The UK government has announced a social media ban for under-16s, expected to come into force next spring. Platforms including Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, X and Facebook will be blocked, along with other “user-to-user platforms” that enable social interaction and posting. Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the changes as a “line in the sand” for tech companies that have failed to keep children safe.
Parents and carers have expressed mixed reactions. Shona, 46, a former teacher from Leeds, said she felt relief: “My sons (aged 12 and 10) are just getting to the age where this was going to be entering their lives via friends. We have worked so hard as a family to try to protect them from the online world.” She added that the social norm is shifting and manufacturers must face accountability.
Jake, 49, from Hertfordshire, whose 14-year-old son and stepdaughters aged 11 and 14 are “horrified”, said the ban is impractical: “The genie is out of the bottle. We can’t just snuff it out. My stepdaughter said she’ll just use a VPN – there are loads of TikToks on how to do this.” He argued for proportional restrictions based on age and usage history.
Others were more supportive. Alexandra, a designer in her 40s from Norfolk, said: “If this is Starmer’s only legacy then at least he will have done one concrete thing to protect children against these predatory companies.” Her 16-year-old daughter thinks the ban is a great idea, having seen friends struggle with social media.
But some criticised the approach. Jan, a primary school SENDCo from Oxfordshire, called it “an absolute waste of time” that absolves tech companies of responsibility. Joe, 63, a mental health nurse from Stockport, said: “We’re trying to fix the symptoms and not the disease. Make the dealer change, not the addicts.”
One father, whose nine-year-old son shows little interest in a phone, questioned the feasibility: “A blanket ban on specific apps will simply drive kids to even less well-monitored networks. It would require rigorous age checks, which not even China can do effectively.”
