Guided Childhood
Start free →
UK social media ban confirmed · Spring 2027

Raise a child who is
ready for everything.

A digital parenting membership built on the research. A pathway from age 4 to 16, daily moments with the exact words for the friction points of the day, 160 scripts for the hard conversations, and DiGi available at 11pm when you need it.

Find your child's stage, it is free →

Four questions. No account needed. Your pathway is waiting.

160
Exact scripts
5
Stages · Ages 4 to 16
100
Lessons in the library
5 min
A day is all it takes
30 day money back guaranteeCancel any timeNo lock-in

Five stages

The pathway meets your child where they are

Every stage has different risks, different conversations, and a different device recommendation. Find yours and start there.

Stage 1
Foundation
KS1Ages 4 to 7

"I did not realise how much the routine would help. The timer changed everything for us."

Start here →
Stage 2
Builder
KS2Ages 8 to 10

"I thought the bedroom rule would cause a fight. They actually seemed relieved someone had decided."

Start here →
Critical window
Stage 3
Explorer
KS3Ages 11 to 12

"Her mood was dropping every Sunday evening. It took me a month to connect it to Instagram."

Start here →
Stage 4
Shaper
KS3 to KS4Ages 13 to 15

"He finally told me what had happened because I had said that line. Months earlier. I did not even remember saying it."

Start here →
Stage 5
Independent
KS4 to KS5Ages 16 and above

"I stopped trying to limit it and started asking different questions. That is when everything shifted."

Start here →
Find my child's stage →

The method

One framework. All the way through.

Research-backed. Tested with parents. TRUST runs through every action, script, and lesson from age 4 to 16.

T
Timing

Right conversation, right moment. Not too early, not too late.

R
Relationships

Connection before compliance. The relationship is the protection.

U
Upstream

Environment before rules. Platform mechanics matter more than willpower.

S
Sleep

Bedroom rule. The single highest-impact change in the system.

T
Transparency

Openness over secrecy. Co-navigation over monitoring.

JP

Why I built this

Justin Phillips
Founder, Guided Childhood · Bath, UK
"I watched my daughter scroll for three hours and realised the conversation I was missing."

Every parent I spoke to was worried. Not because they were doing something wrong. Because the guidance they were given was either too alarmist to be useful, or too vague to act on.

Guided Childhood is the platform I wanted to hand them. Staged by age. Specific to the challenge. A DiGi advisor that speaks plainly and ends every response with a concrete next step.

Start your child's pathway →

The research bench

Built on evidence, not panic

DiGi is trained on the same evidence base as the UK Surgeon General Advisory and Ofcom's media literacy framework. No opinions. Just the science.

CO
Prof. Candice Odgers
UC Irvine · Duke

Effects depend on vulnerability and environment, not hours of use.

AO
Dr Amy Orben
Cambridge MRC · Oxford

The 11 to 13 developmental window. Peak sensitivity for girls.

AP
Prof. Andrew Przybylski
Oxford OII

The Goldilocks effect. Moderate, structured use is not the problem.

SL
Prof. Sonia Livingstone
LSE, London

Children need skills and agency, not just restrictions.

What is inside

Everything you need. At the right moment.

The star quest

Jobs, chores and time outside earn stars, and stars become screen minutes at the rate you set. Screen time stops being the argument and becomes the thing they earn. The one piece no other app has.

Stars become screen time
Your child’s own app

A link, no login, no account. They tick off jobs, watch their stars become minutes, pitch their own quests and fill in the passport. Works on paper too, with the printable star chart, so the youngest need no screen at all.

No login needed
The stage pathway

Digital literacy from age 4 to 16, built for the moment social media arrives at 16. Each stage has different risks, different conversations, and a different device recommendation. No cliff edge.

Ages 4 to 16
Daily moments

The friction points of the day: the morning routine, homework, the gaming handover, bedtime. The exact words for each one, and what your child is learning from the moment.

Five minutes a day
160 exact scripts

Say this, not this, and why it works, grounded in the research, not guesswork. From the first tablet to the TikTok request at 13. Every hard conversation covered.

For every hard moment
DiGi, your evidence led guide

Trained on the research. Tell DiGi what happened today and get the exact words and the structural fix. Available at 11pm when the guilt spiral hits. Always a calibrated next step.

Available 24/7
Device settings before you start

Per device, per age checklists, iPhone first. What to set tonight, before the device reaches your child. Ten minutes of setup saves months of arguments.

What to set tonight
Wellbeing tracker

A weekly check in that takes two minutes. Over the weeks, patterns emerge. DiGi responds to what you find. You spot things before they become problems.

Patterns not panic
Family agreement builder

A document your whole family creates together, prints, and signs. Agreed, not imposed. Reviewed each term. Changes the dynamic from rules to relationship.

Agreed not imposed
The lesson library

100 lessons for digital home schooling, written to be taught at the kitchen table. Algorithms, group chats, gaming, AI and wellbeing, each at the right age.

100 lessons
The homework decoder

Photograph tonight’s sheet and get what it is really asking, how to help, and a lesson matched to what their class is covering this term. The curriculum for their school year, decoded.

Snap the sheet
The passport and printables

A passport to sixteen filled in together, a stamp each stage, and printable star charts, planners and craft sheets made for your child by name. The record of the whole journey, on paper.

Made with their name
Weekly advice emails

One genuinely useful email a week, written like a parent, not a robot. What to try, what to say, and what is coming at the next stage.

Every week

How this shows up in your home

Three moments. Each one real.

Tonight

The bedroom rule is in place. Devices sleep in the kitchen. Everyone sleeps better. The conversation took four minutes and the script meant you did not flinch.

This term

You have had the algorithm conversation. They come to you when something weird shows up. The door is open. That is the whole thing.

Spring 2027

The ban comes into force. Your child reaches 16 ready. They know how algorithms work, what their digital footprint says about them, and how to get help when something goes wrong online. The switch flips. They are not starting from zero.

What parents say

From parents who started where you are

★★★★★

"The bedroom rule conversation took three minutes. I had been putting it off for months. The script made it feel possible."

S
Sarah
Stage 2
★★★★★

"Her mood was dropping every Sunday. DiGi was the first thing that helped me understand why and what to actually do about it."

E
Emma
Stage 3
★★★★★

"I was ready to just ban TikTok. The algorithm conversation changed everything. He actually thanks me for it now."

M
Mark
Stage 3
★★★★★

"Five minutes a week on the tracker. Sounds small. Has changed how I see what is happening with my daughter completely."

L
Laura
Stage 4

Spring 2027 is the date.
Now is the time.

The phone is already there. The accounts already exist. The ban is coming. You are not starting from zero. You are starting from now. Every stage has a next step.

Find your starting point →

Membership

Simple pricing. Start free.

30 day money back guarantee on all paid plans. Cancel any time.

50 of 50 places remain

Founder rate, first 50 members

0 taken
£7.99 / month
Locked for life. Never increases.
Jobs and chores earn the screen time
The screen timer, so time earned is time on the clock
All 5 stages, for life
Unlimited DiGi conversations
160 exact scripts
Lessons, the homework decoder and the school coach
Wellbeing tracker with weekly check ins
Family agreement builder
Start with the free check, then claim your place →

Standard

£12.99 / month
  • All 5 stages
  • Unlimited DiGi
  • 160 exact scripts
  • Wellbeing tracker
  • Cancel any time
Start Standard
Save £57

Annual

£99 / year
£8.25 / month · Two months free
  • Everything in Standard
  • One payment, full year
  • Best value
Start Annual

Questions

Things parents ask before they start

The stage pathway from age 4 to 16, built for the moment social media arrives at 16. Daily moments with the exact words for the friction points of the day: the morning routine, homework, the gaming handover, bedtime. 160 scripts for the hard conversations. 100 lessons for digital home schooling. The digital passport your child fills stage by stage, weighted toward the lessons they complete. Family quests where real jobs earn stars and stars buy the screen time you agree, with a printable contract you both sign. Printable bucket lists and crafts in English and Spanish, every finished sheet worth stars. 24 age gated learning games. DiGi, your evidence led guide trained on the research, available at 11pm. Device setting checklists per device and per age. The wellbeing tracker with weekly check ins. The family agreement builder. And school reminders: forward the school's emails and the dates appear as alerts.

Your starting point is four questions away

Find your child's stage.
Free.

Age, main challenge, how you are feeling, and how much time you have. Four questions. Your personalised pathway is waiting on the other side.

Start the check, it is free →

No account needed. No card. Your pathway is yours from the first question.