Police urge Warrington parents to speak to children about Snapchat safety
It follows reports of a group chat in Warrington concerning over 100 local children
Police are urging parents in Warrington to speak with their children about Snapchat safety ahead of the summer holidays.
It follows reports that a group chat, made up of over 100 children in Warrington, was used to share indecent images of adults.
The group, previously called "Hype Group", has since been renamed as "Nag FC".
Those identified as involved have been spoken to by their respective school and parents made aware.
Detective Sergeant Joe Davies said: "I understand that this incident is likely to have caused considerable concern to the local community, and I would like to reassure parents and carers that we will always take immediate action when it comes to ensuring children are protected.
"We are also working closely with our partner agencies, local schools and Warrington Borough Council, to ensure all children are safeguarded.
"As part of our enquiries, we are keen to identify members of the group and ask that parents and carers speak with their children and check if they too are a part of the group.
"Anyone who believes their children are part of this group chat are urged to contact us via www.cheshire.police.uk/tell-us or call 101 quoting IML 2134439."
Esther Ghey's daughter, Brianna, was killed by a girl who had access to the dark web.
The teenager was stabbed to death in Culcheth in 2023 by Scarlett Jenkinson and Eddie Ratcliffe.
Esther now runs Peace and Mind UK, a charity which aims to help young people and their families to improve mental health.
She said: "There's so much harmful content out there now.
"Every single week, I am shocked to see new things that young people are accessing, it really is shocking.
"This just highlights once again how vulnerable young people are in this digital world.
"Children have them (phones) in their pockets 24/7 and we can't be expected to monitor that.
"It's time that we all come together, and we think about more than one solution.
"It's never going to be a one size fits all.
"I urge parents to have honest and open conversations with their children about what they're seeing online and for tech companies to take greater responsibility too.
"This can't all be on the shoulder of parents either, tech companies, government, we all need to come together to find solutions to make lives easier for families.
"At Peace and Mind UK, we're campaigning for stronger protections.
"I would like to see the age of social media raised to 16.
"We also think phones should be banned in schools so that children can get a respite for eight hours a day away from the pull of their screens."
For a complete parent guide on how to keep your child safe online which includes explanation of communication and gaming applications, visit here.
We've approached Snapchat for a statement.