A Department for Education spokesperson stated the UK government is developing screen-time guidance for children aged five to 18 and consulting on artificial intelligence and edtech safety.

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Lio Health head of patient safety Laura Cozens stated at the Lampard Inquiry that Oxevision technology assists staff in critical safety interventions and should not be deemed unsafe.

In 2021, NHS England raised serious patient safety concerns regarding Oxevision's usage and capability claims with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency.

Pope Leo XIV published the encyclical Magnifica Humanitas in May 2026 calling for artificial intelligence to serve human dignity, social justice, and vulnerable populations.

A report by the European Academies Science Advisory Council and the Federation of European Academies of Medicine recommended that high-risk artificial intelligence systems in healthcare remain under strict human supervision.

The clinicians' open letter warned that many UK children spend longer on classroom screens than recommended for an entire 24-hour period.

More than 150 UK clinicians sent an open letter to Education Secretary Lucy Powell and Health Secretary Yvette Cooper warning that classroom screen time harms children's physical and developmental health.

An analysis cited in the clinicians' open letter indicates nearly one million children in England use screens in most school lessons, while 2.6 million use devices daily.

A legal mobile phone ban in English schools took effect in June 2026, though devices used specifically for educational purposes remain excluded from the restrictions.

Signatories of the open letter to UK ministers include GPs, paediatricians, audiologists, speech therapists, and Health Professionals for Safer Screens founder Dr. Becky Foljambe.

Classroom screen use does more harm than good to children's health

The clinicians' letter warned that education technology devices used in schools face no health safety checks equivalent to those required for drugs, food products, or toys.

SafeScreens campaign representative Jane Rowland stated that using unmonitored education technology devices in schools every day gambles with the health and safety of millions of children.

UK clinicians stated that school digital devices and platforms have never undergone systematic, child-focused testing for cumulative impacts on children's eyes, ears, or speech.

Health Professionals for Safer Screens founder Dr. Becky Foljambe stated that preventing parents from opting out of school screen use risks children not thriving in education.

UK clinicians warned in their open letter that children with special educational needs are disproportionately directed toward screen-based learning in schools.

Association of School and College Leaders general secretary Pepe Di'Iasio stated education technology should form only part of learning strategies alongside classroom discussion, PE, and break times.

Clinicians stated in their letter that classroom use of tablets, laptops, and interactive whiteboards expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic and was never rolled back.

In their open letter, clinicians stated that children's language acquisition depends on face-to-face interaction that digital screens cannot replicate.

The risk of clinician deskilling outweighs the efficiency gains of diagnostic AI tools

A three-paper series published in The Lancet on October 4, 2026, analyzed 121 global reviews involving nine million people under age 25 to evaluate the health impacts of digital media use.