Why aren't we discussing the kids running riot in London and Birmingham off the back of a TikTok trend? [title edited by MNHQ at user's request]

[EvangelicalAboutButteredToast]

If there’s already a thread I couldn’t see it.

The plan in the group chat to accuse police of bogus racism in retaliation suggests a notable amount must have been, on this chat at least.

https://metro.co.uk/2026/04/02/inside-group-chat-sparked-teenage-mobs-causing-chaos-clapham-27821292/amp/

Search Chloe Watson Leeds. A white girl murdered two weeks ago by a white girl, with other white kids involved.

Yes your are prejudiced. Yes you will respond that you are not, but that will be due to your 'ethnic' privileges which we do not all have.

I see on the BBC news that the M&S boss has spoke out about this now, It was second piece of news after Artemis

Phones have a lot to answer for. People blame the big tech firms but I think it that isn't onlybthem, parents who buy their kids phones are also at fault. If smartphones were like alcohol and you could only own after 18 a lot of these problems would disappear.

If kids were only legally allowed "dumb" phones (there is a functional 5G Nokia phone - it works you can make a call send a text but no social media) that would be positive.Most parents are too weak to implement a ban themselves which is why we need legislation and that would also encourage tech firms to extend the range of devices for kids and teens.

Andvyes I know kids need access to tech for school but they can use laptops or tablets for school these are bulky and not exactly easy to whip out a pocket and consult in the street. It's the portability of the smartphone that makes it so lethal.

Also maybe we need an Australian type ban on social media, sure kids will find work arounds but having a barrier in the first place is helpful.

That's pretty much the model for most of London though to avoid ghettoisation. You'll also have council estates in areas like Kensington & Chelsea, next to million pound houses. Now councils insist that developers include a certain percentage of social housing in their projects before they can get permission. A few years ago, there was the whole debate about that was it fair if you have worked hard and spent a fortune to buy a posh flat on a development only to find that there are benefit families getting a similar flat paid for by the tax payer? Today, everyone is discussing HMOs and family homes being converted to HMOs - but single people have to live somewhere...

Social media companies/platforms need to be held legally responsible for the content they host/share. If they allow posts that incite violence - they should be held accountable.

It's not common, but just before Christmas last year there were two separate gatherings of about 200 mostly teen boys at Mordialloc, just down the bay from where I live. They charged through the Woolies supermarket. End of term arseholery and all organised by phones.
Not happened before or since.
Still horrible though.

I think of Mordy and teens as kids jumping off the pier in summer.

i’ve seen kids at Waterloo station just walking past those shops with all the chocolates/sweets exposed and the employee standing behind and kids just pick up random stuff and run.

i was saying to my husband the employee should have a water gun with ink or something and spray them, but we’re sure they would be prosecuted instead.

In the movie Elysium with Matt Damon & Jodie Foster, the rich have created this lush paradise-like environment of beauty on a Space Station, while the poor are living in this scorched earth shit hole without the access to state of the art robotic healthcare (who paid for this?) - but within no time they infiltrate Elysium to take what they think is their right.

If a sequel was made to Elysium - would they have turned the Space Station into a shit hole? I found it to be a very interesting film. It is worth pointing out that Elysium on the space station is run as a police state. Perhaps to live in an Elysium you'd have to have zero tolerance take no shit rules.

I've worked with teens from different backgrounds and it is naive to think that less fortunate kids from different cultural backgrounds will be interested to engage in middle class pursuits like reading, piano playing, manners, appreciation of art, etc.

I don't think there is no easy answer.

😲😲😲

The Guardian mentioned it yesterday after a police official stated that parents need to do their part. Today there's one report link:-

https://www.theguardian.com/uk-news/2026/apr/02/sadiq-khan-warns-of-zero-tolerance-approach-towards-any-repeat-of-clapham-disorder

Do you mean kids from different cultures? Or from different class backgrounds?

If this is correct, why does no one address the number of families with an absent father? I've no doubt some single mums do a sterling job, but especially for boys imo, not having a father/ father figure matters, whatever ethnicity.

I'm not old enough for mods and rockers - but werent they older than 13?
A small number of those who would have considered themselves mods or rockers would have been involved. Equally the numbers involved this time are pretty small in comparison to the number of young people in London. So while frightening if you got caught up in it talk of the breakdown of society is a bit extreme.

Banning social media for under 16s or even under 18 sounds like a good idea and obviously there ought to be penalties for those committing crimes.

Oh terrific. Crystal Palace is where I live. I know Burgess Park too.

It's obvious other morons. Some people should have pets let alone kids but they are the type that breed regardless and own XXls and banned breeds.

Mods and Rockers were completely different. They were all adults. One set was a group who rode scooters (Mods) and wore drape suits, the Rockers rode motor bikes and wore leathers.

Their gatherings flooded seaside towns and were very antisocial, but they met to fight with each other, not with society.

They also managed to gather without social media, in fact without mobile phones, banning social media is not the answer.

A lot of kids from different class backgrounds and cultures won’t be interested in culture. I saw the other day black youths outside a McDs in King’s Cross play fighting. Yes they could work, be students, I don’t know. However, locally a few years ago I was mugged and attacked by 2 teenage black boys, there was an issue in the area with this happening a lot, black youths on mopeds with face coverings, stealing designer bags, until police finally got involved. I’ve been brought up in a multicultural area and schooled at a multicultural school (as well as a private school), so it’s not as if I don’t know other races or am not streetwise.

I think absent fathers is a massive problem in society. Thomas Sowell talks about it a lot and the increase in its occurrence and the detriment to society. I even read the other day that a lot of these manosphere influencers are the result of single parent (mother only) upbringings.

It most certainly is and the little bastards go on tour causing mayhem.

I actually do some backshifts in a shop for extra cash as were not mumsnet rich and living close to breadline and need the extra money on top of our other income.

Pretty much every night there are shoplifters and every week there is one aggressive incidident where they walk in boldly, march towards what they want, fill their basket. And if we so much as look at them they shout things like "you cant fucking touch me"

Its miserable and makes me despair for society.

Its always a basket of steaks, coffee, laundry capsules or whisky. And only one type of item. And with security tags still on. They just leave with the basket too. They dont even run, they march with confidence.

The police are useless. We had one in last year who was very agressive and targeting local shops for about 4 months daily and he eventually got jailed for 15 months but they let him out after 3 months and hes back at it.

I googled his name and theres articles going back to 2013 with him shoplifting and being in posession of drugs, threatening someone with a machete etc. Being jailed each time.

Why give him a long sentence and let him out again. What message does it send to him. The message its sent to us is that we have no protection from the police or justice system. Hence why shoplifters come in and take whatever they want.

Ive seen 2 collegaues be hurt in the past year and one local shop had a staff member stabbed.

Mods and rockers may have met without social media but it took more effort and advance planning - and how many 13 year olds would bother? Children are being targeted online with and by a culture that is damaging to society.

Where I live, they’ve recently brought back a policeman who walks around the town centre. Beforehand shoplifting was absolutely rife. They have also kitted the shops out with radios so they can communicate with each other. It’s still a problem but a lot less than it was and this is a London borough.

Problem is there’s only one ‘real’ policeman, the rest are the volunteer lot. And him on his own makes a massive difference. But when he’s sick or on leave, we have no one. Our police station has closed down and we have none left in the borough.

We need more police walking the streets like they used to. We are proof it works. But even though we have proved it works, the Met says they don’t have enough staff to implement this properly or fully across London.

Knife crime is predominantly black on black. Whenever the Police target it the shreeks of "racist" are heard as are the people with no understanding of statistics who shreek that white people do knife crime and rapes etc too. So it will continue ...

I agree with a pp - bring in the riot police toot sweet and give the little fools a massive shock. Kettle the little idiots and keep them there for hours and hours.

Also, all the more reason to ban social media for under 16's. Kent had a problem with hundreds of teens smashing and looting small coastal towns last year.

Causes? who knows but there is literally nothing for teens to do these days. All funding for your activities/clubs/youth support was ceased by the previous gov. There are no music venues or places to gather for teens.
It must be boring as hell.