Not identically.
The phone-free default covers the whole school, but DfE explicitly tells schools to consider letting sixth formers use phones at limited times and places — so treating years 12 and 13 exactly like year 7 is a local decision, not a DfE requirement. If your school does allow it, the conditions come attached: out of younger pupils’ sight, and still sanctionable.
updated 28 Jun 2026last checked 10 Aug 2026
What the source actually says
The default first, because it applies to everyone:
“All schools should be mobile phone-free environments by default; anything other than this should be by exception only.”
— Mobile phones in schools, DfE statutory guidance, revised for 2026, under “Prohibiting the use of mobile phones in school” DfE
Then the sixth-form paragraph, which is the answer to the question:
“Schools should consider whether students in the sixth form should be permitted access to their mobile phone at certain and limited times and locations, reflecting this period of education as one of increased independence and responsibility, without compromising the school’s policy on the use of mobile phones for other pupils. This should include prohibiting the use of mobile phones by sixth-form students in front of younger pupils, for example, limiting use to a sixth-form common room. Sixth-form students should remain subject to the school’s behaviour policy and misuse of their phone should have the potential to lead to sanctions.”
— Mobile phones in schools, DfE statutory guidance, revised for 2026, under “Prohibiting the use of mobile phones in school” DfE
Read that carefully. It does not require a relaxation for sixth formers, and it does not require identical treatment either. It requires the school to consider the question, and sets three limits on any exception: it must not undercut the policy for younger pupils, it must keep sixth-form use out of their sight, and misuse must still carry consequences.
The mechanism is expressly the headteacher’s:
“There are a number of ways in which schools can ensure that they are mobile phone-free, and it is for headteachers to decide how best to achieve this within their own unique contexts.”
— Mobile phones in schools, DfE statutory guidance, revised for 2026, under “Implementing a policy on prohibiting the use of mobile phones” DfE
Two dates matter, because this guidance is new:
“The Department for Education published revised guidance on mobile phones in schools in January 2026. This guidance became statutory on 29 June 2026.”
— Mobile phones in schools, DfE statutory guidance, “Revised guidance for 2026” DfE
“Schools should begin following it from 1 September 2026”
— Mobile phones in schools, DfE statutory guidance, “Revised guidance for 2026” DfE
One scope point that is easy to get wrong: this guidance does not reach standalone post-16 providers at all. Its list of settings it does not apply to includes “16 to 19 academies”, “16 to 19 free schools”, “further education or sixth-form colleges” and “other standalone post-16 institutions”, of which it says:
“However, they may wish to refer to the guidance when developing and implementing their own mobile phone policies.”
— Mobile phones in schools, DfE statutory guidance, revised for 2026, under “About this guidance” DfE
So a school sixth form is covered; a sixth-form college is not.
Your school may still require it
Your school can apply the same phone ban to sixth formers as to everyone else, and many will — the default points that way and consistency is a reasonable ground. What it cannot fairly tell you is that DfE requires the identical rule for year 13, or that sixth-form access, if granted, sits outside the behaviour policy.
See also Am I banned from using my own phone during the school day?, Does the mobile phone ban apply on school trips? and Does the phone ban apply to a pupil with a disability or medical condition?.