Love Island star Montana Brown has ignited a parenting debate after revealing she has banned her three-year-old son Jude from having screen time and sugary snacks at school. The 30-year-old reality TV star, who shares Jude and eight-month-old daughter Miley with fiancé Mark O'Connor, outlined her priorities when choosing a school.
In a social media post, Montana said: 'The most important things in my head are nutrition, quality of teaching, and use of screen time. When I send him to school I don't want him to be watching a screen at all.' She also criticised excessive sugar consumption, stating: 'We know it's bad for them, why are we giving it to them for their break times? I get it on occasion, but if anyone is giving Jude sugar, I want to do it on the weekend as a treat.'
Her comments drew major criticism from parents and educators. One teacher said: 'Not all time on a laptop is negative screen time. As a teacher they learn valuable life skills.' Another added: 'As someone who works in a primary school this is an incredibly high expectation when schools are struggling enough as it is!'
In response to the backlash, Montana clarified: 'I did not say the schools I’ve been looking at watch movies all day. I said Jude is gonna have screen time, it's something that I would like for him to have less of it at school.' She added: 'I don't let Jude watch any screen time whatsoever at this age. I don't know one health professional that encourages lots of screen time.'
Montana concluded by sharing her excitement about continuing her school search, saying: 'We’re going to see some more schools this week. I'm really, really excited.'
