New UNICEF app encourages parents to put down their phones and spend more time with their children
19 May 2014 10:47 AM
‘PlayTimer’ app launches on
International Day of Families
VIDEO: See what
happened when 68 children invaded an office by surprise, to highlight how
children don't interrupt your work - so why do you interrupt their
playtime? youtu.be/wFnBJgE3gac
A
new phone app developed by UNICEF, the world’s leading children’s
charity, encourages busy parents to put down their phones and instead spend
quality time with their children.
Using the app, named PlayTimer, parents can set the
amount of time they want to play with their child. Then, if the phone is used
during that period, an alarm goes off. The only way to deactivate the alarm is
by verifying that you are indeed spending time with your child, by using face
recognition software to prove you are with your child.
UNICEF’s PlayTimer enables parents to manage their
leisure time without interruptions from work. This is needed more than ever
considering research shows parents bring their work home with them via their
smart phones. According to Ofcom, 70% of smart phone users take part in work
calls outside of working hours, with almost a quarter (24%) doing so
regularly.
The
app was developed by UNICEF Sweden under the initiative ‘The
Children’s Rights and Business Principles’, which say it is the
employer’s duty to provide decent working conditions for parents and
caregivers.
“We know that children do not always get enough
time with their parents, often because their parents are bringing their work
home with them. But just as we wouldn’t expect children to interrupt us
at work, we shouldn’t let our work interrupt playtime, and this is
especially relevant today on International Day of Families,” says Anita
Tiessen, Deputy Executive Director of UNICEF UK.
“That’s why UNICEF has launched the
PlayTimer app, an innovative way to ensure we are spending adequate quality
time with our children, rather than constantly being glued to our
phones.”
Children can also play a role by becoming in control of
the mobile while the parent and child are spending time together. The child
gets to work-proof their parent’s mobile phone in a playful way, with the
bright blue app featuring a face whose smile increases as more time is
programmed into the app to create a longer play time (see
pictures).
Notes for Editors:
ABOUT THE
APP
For more information and to see a
video on what happened when 68 children invaded
an office by surprise: youtu.be/wFnBJgE3gac
The app is free and available on the app store
for iPhone via:https://itunes.apple.com/se/app/playtimer/id872675762?mt=8
See what happened when UNICEF UK's Kat Crisp
tried the app out at home:http://blogs.unicef.org.uk/2014/05/15/playtimer-childrens-app-play/
span>
For
hi-res images and further information, please contact:
Alice Klein, UNICEF UK, + 44 (0)20 7375 6082 Alicek@unicef.org.uk
ABOUT UNICEF
UNICEF promotes the rights and wellbeing of every child, in everything we do.
Together with our partners, we work in 190 countries and territories to
translate that commitment into practical action, focusing special effort on
reaching the most vulnerable and excluded children, to the benefit of all
children, everywhere. UNICEF UK raises funds for UNICEF’s emergency and
development work and advocates for lasting change for children everywhere. We
are a UK registered charity, supported entirely by voluntary donations. We do
not receive any money from the UN. For more information, please visit unicef.org.uk