These teens turned their rooms into tech-free zones. This was the result

A group of teenagers from Bradford, the 2025 UK City of Culture, agreed to take all technology out of their bedrooms for five days to see how they would cope.

We followed two of them, Elizabeth and Henry, to capture the highs and lows - and to see how long they lasted before giving in to temptation.

Thirteen-year-old Elizabeth says she rarely spends time with her parents after school.

The self-confessed Sabrina Carpenter fan normally heads straight to her bedroom for "three or four hours" to watch YouTube videos of her pop idol and chat to her friends.

"My bedroom is basically my peace place," she says.

The teenagers will still be able to use their tech, including phones, tablets and laptops - but only in the communal areas of the house.

"It's going to be hard," says Elizabeth. "I'm someone who likes to be in my room."

Elizabeth's dad, Robin, thinks she will "crack before the end of the week" and take her phone into her bedroom.

"That's going to be a challenge for her," he says as Elizabeth starts to laugh.

He's so confident, in fact, that he's made a bet with his daughter.

"If she cracks, Dad gets a big bag of wine gums."

Other students at Elizabeth's West Yorkshire school are also taking part in the project, including 15-year-old Eliza, who says the lack of private space to talk to friends is on her mind.

"I plan on making it as inconvenient as possible for [my family]," she says, describing her plan to spend time in shared family spaces, such as "on the stairs" and "on the sofa, but where they want to sit".

Michelle, 15, plans to "read a book to fall asleep", instead of staying up on her phone and laptop.

She says usually a normal night's sleep can be as little as "five hours, max".

Henry, 13, spends most of his time at home gaming with his friends online until nine or 10 at night.

However "the latest I've stayed up is probably about 2am," he says sheepishly.

"There's sometimes where I'll be gaming that I forget to even drink water."

It's a space where his mum, Alyson, often spends her evenings too, with Henry having to remind his friends to not swear when they're speaking on their headsets.

Although he says it means he can't "speak as freely" with his friends, Alyson says it has helped to "open up the conversation" between the pair.

It has also made her realise how much of Henry's friendships are built around online gaming.

"That's the biggest part. It's not really about playing the games, it's the social aspect."

He says another bonus of leaving his tech outside his bedroom at night has meant he hasn't got caught up watching "billions of videos" on TikTok just before he goes to sleep.

Henry says he is already sleeping much better, which in turn has "helped in school… in all subjects and all aspects".

Improved sleep quality is something Dr Kaitlyn Regehr, associate prof in digital humanities at University College London, says she would expect the teens to experience after removing digital devices from their rooms.

"There are increasing reports of teens feeling tired during the school day because of their smartphone usage," she says.

She adds that teens "still need lots of sleep", which can be disrupted by overnight notifications or late-night exposure to blue light through smartphone screens.

Reflecting on Henry and Elizabeth's gaming, Dr Regehr says basic safety checks parents can do include checking if a teen knows exactly who it is they are gaming with, not having geo-locators turned on, and making sure the themes within the game are age-appropriate.

By Wednesday, Elizabeth says she has found other unexpected benefits and has spent her evenings researching ballet lessons and baking chocolate chip bread "out of boredom".

"If I still had my tech, I would have procrastinated baking [until] next week," she says.

Her parents, Robin and Grace, say they've also noticed a change, with Elizabeth choosing to watch documentaries on the family TV rather than online videos in her room.

"[The project has] given her an idea that there's other things to do besides going on your mobile phone and your computer," says Robin.

As the project comes to an end, the four teenagers swap stories of their tech-free week.

Michelle says she almost gave up on the challenge multiple times as she would like "some peace and quiet", while Eliza says being in a "really bad mood" with her family meant she went to the cinema with her friends.

"It was really fun actually… a lot better than sitting at home," she says.

"I wouldn't normally do that stuff, mainly opting to stay on my phone after school."

But what about the book Michelle planned to read through the week?

"I think I read one chapter, that's it," she says, adding "the reality is it's not going to happen".

Back at home, Henry gleefully rips the 'tech free zone' sign off his bedroom door and instantly moves his PlayStation back onto his desk, but he says he will continue with some new habits he has picked up throughout the week.

"I'll keep my phone outside my bedroom at night because that has helped so much with my sleep."

"I'm really proud," says his mum, Alyson. "He's done really well."

Elizabeth's dad Robin is similarly impressed with his daughter's resilience - but it does mean he lost his bet.

"A deal's a deal," he says as he hands over two packets of sweets. "Well done."