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In December, when Australia introduced an under-16 social media restriction, the Marie Collins Foundation set out our view through a Technology-Assisted Child Sexual Abuse (TACSA) lens. That position remains the same as the UK Government consults on whether to introduce a similar approach, alongside stronger age assurance and restrictions on addictive features. 

The instinct behind these proposals is understandable. Parents and policymakers want stronger protections from harmful content, addictive design, and TACSA. We share that ambition and do not oppose age limits in principle. 

However, from a TACSA perspective, the implications of a blanket age threshold are more complex than they first appear. Existing evidence and frontline experience suggest that restricting children’s access to one digital environment does not remove the risk of online sexual exploitation; instead, risk is likely to shift into less visible, less regulated spaces where children are harder to safeguard and support. 

MCF’s position remains: children deserve digital environments that are safe by design, not environments that become safer only because children of a certain age are excluded. Our concern is that, without wider safety-by-design reforms and accessible routes to support, an under-16 ban is unlikely to reduce TACSA and may create new risks. 

We are not alone in this assessment. We have joined a cross-sector statement - signed by child safety organisations, experts and bereaved families - arguing that blanket bans are unlikely to deliver the safety outcomes children need. It calls instead for risk-based age limits and feature restrictions, highly effective age assurance, and stronger duties on platforms to build child-centred products. We have also signed the Online Safety Act Network’s ten-point plan for strengthening the Online Safety Act to close gaps and accelerate safety-by-design implementation. 

We intend to submit evidence to the Government’s consultation, and we will also engage our Lived Experience Group so that survivors’ insights inform a victim-centred view of the implications of any proposed ban. 
 

Links:

Joint statement from children’s and online safety organisations, experts and bereaved families on a social media ban for under-16s.

Strengthening the Online Safety Act: A ten-point plan for government