For phone-free schools
The phone stays in the locker. The message still gets through.
TAG is a pocket-sized e-ink device with two buttons, owned by the school. Phones stay locked away all day, and parents can still reach their child, one message at a time.
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29 June 2026.
Phone-free became the rule.Schools in England must be phone-free for the whole school day, breaks and lunch included. Policies were expected by 1 September.1
The phones are locked away.
All day.Heads agree, and most parents do too. 83% of 11-year-olds own a smartphone.2
But plans still change.
Delivered to a locker · not seen
So every change becomes a call to the school office.
So we built one thing that's allowed through
Deliberately the least interesting gadget in the building.
This is the real TAG School B2 enclosure design, drawn live from its CAD files. Prototypes come next.
Enter TAG
TAG is a pocket-sized e-ink device with two buttons, owned by the school. Phones stay locked away all day, and parents can still reach their child, one message at a time.
A school day with TAG
08:40
Phone in, TAG out
At handover the smartphone is locked away. The TAG parent app scans the QR code on a school device, pairing it to that child until the end of the day.
11:05
A message lands
The device buzzes once and shows a single message. If it's still unanswered, it gives two gentle reminders at most, and that's it.
11:06
One press back
Got it for a notice, Yes or No for a question. The parent sees the answer straight away. The child can't type anything.
Parent app: Sam pressed Got it ✓15:15
Handed back, released
The child hands TAG back. At the school's finish time every pairing is released, ready for tomorrow.
For the school
Reach every pupil at once, and see who's read it.
The TAG dashboard messages the whole school, a year group, a class or a custom group, and counts the replies as they come in.
- Broadcasts with a live countTrip cancelled? See who's acknowledged and who hasn't.
- Hold-for-help alertsA 3-second press alerts staff and the child's parents together.
- Fewer office interruptionsParents' day-to-day messages go straight to the child, not through reception.
- Planned: devices that don't go missingStaff will be alerted if a paired device leaves school Wi-Fi, or isn't handed back at home time.
Notice: the museum trip coach leaves at 12:45 from the front gate, not 13:15.
Held for 3 seconds; parents notifiednow
Nothing to do with it except read a message and answer it.
School colours
The faceplate swaps. The message doesn't change.
The TAG School B2 design has a swappable faceplate, so a school can have its devices in its own colours. Every pupil gets the same plain device: nothing to steal or show off.
Designed around safeguarding from the first line of code.
There's no free text from the device, only set replies and a help request. That leaves no room for group chats and no room for bullying.
Parents only see their own child's messages. Staff accounts are managed by the school, and every action is logged.
TAG runs on UK servers and keeps personal data to a minimum. Each pilot school agrees its own retention period.
TAG supports your normal procedures but doesn't replace them. It isn't an emergency service, and a help alert isn't a guaranteed response.
Where TAG is today. Honestly.
The software is built and working end to end on real phones. The physical device is designed but not yet built: its parts are chosen and costed and its case is drawn, and prototypes come next. Until then, a phone running the TAG device app stands in for it, using the same messaging protocol the device will use.
Done
Software pilotParent app, school dashboard, backend and device app, talking in real time.
Done
Hardware designParts chosen and costed, enclosure drawn, renders made.
Next
Physical prototypeBench build, firmware, charging and antenna testing.
Planned · Spring term 2027
Pilot schoolsOne to three local secondaries, recruiting now.
Based in HarrogateWho's building it
Andy Kirk, founder.
Nearly 30 years of selling and running technology businesses. Andy was CTO and then Managing Director of AI start-up MetSwift, and before that founded and ran the web hosting company HG1 Hosting and the IT firm Real World IT. His career began in front-line sales.
- MetSwiftManaging Director 2019–21, CTO 2018–19
- HG1 HostingBusiness owner 2011–17
- Real World ITOwner 2005–07
- Investorsinvestor.schooltag.online →
Be one of the first TAG schools.
We'll bring a live demo to your school: a parent's phone, a phone running the TAG device app and the dashboard, all talking to each other in real time. It takes about 20 minutes.
Sources: 1 House of Commons Library, Mobile phones in schools (England). 2 Ofcom, Children's media lives 2026. 3 Tes, How many schools are there in the UK? (DfE data, June 2025).
The sensible questions.
Who is TAG for?
Pupils who bring a smartphone to school and hand it in for the day. TAG keeps that pupil reachable by their parents while the phone is locked away.
Who owns the devices?
The school. The devices stay on site, can pair with a different child each morning, and are handed back and released every afternoon.
What happens if a device leaves school?
This is planned, not built yet. If a paired device drops off the school's Wi-Fi for more than a short grace period, staff and the child's parents will be alerted. Any device not handed back after home time will be flagged too.
Can the school message everyone at once?
Yes. The dashboard can send to the whole school or to any year, class or custom group, and shows acknowledgements live.
Where is TAG at today?
The software is built and working end to end on real phones. We're running live demonstrations and recruiting our first pilot schools. The physical device is designed but not yet built, and prototypes come next.
One last message
You've just read a whole website. TAG asks one question at a time.
Message on the device: Shall we bring a live demo to your school?
hello@schooltag.online