Many Wakefield teens say they’d opt out of the Government’s planned social media curfews
We've been asking young people in Wakefield what their thoughts are
Last updated 7th Aug 2026
A recent poll has suggested that most teenagers are likely to opt out of the Government’s proposed social media curfews.
Plans announced by Sir Keir Starmer in his final weeks in office included a voluntary curfew aimed at limiting social media access for 16 and 17-year-olds between midnight and 6am.
We've been asking young people in Wakefield what they think. Oliver is 15, we asked him would he opt out and his answer was: "I don't think so" but he said he doesn't know why.
His mum Helen said: "I think it's a good thing, I'd like them to come off of it."
Meanwhile, walking around Wakefield City Centre, we asked a 17-year-old and he said: "I would opt out... because I use my phone throughout the night."
The poll conducted by Censuswide on behalf of the Online Responsibility Network indicates that 84.6% of 16 to 18-year-olds would bypass these curfews.
Among those surveyed, 45.2% of teenagers revealed they would disable the curfew to stay connected with friends or family, while 37.2% stated their desire to watch online content as a reason to opt out.
Leanne Proctor, regulatory lead at the Online Responsibility Network, commented that the findings suggest the curfew alone may not be adequate to prevent online harms.
She emphasised the need for a multifaceted approach, stating: “There is no single solution to protecting children online.
"Rather than relying on broad service-level restrictions, greater focus should be placed on design feature-level protections and robust age assurance, helping to ensure young people have age-appropriate experiences without unnecessarily restricting access."
Additional proposals included turning off features like auto-scrolling and algorithmic feeds to enhance online safety for teenagers.
Then-Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson, highlighted the voluntary nature of the curfew, suggesting it could be adjusted should teenagers widely opt out.
A Government representative reiterated the empowering aspect of the policy. They said: “Young people will have a choice in how they navigate social media as they grow into adulthood.
"In our national poll, 64% of young people aged 16 to 21 supported restricting children from certain apps at night and our trials found overnight curfews quickly became part of daily routines and helped improve sleep and concentration."