Suffolk headteachers call for tech giants to do more to protect children online
The National Education Union and others call for the digital age of consent to rise from 13 to 16.
70% of people in the UK believe social media is robbing children of their childhood, and Suffolk headteachers say they want tech giants to step up and take responsibility.
It comes as the National Education Union (NEU), backed by a coalition of organisations, calls for the digital age of consent to be raised from 13 to 16.
The union’s Robbed Report says platforms such as Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat and YouTube are exposing children to harmful content before their brains are fully developed, while making money from it.
Tackled at the root cause
Rebecca Leek, executive director of the Suffolk Primary Headteachers’ Association, said childhood has changed rapidly:
“Clearly, we’ve seen this reliance on digital screens and that’s really affected the movement and interaction that you might have in a typical childhood at the moment. So yes, definitely, we’ve seen a difference.”
What changes are needed
When asked what needs to change in order to protect children Rebecca commented that while schools do their part, the focus has to shift to the companies running the platforms:
“There is only so much that schools can do. We aren’t parents, although we are in loco parentis. But there is a big bad world out there, and I think schools would really welcome the sector at large taking responsibility.”
Leek also raised concerns that children are being exposed to addictive games and content designed to keep them hooked:
“If that were more highly regulated, so that younger people were not accessing them, then that would be solving things further up the chain, more at the root cause, rather than us having to handle it down at the bottom.”
While she was cautious about the exact age limit, she welcomed the pressure being placed on the platforms themselves:
“I would absolutely welcome this renewed attention being given to the platform developers, rather than constantly coming back to schools and requiring us to help young people keep themselves safe.”
The NEU’s leadership, alongside health professionals and campaigners including Baroness Anne Longfield, are expected to take the issue to Westminster next Thursday (18th), calling for urgent action.