UK to consult on social media ban for under 16s

The UK government has initiated a significant public consultation regarding the potential implementation of a ban on social media access for individuals under the age of 16. This proposed measure is part of a broader suite of initiatives designed to enhance and safeguard the mental well-being of young people across the nation. Complementing the consultation, England’s education watchdog, Ofsted, is set to be empowered to scrutinise schools’ policies on mobile phone usage. Ministers have articulated an expectation that, as a consequence, schools will increasingly adopt a "phone-free by default" approach to device management within their premises.

This development follows Australia’s pioneering move in December 2025, which established the world’s first nationwide social media ban for young people, sparking global consideration of similar measures, including within the United Kingdom. While some experts and children’s charities have voiced caution regarding the efficacy and potential unintended consequences of such a ban, the proposal has garnered substantial support from various quarters.

On Sunday, a significant bloc of over 60 Labour MPs penned a letter to the Prime Minister, expressing their endorsement of a ban. Their call to action was amplified by the mother of Brianna Ghey, a teenager tragically murdered, who urged the government to take decisive steps. Esther Ghey, Brianna’s mother, shared her perspective in a letter reviewed by the BBC, stating, "Some argue that vulnerable children need access to social media to find their community. As the parent of an extremely vulnerable and trans child, I strongly disagree. In Brianna’s case, social media limited her ability to engage in real-world social interactions. She had real friends, but she chose to live online instead."

Catherine McKinnell, a former school standards minister and one of the signatories to the open letter addressed to Sir Keir Starmer, highlighted in an interview with BBC News that parents currently feel "unprepared to deal with the pace at which social media has changed." Speaking on BBC 5 Live’s Breakfast programme, she acknowledged the importance of children remaining "connected in an online world" but questioned whether this necessitated "being bombarded with information sent to you by algorithms devised to create money by tech companies."

According to the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology, the consultation aims to "seek views from parents, young people and civil society" to ascertain the potential effectiveness of a ban. Furthermore, it will explore the feasibility of mandating more robust age verification processes by social media companies. These companies could be compelled to remove or restrict features that "drive compulsive use of social media." In parallel, Ofsted will be issued with more stringent guidance for schools to curtail phone usage, including directives for staff to refrain from using their personal devices in the presence of pupils. The government is expected to release its response to the consultation in the summer.

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall affirmed that the provisions within the Online Safety Act were "never meant to be the end point" and acknowledged that "parents still have serious concerns." She articulated a firm commitment: "We are determined to ensure technology enriches children’s lives, not harms them – and to give every child the childhood they deserve."

In contrast, Conservative leader Kemi Badenoch asserted that her party would "introduce a social media ban for under-16s if it was in power." She characterised the Labour government’s consultation as "more dither and delay," accusing the Prime Minister of attempting to "copy an announcement that the Conservatives made a week ago, and still not getting it right."

Similarly, Liberal Democrat education spokeswoman Munira Wilson declared that there was "no time to waste in protecting our children from social media giants" and warned that "this consultation risks kicking the can down the road yet again."

Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union (NEU), welcomed the move as a "welcome shift." He elaborated, "Every day, parents and teachers see how social media shapes children’s identities and attention long before they sit their GCSEs, pulling them into isolating, endless loops of content."

The Association of School and College Leaders also expressed support for the social media consultation, while simultaneously criticising the government for being "sluggish" in its response to the online risks faced by children. Pepe Di’Iasio, the union’s general secretary, observed that there was "clearly a much wider problem of children and young people spending far too much time on screens and being exposed to inappropriate content."

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, likewise welcomed the plans to consult on a potential social media ban. However, he strongly opposed the suggestion that Ofsted should "police" phones in schools, deeming it "deeply unhelpful and misguided." He added, "School leaders need support from government, not the threat of heavy-handed inspection."

The current discourse coincides with mounting pressure from the House of Lords, which is anticipated to vote on a proposed ban on Wednesday. An amendment to the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill has garnered backing from several notable figures, including former children’s TV presenter Baroness Benjamin and ex-education minister Lord Nash. A separate amendment is also under consideration, advocating for the introduction of film-style age ratings to restrict children’s access to specific social media applications.

Professor Amy Orben, who leads the Digital Mental Health programme at the University of Cambridge’s MRC Cognition and Brain Sciences Unit, indicated to the BBC that there is "broad agreement" that further measures are necessary to enhance online child safety. Nevertheless, she cautioned that there remains "not strong evidence" to definitively support the effectiveness of age-based social media bans.

Dr. Holly Bear from Oxford University, whose research focuses on the development, evaluation, and implementation of mental health interventions for young people, concurred that the evidence regarding the impact of social media bans is "still unfolding." She suggested, "A balanced approach might be trying to reduce algorithm-driven exposure to harmful content, improving safeguards, supporting digital literacy and carefully evaluating any major policy interventions."

In a joint statement released on Saturday, the NSPCC, Childnet, and the suicide prevention charity the Molly Rose Foundation, alongside 40 other individuals and organisations, argued that a ban would be the "wrong solution." They contended, "It would create a false sense of safety that would see children – but also the threats to them – migrate to other areas online. Though well-intentioned, blanket bans on social media would fail to deliver the improvement in children’s safety and wellbeing that they so urgently need."