15 June 2026
Following the Government’s announcement of a ban on social media for under-16s, UK Youth is calling for young people’s voices to remain central to how this policy is designed and delivered – and for it to be matched by real investment in offline support, such as youth services.
The government will be announcing more detail in the coming months. However, today’s headline is that platforms built around algorithms, social interaction and user-posting (including TikTok, Instagram, YouTube, Snapchat, X and Facebook) will be covered. Messaging services like WhatsApp are excluded. You can read a summary of what the government’s announcement means for young people here.
Headlines have focused on strong parental support for a ban – but that’s not the full picture, and young people will rightly asking how far their own views have been heard.
UK Youth, with Volunteering Matters and Savanta, was commissioned by the government to feed directly into this process: panel surveys of over 9,000 young people and 5,000 parents and carers, surveys of teachers and youth practitioners, seven youth-led Hack events across the UK, and a rapid review of UK and international evidence. The full findings won’t be published until after June — but they’ll be essential to making sure the ban is co-designed with young people, not just for them.
In a nationally representative survey, 29% of 10-21-year-olds supported a full ban on under-16s, rising to 40% among 16-21-year-olds; in a wider public survey, just 19% backed a full ban. Across both, the clearest consensus was for selective access — roughly half of young people said under-16s should be allowed on some platforms but not others.
Parents’ views are similarly more nuanced than reported. When asked to rank options, they most often chose targeted restrictions on the riskiest features (44%) and time limits like curfews (31%), with a full ban ranking lowest (16%) — though support for a ban rose to 63% when it was presented as the headline option.
Young people must stay central to how policies affecting their lives are designed, implemented and reviewed – including any future changes to how they use the internet. Listening can’t stop with today’s announcement.
Restrictions must also be matched by investment in real-world alternatives. The Government has recently announced a £132.5 million Every Child Can programme (funded through Dormant Assets) that will support outdoor learning, civic engagement, arts and culture, sport and life skills. UK Youth has consistently backed this kind of investment, but its impact will depend on whether it reaches the areas of greatest need and strengthens, rather than duplicates, a sector that has faced over 70% of cuts to government funding over the last fifteen years.
Young people should be able to shape and choose the activities on offer, and implementation must not leave any group worse off – particularly those from marginalised backgrounds, for whom online spaces can be a vital source of connection.
Rosie Ferguson OBE, Chief Executive of UK Youth, said:
“Protecting young people online means investing in them offline. If we want young people to thrive, we need safer digital environments and real offline opportunities – underpinned by investment in the trusted relationships, youth workers, and community spaces that support them.
“The young people we spoke to through our Hack events were thoughtful and reflective, painting a complex picture of their relationship with the online world. UK Youth stands ready to work with Government to ensure implementation is shaped by the expertise of the youth sector, and by the voices of young people themselves.”