AIBU to think banning social media for under-16s is a good idea?

Everything that society wants to ban ends up "going underground". Drugs, alcohol, p, etc
Doesn't mean we shouldn't do it

The idea that a ban will would work, shows just how little the government understand tech and teenagers.

The main thing it will teach under 16 year olds, is to break the law.

The phone ban just means putting them in phone pouches in most schools that unlock by magnet when you leave. Although my sixth former tells me stories of kids not actually locking them or dropping old phones in the pouches.

I think a lot of us would have been the same as children mind. Give these teens a task and if they really want to they will find away around it. If only we could harness that umpth for better things.

This can only be a great thing. Children deserve a proper childhood and a chance to grow without the appalling influence this brings to them. They need space to grow and develop without this.

I'm on the fence. My 15 year old uses you tube but none of the other sites on the list. But he will be 16 by the time the ban comes in anyway. My 13 year old who has learning disabilities is going to struggle as he uses YouTube videos a lot to do things like cooking etc as he finds reading instructions difficult. My 12 year old doesn't watch YouTube anyway.

It’s great news.

Of course some will slip through the net.
Of course it will take time to navigate the complex waters as to how to police it.

But it’s a big step in the right direction. And it worked with smoking, and seatbelts. People said they couldn’t be policed either.

Social media is absolutely toxic for young people. These basic social and personal skills aren’t being developed because of the sheer amount of time they spend on screens. And what they do to their brains.

I catch a bus sometimes at school rush hour, and every single teenager is silent, just staring down at their phone. It makes me so sad - when I was a teenager the bus was a social hub- lots of chat, joking, hoping to sit next to this or that person.

I actually feel so sorry for kids now. I feel like parents are fighting tooth and nail for their kids to keep screens as they’re themselves addicted to screens and having a child cooped up on YouTube eating crisps saves them any complex parenting around curfews, independence etc. It makes them dim and more manageable and quiet - until the rot sets in then, then it’s panic stations and phone calls to CAMHS and ‘why is nobody supporting them’

There’s a new ban in schools as of September.

I don’t get the tracking thing. I don’t track my son.

But some I know use some sort of smart watch for kids

nail on head

the Tories were pushing the ban but Labour wanted to wait to see what the impact was in Australia.

Im not pro Tory at all. Actually I think on the one hand waiting to see the evidence from Australia would have been sensible.

on the other hand, too many children have been harmed and died.

one thing I’ve noticed is that there’s confusion over why.

Theres not actually much evidence that it will help mental health amongst teens - Haidt et al haven’t been proven to be right there.

But there is evidence it’s a safeguarding risk in a huge range of ways.

On that basis I support a ban.

No one with any conscience can allow more children to be physically harmed without doing something.

And in reality, it won’t make a huge amount of difference as the kids who want to, will.

But it sends a very powerful message to parents, tech companies and children.

It clearly isn’t easy otherwise this law wouldn’t be happening and so so many parents wouldn’t be clambering for it.

I agree with it. My daughter is starting secondary school and they’re banning smartphones on site. I understand this too but how can I track her as been using life360 on her iPhone. All us mums been talking about brick phones but how do we track. Apple tags only locate reliably if nearby a smartphone!!!!

We did all that.

The only good thing to
come out of Labour.

I have 2 DC - one is 12 and one is 14. I know exactly what I'm talking about - the shame is parents who just cba with the hassle of adding restrictions and monitoring phones. Yes your child might complain and kick off - who cares!?

Absolutely in favour.

Social Media has become a monster.

I enforce the no TikTok or Instagram by having their phones locked down needing approval to even download the app to start with. As well as checking usage on what time wise and so on.

Parents who don’t even know how to do that will have circles ran around them thinking the government are now protecting their children. False safety.

Bit like nut free schools false safety.

However parents also need to check their wifi hookups because a phone shop by a local secondary sells android phones £52 any child who has the money can go buy one and them zero controls but how many people actually check who and what is on their wifi.

You have no idea.

I think the parents saying "who will enforce it" are missing the point... YOU - YOU SHOULD ENFORCE IT!! People want the government to do all their parenting for them, if you pay the phone bill, you have every right to block apps and add restrictions. If you find it on your kids phone then confiscate it. Its not that hard.

I just cant see why anyone would take the risks of letting a child or young teen have TikTok or Instagram - what possible benefit is there to those children.

I beg your pardon”Tories would have done it sooner” . They did SFAand SFA about vapes! 14 years they had to do something. I have a child who was groomed and abused online during their leadership. They didn’t give a flying f*k. They were completely negligent.

in that clip she describes how easy it is to get on to porn hub and how it’s been influencing kids for two decades.

a ban isn’t going to work that well but the more the gov put in place, the more fines companies have to pay, the more they’re gonna take note .

As Jo bartoch says in this speech; tech companies have been taking the fucking piss with age verification. It’s been sweet FA.

The gov had to act. Tories would have done it sooner.

https://x.com/acadofideas/status/2066511378702090462/video/1?s=46

So mine are adults now ,so I've not read much about it
But what about parents who film their children and make money from views on social media
Those children don't have any say in what their parents are doing .. exploiting them ..is this covered by the ban

I agree. I read a newspaper article about the ban in Australia a couple of months after it made law. So many kids under 16 have managed to get round it in some way.

Wish it had been banned whilst my daughter was under 16.
Maybe she wouldn't have been bullied as bad..