Other parents at your child’s school are giving smartphones to 10-year-olds, and the pressure to do the same is building.
What’s happening: Wait Mate, an Australian grassroots movement, helps parents band together to delay giving children smartphones until at least Year 9 (around age 14). Once 10 families from the same school year sign the pledge, they’re connected via email to support each other. Since launching in July 2024, more than 10,500 families across 1,500 Australian schools have signed.
How it works:
Parents sign a pledge promising not to give their child a smartphone until at least high school, as long as 10 other families from their child’s grade and school do the same. Once the pledge activates with 10 families, parents receive contact details for the other families who’ve signed up, with the idea being that your child won’t be the only one without a phone. Basic phones that only call and text are fine – the pledge specifically targets smartphones with internet browsers and app stores. The movement was inspired by “Wait Until 8th” in the US, which has over 125,000 parents participating.
Learn more: Wait Mate pledge – Wait Mate Australia
