anthems, featuring DJ Chris Cowey, producer of Top of the Pops in the late 1990s
A public meeting chaired by Marie Tidball MP on March 18
The return of the school's S35 Unplugged project in April/May
This week students started to deliver leaflets to local residents inviting donations of retro technology, music and gadgets.
The school hopes the project will grow into a wider Sheffield movement.
"We want to protect childhood," said Liz Hunter, Curriculum Leader for PSHE and Religious Education at Ecclesfield School.
"Young people thrive when they have real-world things to do, places to go and people to be with. This project is about rebuilding that world."