Most children’s homes now filter their Wi-Fi properly. The gap is the phone in the young person’s pocket. The moment they switch to mobile data, or join a friend’s Wi-Fi, the home’s filtering no longer applies, and the curfew you set on the router means nothing.
We now supply mobile phones for young people in care that are locked down before they arrive at the home. The protection goes wherever the phone goes, and the young person cannot remove it.
What the phone does
- Filtered everywhere. Adult content, gambling and other harmful categories are blocked on 4G and 5G mobile data and on any Wi-Fi network, not just the home’s.
- Only the apps you agree. The young person cannot install apps themselves. The home tells us which apps the placement plan allows, for example WhatsApp yes, Snapchat no, and only those appear on the phone.
- A night-time curfew. Internet access switches off overnight at the times you choose, and the young person cannot change the phone’s clock to get round it.
- Safer searching. Google SafeSearch and YouTube Restricted Mode are switched on and cannot be switched off.
- Location always on. The young person cannot turn location off. If they are reported missing, the home calls us and we locate the phone, including out of hours. How locating a missing young person’s phone works.
Why young people cannot get round it
Young people are resourceful, and most locked phones fail because of the workarounds, not the filter. Our phones are built to close them:
- The phone cannot be reset. Factory reset is switched off, so the young person cannot wipe the phone to get rid of the protection.
- The protection cannot be removed or switched off. There is nothing on the phone for the young person to uninstall or disable.
- The usual tricks are blocked. VPN apps, changing the phone’s network settings and turning on a mobile hotspot to share an unfiltered connection are all prevented.
- No second accounts. The young person cannot add their own app store or email account to bring in apps you have not approved.
We tested each of these workarounds on our own phones before the first phone went to a home.
How it fits the placement plan
Each phone is set up to match what the home and the young person’s social worker have agreed, such as which apps are allowed and when the phone goes quiet at night. When the plan changes, the registered manager contacts us and we change the phone. That gives you a clear, recorded answer when an inspector asks how a young person’s phone use is managed.
The home gets a one-page staff guide to the phone that explains what is allowed, what is blocked and who to call.
What it does not do
We would rather you heard this from us than found out later:
- It works on phones the home owns and supplies. A phone the young person owns personally is a matter for the placement plan, and we can advise.
- It controls which apps and websites can be used, not what is said inside an app you have allowed. Conversations in an approved messaging app are not read.
- It is one layer of safeguarding, not a replacement for staff supervision, conversations with the young person and a good online safety policy.
Already in use
The first of these phones went into use in a children’s home in September 2026, and the home has since confirmed the filtering holds when the young person uses mobile data. It works alongside the Wi-Fi filtering and monitoring we already provide to children’s homes across the UK.
Questions we are asked
Can a young person still use social media?
Yes, if the placement plan allows it. You choose app by app. Facebook can be blocked while WhatsApp is allowed, for example.
Does the filtering work on mobile data?
Yes. The protection is on the phone itself, so it applies on 4G and 5G mobile data as well as on any Wi-Fi network.
Can staff change the settings?
Changes go through us, so every change is made correctly and is recorded. Call or email the support desk and we update the phone.
Do you supply the phone?
Yes. We supply it set up, tested and ready to hand over. Ask us for a price for your home.
Talk to us
If phones are the weak spot in your home’s online safety, talk to the team other children’s homes use, or read more about our IT support for children’s homes.
