AIBU to enforce the under-16 social media ban despite child missing out.

You sound very literal op with no nuance or critical thinking skills
whatsoever. I think people like this are fine parenting younger children when it can be quite black and white and you have absolute power but struggle with parenting teens which is much harder.

YouTube is a great resource for educational tutorials, it was a great help for my son revising for his GCSEs last year and my daughter y10 currently watches Chemistry lessons.

Not all social media is bad, it just needs to be used correctly.

I think it’s bizarre to go back on something you’ve already allowed, it’s been known how harmful social media is you shouldn’t have needed the announcement to empower your decision. I’ve never allowed it (well most of it, they have YouTube as a viewer and WhatsApp) the announcement has validated my stance, I’m not going back on YouTube because that’s included, I’m aware of the issues and have tried to mitigate that how I can.

What’s going to happen in the next 7 weeks to make him capable, in your eyes, of making the decision for himself? It does seem a bit bonkers to implement it for an almost 16yo when the details of what it will look like when it is enacted aren’t yet available…

Absolutely unreasonable! You’re closing the stable door after the horse has bolted, he’s done his GCSEs so he has to be 16 in the next 8 weeks and you’re ruining his social life. The ban doesn’t even come in to effect until next April.

I am glad you have seen sense and are going to allow him to have them back. I hope he can live down the embarrassment of the position you have put him in ....

Out of interest, would you always do whatever the government recommended you to do, regardless of your own views and values? That's a terrifying level of compliance, and what allows governments to get away, literally, with murder in some cases. Wouldn't you rather think for yourself?

Agreed.

It's been less than an hour since the OP started this post, and now they've suddenly decided to allow them again. But that doesn't change the fact the poor young man has missed out on events like the prom after party and other social meet ups.

Absolutely ridiculous

How are they supposed to keep in touch? You have removed their mode of communication.

You’ve banned him with seven weeks to go and he’s missed out on fun social occasions key to his age group.
yabvvvvu. Goodness me. He’s clearly the youngest in his yay group and now the most isolated.

I think you've been quite cruel really. I really feel for him, missing out on the prom after-party, events like that are a big thing to teens.

The impact of those 7 weeks of sm access should have been weighed up against the impact on him of being socially isolated.

It’s not the equivalent to buying him cigarettes and alcohol though, is it? The legal age for those is 18 and he’s years off of that. He’s weeks off of turning 16 and the ban isn’t even yet in place. Equally if someone who’s kid was turning 18 next month was on here ranting about wanting to stop them going out because they’d found out they’d had a drink at a party I’d do an eye roll at that too, pick your battles.

I don't think him not having it for 7 weeks is going to undo the damage you are worried about.

Anyway WhatsApp wasn’t on the list as it’s just texting really

I wouldn’t so close to 16, any harm has been done and all it serves is to hinder him.

He was making an effort to stay in touch. Until you removed the way he communicates with his friends.

You've been incredibly heavy handed, and it's ridiculous that you've made this decision, all for the sake of a couple of months. If you're so rigid in following the government, surely you'll be allowing it again when he turns he's 16 in a few weeks time?

I think given he's only 7 weeks off being 16 yabu, he's had it all this time, 7 weeks off it isn't going to make a difference and ban isn't even in place until next year anyway. If he was younger and he was only just starting to get into social media then I'd get you enforcing it early but you are doing it when he's less than 2 months off being of age for something that isn't even going to be banned for a while.

OP, you clearly have no idea how young people communicate and you’ve effectively cut him off from his friends. How utterly awful for him and how short sighted from you.

Oh my, the poor lad, way to ruin any chance of normal communication and friendshio

Make your own parenting decisions, you don't need to do what the government may oray not do in the future

Is there any teen that actually send texts?

Oh stop it and give him back his phone! You’re being controlling not a good parent. The risks were always there - and publicly known - why did you need to wait for the government to tell you about them?

You clearly had no issue with social media before it was voted in parliament and it’s not in place anyway so why be so rigid with it?

This is what is so frightening. Why do people only do what the government says to do when the government says? Why do they allow the government to be the guide of morals and ethics, for their own family, children and selves, when the government is neither of those things? It is a faceless institution! It is so alarming that people can't guide their children without government advice/guidance/laws etc. It's like North Korea is on the horizon and people are okay with it because it means they don't need to do anything but be told what to do, how to do it and when! Scary times!

If this is true and he's only a few weeks off his birthday I think YABVVU indeed.

Then again, needing the government to tell you how to parent is also very odd.