New Rules to Protect Children Online: What Parents Actually Need to Know

In June 2026, the Prime Minister announced new rules to strengthen protections for children online. The proposals form part of a broader government effort to make social media platforms more accountable for the experiences of young users — and they have sparked genuine national debate.

As a parent, educator, and researcher in this field, I welcome any conversation that takes children's wellbeing seriously. But I also want to offer something the news cycle rarely makes time for: nuance.

Because when it comes to children, technology, and mental health, the details matter enormously.

What Is Actually Being Proposed?

The government's fact sheet outlines a range of measures aimed at making social media platforms more responsible for the content children encounter and the design features that keep them engaged. The proposals include stronger age assurance requirements, greater accountability for platform design, and enhanced protections around harmful content.

These are, broadly speaking, welcome steps. Children deserve better protection from harmful content, manipulative design, and the unregulated reach of platforms built for engagement rather than wellbeing.

What the Law Can and Cannot Do

It is worth being honest about what regulation can realistically achieve. Laws can raise the floor — they can require platforms to act more responsibly, restrict certain features, and face consequences when they fail children. That matters.

But law cannot replace the conversations that happen at home. It cannot step in when a child feels left out, anxious about their appearance, or confused about something they've seen online. It cannot build the kind of trust between parent and child that means a young person is more likely to come to you when something goes wrong.

Regulation is a floor, not a ceiling. The work of raising digitally resilient children still lives in families.

A Word About Neurodiverse Children

It is important that the conversation about social media does not become one-dimensional. For many children — and particularly for those who are neurodivergent — online communities are not simply a source of risk. They are a source of connection, belonging, and understanding that can be genuinely harder to find elsewhere.

A blanket narrative that frames social media primarily as danger misses this. The goal should never be to simply restrict access. It should be to help every child develop a healthy, self-aware relationship with the technology they will grow up using.

What This Means for Families Right Now

Whatever the government ultimately decides, there are things families can do today that are entirely within their control — and that the evidence suggests make a real difference.

• Stay curious, not fearful. Children respond better to parents who ask about their online lives with genuine interest than to those who approach technology with anxiety. Fear closes conversations down. Curiosity opens them up.
• Talk about how platforms work. Understanding that algorithms are designed to keep people scrolling — not to serve their wellbeing — is a powerful piece of media literacy. Even young children can grasp this with the right framing.
• Focus on the relationship, not the rules. Research consistently shows that the quality of the parent-child relationship is one of the strongest protective factors for young people's online safety. When children feel they can come to you without fear of judgment, they are more likely to do so.
• Make space for the harder conversations. If something feels off — if your child seems withdrawn after screen time, anxious about their phone, or secretive about what they're doing online — those are invitations to connect, not just investigate.

The Question That Matters

The national debate about children and social media is important. But the most important question is not whether children should use technology. They will. The question is: how do we help them do so in a way that supports their wellbeing, their relationships, and their ability to flourish?

That is the question Connected Child was built to help families answer — with evidence, compassion, and practical support.

Join the Conversation

What do you think? Are the government's proposals the right approach? What are you noticing in your own family? I'd genuinely love to hear from parents, educators, and young people.

Visit our Current Conversations page to explore the discussion, find a parent guide, and share your thoughts.