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The amount of time children in England spend on screens at school could be harming their “physical and developmental health”, a group of more than 150 clinicians has warned.

GPs, paediatricians and other specialists said in an open letter to Education Secretary Lucy Powell and Health Secretary Yvette Cooper that tablets and laptops are being used without a full understanding of their long-term health impacts, including on eye health.

The clinicians said they are prescribing glasses, hearing aids and speech therapy to children “for a problem that is unintentionally being made worse in our schools”.

The government said it was consulting on screen time guidance for children aged five to 18 but that technology could be a powerful learning tool if used properly.

The group of clinicians said nearly one million children are using screens in most lessons, despite studies suggesting a rise in short-sightedness.

They pointed to an analysis of 276 studies covering 5.4 million participants around the world.

That analysis, they claimed, found a rise in short-sightedness among children and adolescents from around 24% in 1990 to almost 36% by 2023, warning the condition is associated with an increased risk of a range of eye health problems.

Many children now spend longer on screens in the classroom than is recommended in a 24-hour period, the letter said, adding: “As a country, we need to wake up to this now, and start rolling back screen use in schools before the damage compounds further.”

One of its signatories was, Dr Becky Foljambe NHS GP and founder of Health Professionals for Safer Screens. She told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme parents had not been given the chance to “opt out” of the “excessive” use of screens in schools, which risks children “just not thriving” in education.

She said an “explosion” in short-sightedness “cannot be put down to genetics alone”.

Foljambe said it was a “lazy argument” to advocate for screen use to prepare children for a digital work, adding: “They also need their sleep, their eyesight, they need rest, they need ability to critically think and appraise.”

“We are conscious that some of this evidence is still surfacing but the direction of travel is consistent across multiple, independent, and in some cases very large, bodies of research,” the letter continued.

It also warned that children with special educational needs are “disproportionately” directed to screen-based learning.

A Department for Education spokesperson said the government was developing new screen-time guidance for children aged five to 18, and will consult on the safety of artificial intelligence and educational technology in schools.

They said: “Used well, technology can be a powerful tool to support learners who need it and free up teachers to deliver the excellent education every child deserves.”

It comes after a ban on smartphones in schools in England came into force in June, making individual schools and trusts legally responsible for being phone-free throughout the day.

Two Corrie stars are making their way back to the cobbles years after their last appearance, as Sarah Platt faces prison for the murder of Theo Silverton

Coronation Street is welcoming two stars back to the cobbles. Ahead of Sarah Platt’s murder trial, both James Weber-Brown and Amelia Curtis will return later this month.

James played prosecution barrister Robin Winchester in 2017 and appeared on the show on and off for the following six years. His character was last seen on Corrie as part of the legal team that put Justin Rutherford (Andrew Still) in prison for ten years after he carried out an acid attack on Daisy Midgely (Charlotte Jordan) and Ryan Connor (Ryan Prescott).

Meanwhile, Amelia, who also played Juliette Holiday on Emmerdale, will return as legal barrister Georgina Romney, appearing on the show for the first time in more than six years.

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Georgina was last on the show in 2020, when Yasmeen Nazir (Shelley King) was on trial for the attempted murder of her abusive husband Geoff Metcalfe.

Both barristers are expected to appear often during a week of episodes about Sarah Platt’s (Tina O’Brien) trial. The character faces prison after she murdered Theo Silverton (James Cartwright).

Theo was a huge villain on the show. He arrived in 2025 and started a relationship with Todd Grimshaw (Gareth Pierce). He often exhibited controlling and abusive behaviour, slowly isolating Todd from his family and friends. During the Corriedale crossover, Theo left Billy Mayhew (Daniel Brocklebank) to die, knowing that Billy had cottoned on to what he was doing to Todd.

Todd and Theo also got married, after which Theo started beating his husband. Todd eventually called the police, but Theo started stalking him. In April, he was discovered murdered outside of the flat he had shared with his husband and a whodunnit ensued.

It was later revealed that Sarah, one of Todd’s closest friends and his ex, had murdered Theo. She hit him to death with a scaffolding pole after Theo taunted her about the dead son she shared with Todd.

A dramatic new trailer teasing what is to come for Sarah Platt has already been released. In the sneak peek, Gary Windass (Mikey North), who helped Sarah cover up her crime by hiding the weapon, is seen insisting that her actions were in self-defence.

Tina O’Brien, who has played Sarah since 1999, said: “Sarah is absolutely terrified, she has been desperate for this day to come, but the reality of being brought up from the cells and standing in the dock is overwhelming.

“As the prosecution’s case is laid out, she is not sure things will go her way.” The dramatic episodes will air from Wednesday, October 14th on ITV, ITVX, STV and YouTube.

When Tina was first cast as Sarah, she was central to a controversial teenage pregnancy storyline and over the years, her character has been kidnapped several times. Her stepfather, who turned out to be a serial killer, infamously tried to drown her and the rest of the family by driving them all into a canal.

Since returning in 2015, Sarah has been married and divorced, and got away with covering up the murder of her drug dealer ex, Callum Logan, who was killed by her now-deceased sister-in-law, Kylie.

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