A major new study has revealed a deeply concerning trend: over 800,000 children of nursery age in the UK are now active on social media platforms. The analysis, which has prompted urgent calls for action, highlights how toddlers are being exposed to content and algorithms designed for adults.
Scale of the Problem: Hundreds of Thousands of Young Users
The Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) conducted the analysis by applying the latest population data to previous research from Ofcom, the communications regulator. Ofcom had found that almost 40% of parents with children aged three to five reported their child using at least one social media app or site.
With an estimated 2.2 million children in that age bracket across the UK, the CSJ calculates this translates to a staggering 814,000 social media users who are yet to even learn to read. Former education minister Lord Nash, who highlighted the findings, described the situation as "deeply alarming".
Calls for a Public Health Campaign and Legal Reform
Lord Nash issued a stark warning about the implications. He stated that children are "being fed content and algorithms designed to hook adults," a reality that "should concern us all." In response, he is advocating for a two-pronged approach to tackle the crisis.
Firstly, he demands a major public health campaign to educate parents on the potential damage caused by early exposure to social media. Secondly, he is pressing for legislation to raise the age limit for social media access to 16 and to hold technology companies accountable for failing to keep underage children off their platforms.
These calls form part of the ongoing debate around the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill. The CSJ supports these measures, also advocating for a ban on smartphones in all schools to "break the 24-hour cycle of phone use".
Global Context and UK Government Stance
The urgency of the issue is underscored by international action. Australia is implementing a world-first law on 10 December, which will require social media platforms to take reasonable steps to prevent under-16s from creating accounts.
In the UK, campaigners including Esther Ghey, the mother of murdered teenager Brianna Ghey, have intensified calls for stronger policies to restrict mobile phone use in schools. The government's current position is that headteachers already possess the power to ban phones and that it supports them in taking necessary steps to prevent disruption.
Health Secretary Wes Streeting has also voiced profound concerns, worrying that society abandons young people "to the Wild West of the online world." He highlighted specific anxieties about "the mind-numbing impact of doomscrolling on social media on young minds and our neurodevelopment."
The findings present a clear challenge for policymakers, tech giants, and parents alike, as the debate over protecting childhood in the digital age reaches a critical juncture.
