The announcement from UK Prime Minister this week that by Spring 2027 under 16s will be banned from social media is interesting. This follows the lead from other countries such as Australia.
A few points of view on this as the dad of two under 16s:
- Why the language of kids being ‘banned’? It reads that kids have brought this upon themselves because of misuse
- We have to acknowledge that many under 16s will find workarounds to get round these blocks
- Are social media companies on board with this decision? Hard to believe they will be? Will they adapt their platforms to be suitable for younger audiences?
- Game platforms and streaming services are being explored too apparently, many of these have instant messaging within them
Regarding whether this appears to be a good decision for the benefit of my kids my overall feeling is yes, but that comes with a few concerns…
Making something unapproved/blocked will likely make it more enticing. Many will take pride in being able to get past this ban and still access these platforms – and will share how they did it.
In practice, a young person finding their way in life may find some of their identity tied up in their social media platforms. There may be a backlash among some affected and it may be that this change doesn’t practically change much but it does make it a talking point.
The language is punitive rather than educating under 16s (and perhaps as importantly their parents/guardians) about the dangers of social media and ways of working with your kids to protect them from the harmful aspects.
I mentioned this decision to my daughter and she was shocked and her eyes rolled when I said that I didn’t even have the internet when I was her age, or mobile phones for that matter. She doesn’t yet have a mobile phone though that will become a bigger issue over the next year as peers at school presumably start to get kitted out.
I hope that social media can become safer places to go to as it feels like the wild west, it’s perhaps already unachievable to properly regulate it hence banning it for younger people.
Listen to our podcast episode on this decision on your preferred platform or here on our YouTube channel:
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