A program supporting South Australian parents to unite and delay the introduction of smartphones for their kids is attracting strong interest, with more than 70 schools already signing up to host a session ahead of a state-wide rollout from next term.
The Malinauskas Government is providing $6.5 million to make the Wait Mate program available to every public and private school, helping parents to access the initiative, connect with each other and reduce smartphone use among children.
It comes as new research published in the international journal Pediatrics shows children who own a smartphone by age 12 are at greater risk of depression, obesity and lack of sleep.
The study involved more than 10,000 young adolescents and found the earlier a child received a smartphone, the more likely they were to develop these conditions – with each additional year of earlier smartphone acquisition linked to worse outcomes.
The election commitment will enable Wait Mate to deliver the presentation to parents at all South Australian primary schools in 2026-27, and all high schools in 2027-28. Take-home packs for parents form part of the Government-backed rollout, along with online resources to support remote areas.
Schools are encouraged to host a Wait Mate session and the response to the first round of expressions of interest has been so strong, the organisation now has an entire list of primary schools – including Gilles Street Primary School – for commencement in Term 3.
The Government's investment builds on South Australia's nation-leading phone ban in schools and world-leading work to impose an age limit for social media accounts.
Wait Mate, inspired by Wait Until 8th in the United States, is designed to reshape social norms around early phone adoption and empowers parents through shared commitment – taking an online pledge to delay their kids' devices.
The State Government will also deploy a targeted public campaign to highlight the risks of smartphones, promote the benefits of getting kids off screens and support parents to maintain phone-free pacts as their children start high school.
Smartphones can be a gateway to social media, constant connectivity, and often, exposure to harmful content, cyberbullying, and addictive algorithms.
Research shows the younger someone is when they receive their first smartphone, the worse their mental health outcomes tend to be in adulthood – with clear associations between early smartphone use and higher rates of depression, anxiety, sleep problems, self-harm and difficulty with social relationships later in life.
Expressions of interest for schools to get involved in Wait Mate and host a session for parents will continue throughout Term 2. The first round of host schools for the rollout starting in Term 3 will be selected in coming weeks.
As put by Lucy Hood
We are supporting parents to stand together to give their kids a smartphone-free childhood.
It's heartening to see so many schools across the state wanting to get involved in the Wait Mate program and help connect like-minded families within their school communities.
Our Government has led the way in banning mobile phones in high schools and limiting access to social media – and this push to delay devices is another important measure we are acting on first to protect young people.
Our plan is to get kids active and off screens, away from addictive tech that impacts their learning.
As put by Wait Mate Director SA, Emily Harrison
The response from schools across South Australia has been so strong, and it's clear parents are ready for this.
Wait Mate is about making it easier for families to delay smartphones by backing each other, and when your school reaches out, we'd simply encourage parents to rock up and be part of it.
As put by Gilles Street Primary School Principal, Angela Van Enkhuyzen
At Gilles Street Primary, our parent community are very supportive of this program to delay the use of smart phones by primary school aged children.
We believe it's important that children of this age learn about respectful relationships and boundaries in a face-to-face environment as the world of online or social media communication can be very confusing for them.
We want children to learn about social contact and communication from trusted adults, such as their parents and teachers at school. The Wait Mate program is a tool to help parents achieve this.
