Why Alesha Dixon is refusing to let her children have mobile phones
The question of whether, and when, children should be given access to a mobile phone has become one of the defining parenting dilemmas of the modern age. However, for our cover star Alesha Dixon, the decision has never been more straightforward.
‘As long as we can avoid our daughters having phones, we’re going try our hardest,' she tells us. 'She [Azura] can be begging me for a mobile phone, and I feel no way to be like, “nope” [just] because I've got one.'
While social dynamics increasingly revolve around digital connectivity, young teens often pile the pressure on parents to provide them with phones, but Alesha is a mum who's sticking to her guns.
'You've got to be strong with it. My thing is this, if she doesn't need a phone then why is she having one? If I can delay her being in that world, I'm going to work super hard to make sure that it doesn't happen. I don't care if her friends have got phones. In our house, we don't want that.’
The mum-of-two also understands that for some parents, giving them a phone is vital for safety.
‘For those parents that have children that take the bus [to and from school] then I get it, it’s a different story, but we're very fortunate that our children go to a school where they have to be dropped off as they can't walk to school. So, we're like, "well, you don't need a phone because we're with you all the time and we always know where you are. If you're not at school, you're with us so you're fine."’
Inevitably, there comes a point when parents can only shield their children for so long. As they transition into teenagers with increasing autonomy, jobs, and financial independence, withholding access to mobile phones becomes harder, something that Alesha admits makes her feel apprehensive.
'I am nervous about it because it's a landscape I didn't have to be in when I was growing up so I'm not going to be able to relate to her. I'm not going be able to know what it feels like to be on social media from a young age. Even as a grown adult, I'm still learning how to navigate social media.'
Read the full Alesha interview by clicking the cover below or hitting this link
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