Charity declares ‘national childhood emergency’ amid concerns about online harm

A children’s charity has warned of a “national childhood emergency” after a survey found less than a quarter of young people think childhood is better now than it was for their parents.

The survey of 11 to 25-year-olds in Scotland, commissioned by Children First, found exposure to harmful online content is the biggest concern among children and young people.

Seventy-nine per cent of respondents said they are “moderately to extremely worried” about harmful online content, and 78% said they are “anxious” about the impact of social media.

Smartphone usage also came out as a top concern among the more than 2,460 questioned, alongside worries about mental health.

Less than a quarter (24%) said they think childhood is better now that it was when their parents were growing up, with two-fifths (40%) saying it is worse.

Mary Glasgow, chief executive of Children First, said: “The level of fear and anxiety that children and young people feel about the dangers of being online and the impact on their mental health is shocking.

“That less than a quarter of young people say their childhood is better than their parents shows how deep the national childhood emergency goes.

“We must take children’s concerns seriously and act with urgency.”

She said the charity has seen a “surge” in children coming to it distressed and at risk of “serious harm”.

She added: “The terrible reality is that the online threats to our children and young people are growing daily.

“Children can’t protect themselves; everybody needs to help keep them safe.

“Technology platforms need to stop shirking their responsibility for children’s online safety. They must put children before profit and make young people’s safety their top priority.”

The charity described a recent workshop it held with young people about online harm.

It said this revealed worries about cyber-bullying, the dark side of social media, artificial intelligence, the sharing of photos and videos without permission, unwanted contact from strangers, and being served dangerous and explicit content.

One participant, referred to as Jessie, said: “You don’t know who you are meeting on there.”

Another, named Beth, added: “I have 84 boys trying to add me as a friend… I don’t know any of them.”

The charity said anyone with concerns can contact its confidential support line for help on 08000 28 22 33, or on webchat at www.childrenfirst.org.uk .

The research was carried out through Young Scot’s Truth About Youth survey, which ran from September 2024 to January 2025 with the support of the People’s Postcode Lottery.

Scotland’s children’s minister Natalie Don-Innes said: “While regulation of the internet is reserved to the UK Government, we have engaged extensively on the Online Safety Act to strengthen protections for young people.

“In January an Online Safety Taskforce led by ministers was launched to focus on co-ordinating activities across the Scottish Government to tackle the risk of harm to children and young people and identify what more can be done to protect them from online harms.

“Ministers met Ofcom in August last year to emphasise the responsibility of tech firms to deliver effective safeguards for young people online, including the need for more prescriptive guidance to providers, and the First Minister has written directly to tech firms to remind them of their responsibilities.

“We will continue to engage with all relevant parties on the implementation of this important piece of legislation and to press for stronger protections to help keep children and young people in Scotland safe online.”

A UK Government spokesperson said: “We are committed to keeping young people safe online. This week, laws under the Online Safety Act came into force meaning companies must take action to protect users from illegal material, including extreme sexual violence.

“By summer, children will be protected from harmful content, and platforms must take steps to ensure age-appropriate experiences online.

“These protections will act as the foundation and our priority is implementing them quickly and effectively.”