Why I’m delighted about the UK Social Media Ban for Under 16s

Children may not like the ban

Many children will be sad and disappointed by the announcement that in Spring 2027 there will be a ban on social media for UK children under 16. They find it hard to imagine their lives without  it. How will they occupy themselves? What will they DO?

It’s difficult to imagine the world, only 25 years ago, when smartphones didn’t even exist. Social media wasn’t even invented.

Social media has become so entrenched in the lives of our children, that it’s hard to imagine life without it.

There are some great benefits to technology. So why are the UK government making this move? 116,000 parents responded to the Government consultation and 90% of them backed the minimum age of 16 for social media. That is a huge majority.

Dangers of social media

Parents are wising up to the dangers their children face from online bullying, damaging or dangerous content. Including ‘catfishing’ (online paedophiles posing as children to obtain sexualised images of children then blackmailing them to send more explicit images.)

But isn’t that an over-exaggeration? Is it just parents getting hot under the collar about very little? Well, no. Research shows that over a third of children, and nearly half (47%) of girls, encounter harmful content EVERY WEEK. With the vast majority seen on platforms like TikTok. Social Media companies have been aware of the harm their platforms are causing. Yet they continue to defend their practices because the advertising revenue they make from children is huge. Also, children are likely to become customers for life.

Children’s emotional and mental well-being has become collateral damage to the profits that social media companies can make. The impact of social media on children’s levels of anxiety, depression, sleep deprivation and body image issues can be huge. But ‘children’ are not the customer. Advertisers are. So Social Media companies accept the harm to children because of the money they earn from advertising revenue.

Is a ban justified?

Some people feel that the ban is like using a sledge-hammer to crack a nut. It’s interesting that all of the social media companies affected by the ban have pointed out the dangers if social media for children and teens ‘goes underground’ and ‘unregulated.’ Yet for years they have failed to regulate their own platforms to make them safe for children. Social media companies have designed their products to be addictive. They have introduced features such as infinite scrolling, algorithmic feeds and public likes or follower metrics. These encourage addictive behaviour, and unhealthy social comparisons. There is a ‘battle for eyeballs’ and social media companies have the attitude, “If we don’t do it, our competitors will.”

Many bereaved parents whose children took their own lives attempting online challenges, or because of bullying, have welcomed the ban. Some bereaved parents, still feel it would be better to implement better rules around children’s use of social media. However, because social media platforms have not made the changes necessary to protect children it could be a very long battle to get them to comply. In the meantime, how many children will be affected?

Won’t children just break the ban?

Of course, some children will get around the ban and find way to access social media platforms anyway. Teenagers are going to try to push boundaries. But it’s good if the law makes it harder to do that. It gives the underlying message to children, teenagers and parents that the harms that social media cause are real and damaging and need to be restricted. Just because some will break the rules, doesn’t mean there shouldn’t be any restrictions. Most parents don’t want their children exposed to the damage social media causes. We want our children to grow up happy and healthy and with the skills to form real-life friendships and relationships.  

What parents in the Tech Industry know

It’s interesting that after the release of the iPad, when Steve Jobs was asked if his children loved the iPad. He replied, “We don’t allow the iPad in the home. We think it’s too dangerous for them in effect,”

When talking to Fox News in 2019, Mark Zuckerburg said: “I don’t generally want my kids to be sitting in front of a TV or a computer for a long period of time.” He said he let his daughters use video calls to talk with relatives across the country but didn’t let them have social media.

At the technology-free Waldorf schools in Silicon Valley, USA, most of the children’s parents work at Google, Apple or Yahoo. These parents send their children to no tech schools because they are so aware of the dangers of technology. They want their own children to be protected as far as possible.

How a ban can improve a child’s behaviour

As a parenting expert, I work with many parents who struggle to manage their child’s smartphone and social media use. Occasionally I have to recommend that parent plan a 2-to-4-week screen time ban for their child. You would have thought by the horrified expression on their faces that I was demanding the head of their first born, to parade on a stick around town. They can’t imagine how they could ever stop their child’s screen time.

Parents imagine two weeks of appalling behaviour and having to entertain their children the whole time. Neither of which materialise. With the right guidance and strategies, parents remove their child’s access to the TV and devices. Every single one tells me they wished they had done it sooner. Because (after a few difficult days) the huge benefit it had on their child’s behaviour, their ability to get on well with siblings and the enjoyment of family life. So much so, that parents are reluctant to reintroduce screen time when the two weeks have passed.  

As a parent and Nana ….

As a parent and as a Nana to three grandchildren, I welcome the news of the UK social media ban for under 16s. I hope my grandchildren can grow up in a world where they are not exposed to the dangers of social media. My wish for them is that they can have fun, make up games, and play indoors and outdoors – rather than being manipulated and addicted to screens. My own children have done a great job so far, keeping my grandchildren away from screens. However, if you are a UK parent, the ban will make it so much easier to stop your child’s life being dominated by screen time and social media.