Went for a walk with my DS last week and found myself reminiscing about summer holidays growing up — no cash and no phone so - out on our bikes, in the park, and one shared landline between the whole family. You just went outside because there was nothing else to do.
He went quiet then said: “I wish I’d grown up when you did. It sounds really fun.”
It broke my heart a little.
When I said he could still do those things, he told me the problem is everyone’s on their phones even when they’re together. On a school camping trip, they all sat around the campfire in silence — scrolling. Nobody talked.
And this is just the small stuff.
Because underneath all of it — the average age a child in the UK first sees pornography is now 13. 10% have seen it by age nine. Half of all children exposed had seen it by 11.
AIBU to think we all need to do better?
Government: get on with the ban like Australia. Stop stalling. Real age verification, not half-measures.
Schools: ban phones. Full stop. Not “discouraged.” Not “in bags.” Gone. The camping trip story alone should tell you everything you need to know.
Parents: are not powerless. No phones at night. Screen time limits. Know what kids are watching. Being the “strict parent” isn’t something to apologise for — it’s protecting the kids.
Three simple asks. None of them radical. All of them overdue.
It’s too slow. Way too slow.