Guide

How to allow only certain apps on a child's first iPad

Use "Only the apps I allow" in Lampworth. You tick the apps your child may use and type the websites they may open; every other app and website is locked, and so are apps added later.

Before you start

• An iPad with iPadOS 17 or later, with a passcode. Lampworth 1.1 or later. It works the same on an iPhone.
• If the iPad is new, sign it in with your child's own Apple Account in your Family Sharing group if you can. iOS then stops Lampworth being deleted: see how to stop a child deleting a parental control app.
• A short list, made with your child: the apps they need, and any websites for school.
• Fifteen minutes to check that it works.

First, set up Lampworth

1. Start the setup. Open Lampworth and tap Start setup. Say who the iPad is for, answer Is this iPad new?, and choose a parent PIN.
2. Allow access. Tap Allow access. In Apple's message, tap Continue, not Don't Allow, and confirm.
3. Choose something to time. On Choose apps and websites, the setup needs one item before it goes on. Tick a category such as Games and tap Save. Lampworth keeps it aside while "Only the apps I allow" is on.
4. Finish. Turn on Bedtime if you want one, then tap Continue. On the last screen, leave the switches on and tap Start using Lampworth.

Then, allow only the apps you choose

1. Open the Apps screen. On Home, tap Edit on the Timed apps card. Apps and websites opens.
2. Choose the way. Under Which apps can be used?, tap "Only the apps I allow". Its picture shows two apps open and the rest locked.
3. Step 1 of 3, the apps. Tap Choose apps, tick the apps Sam may use, and tap Save. Then tap Next.
4. Step 2 of 3, the websites. Type an address, such as the school's website, and tap Add. Then tap Next. You can leave this empty: every website is then locked.
5. Step 3 of 3, Check your list. It shows what Sam can use, what iOS always keeps open, and that everything else is locked. Tap Try it for 15 minutes.
6. Check, then keep it on. Home shows Check that the right apps open. Try an app you ticked, one you did not, and a website in Safari. If it is right, tap Keep it on. If nobody does, the rule switches itself off after 15 minutes.

The apps you allow start as Timed: they rest at Bedtime and the other times you turn on. For an app that should never rest, such as a reading app, tap Always open next to it on the Apps screen. That asks for your PIN.

To end the rule, tap "All apps, except the ones I limit" on the Apps screen. It asks for your PIN, and the apps you timed before are timed again.

What your child sees

An app that is not on the list shows "This app isn't on your list", with Ask to use this app. On iOS 26.5 and later, the request opens Lampworth for you to add the app. In our test, a website that was not on the list showed iOS's own "Website Not Allowed" page. Your child can open Lampworth at any time and read the list.

What it cannot do

• iOS keeps some of Apple's own apps open: Lampworth names Phone, Settings, Clock, Maps, Files, Health, Wallet and Find My. Safari opens too, but only your websites load. See which apps can't be blocked.
• The website list holds 20 addresses.
• We have tested websites in Safari, not in other browsers.
• It does not look inside the allowed apps, and it shows no report of what your child did.
• It works on this iPad only. Another device needs its own set-up.

And Apple's own Screen Time?

Apple's Screen Time can allow only approved websites too, and hide some built-in apps. With a child's Apple Account in Family Sharing, you set it from your own iPhone (Apple Support).

Next

Read why Safari still opens when apps are paused, or how to pause apps at bedtime.