NICCY Youth Panel Blog: Social media ban debate

NYP member, Elodie, shares her views of the social media ban for under 16 year olds, which is due to take place in 2027. These are her words.

At 16, I am part of the first generation growing up online; social media accompanies me and my friends everywhere. A constant pocket-sized companion that connects us, entertains us, informs us and sometimes uses, misleads and harms us. Keir Starmer has now announced his plans for a social media ban for Under 16’s. A decision that I feel is rushed and fundamentally feels lazy. Sir Keir Starmer is pulling a blanket ban over the messy bed of social media that was left unmade by the government in failing to properly consider and respond to parent’s and young people’s concerns earlier.

Over the last two years I have been part of the NSPCC Voice of Online Youth Panel, a group of 13 young people from all over the UK who have advised policymakers, politicians and parents on how best we, as young people, should be protected online.

We understand that parents have concerns and worries about our online lives but our own opinions are important too. As part of our work, we have studied the Online Safety Act, we have worked with Ofcom, politicians, policymakers and industry experts to attempt to create what we truly believe could be effective legal, technical, and practical protections through a manifesto for social media change.

The government has now gone right down under and made the same error that Australia has in banning social media ‘No social media? No problem…’

If only it was as simple as that!  A social media ban for under 16’s, affecting many who have already grown up online, would be not only unfair for young people who rely on social media for connection, education and fun, it would also be almost impossible to properly enforce.

We met with Peter Kyle when he was the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology around the same time that Australia imposed their social media ban to give our views on the UK following suit. The reality is, I believe that short of the government imposing a medieval draconian law to physically amputate mobile phones from our tightly gripped hands, it simply will not work. As has predictably happened in Australia, us young and determined users will find ways around the restrictions.

According to research by the Mollie Rose Foundation, 61% of Australian children aged 12 to 15 still have access to restricted platforms. And other children have simply switched to alternate platforms that fall outside of the current legal restrictions.

The fundamental issue here is a lack of trust.

A lack of trust in us as young users of social media to have the sense to try to avoid exposure to harmful content. A lack of trust in social media platforms such as Snapchat, TikTok and Instagram and many others to honestly and openly protect the interests of us young people before influencing, advertisement and profit.

Yet I believe that with structure and work, we can build trust to ensure that the often ignored numerous benefits of social media to us young people, such as connection, education, fundraising, and fun can be preserved at the same time as protecting us from the online risks that we face.

Almost 60% of our parents do not believe that platforms do enough to protect us as children and 51% do not believe that platforms are transparent about their content standards. Research on behalf of the BBFC shows that parents are twice as concerned about their children’s online safety as their physical health, with 55% saying the impact of harmful or inappropriate online content on mental health is their biggest concern. Parents estimate that young people aged 12–17 spend around 17 hours and 35 minutes online each week, though many of us would say that the real duration is likely much higher.

Almost two-thirds of parents are concerned about social media use, particularly exposure to inappropriate content, excessive screen time, and unsolicited contact from strangers. Research also highlights a disproportionate impact on girls, with body image pressures and constant comparison affecting confidence and wellbeing.

According to parents, 47% of young people have reported seeing real-world violence or cruelty online, 40% sexual content or pornography, 42% hate speech or discriminatory language, and 36% dangerous challenges or stunts. However, many young people do not tell their parents everything they encounter online, suggesting the true figures may be even higher. Our parents recognise this too, with more than a quarter lacking confidence that they really know what their children are seeing online.

This raises an important question: if not a blanket social media ban, what should the government do? When young people experience problems online, who can they turn to? Where can they report concerns, and who will listen and take action?

We believe that better education for everyone is essential. Online safety education is often outdated and does not reflect the real challenges young people face. We want age-appropriate, child-informed education for both young people and the adults who support them, with young people helping to shape the resources and support available.

We also prioritise the regulation of AI. Strong safeguards are needed to tackle misinformation, improve accountability, and prevent the creation of harmful content. AI should be developed responsibly, with clear ethical standards and proper oversight.

Reducing the harmful impact of online advertising is another necessity. Young people are heavily exposed to advertising that can affect our self-esteem and behaviour. Paid promotions should be clearly labelled, and the use of AI and filters in advertising should be regulated.

Improving reporting systems is also crucially important. Reporting tools should be simpler, easier to access, and provide clear updates and support from real people when concerns are raised. Young people need to know where they can flag up issues in the confidence that action will be taken to protect them.

We also want stronger privacy protections. Platforms should be more transparent about how data is collected and used, adopt age-appropriate consent measures, and make privacy information easier for young people to understand.

When it comes to content, I don’t want to be exposed to anything online that is going to upset me or cause me harm. I don’t know anyone who does. But we are all vulnerable to making mistakes or clicking on the wrong pop up. We as young people need straightforward guidance and clear protection on how to handle content. Not an unenforceable outright social media ban. A massive 92% of parents polled on behalf of BBFC believe that standards used to define age appropriate content on social media should be based on consultation with the UK public.

They want stronger protections with 86% supporting a partnership between BBFC and social media platforms and 73% would be more likely to let us use social media if BBFC standards were applied.

The long-term faith that our parents have in BBFC age ratings is the logical way forward for social media platforms to ensure that their content is transparent, honest and suitable. BBFC have formed a coalition with NSPCC, Mollie Rose Foundation and other charities, civil society bodies and public interest organisations to seek that UK cinema classification standards are made applicable to all social media platforms.

This is a clear, trustworthy and easily understood format for parents and children alike to ensure that the potential harm of online content is appropriately labelled and accessed only when it is proven that we are of a recommended age to do so. It is something that young people overwhelmingly agree with. A YouGov survey has shown that almost three quarters of 11 to 15 year olds would support movie and game style age ratings based on what you can see and do on social media apps.

The government allowed the Pandora’s box of social media to be opened. Whether they move to ban it or not, social media is here to stay. It is up to the government to decide whether they want unregulated or underground content to continue to cause harm to us along with it. I believe that the most sensible option is to put trust in young people and in social media.

They can do this by introducing age-appropriate classifications on all platforms with an iron clad obligation upon those platforms to prove that their service aligns to the according age classification before children can use them. What we watch matters…no matter what size the screen is.