Responding as the government announced plans for the first-ever government guidance for parents on healthy screen use for children aged 5–16 , Paul Whiteman, general secretary at school leaders’ union NAHT, said:

“Schools work hard to support pupils so they know how to maximise the enormous benefits of the digital world without their wellbeing and safety being compromised

“But the reality is that children spend more of their time at home than at school, so we welcome this proposed guidance for parents.

“School leaders tell us how excessive screentime at home, including scrolling late at night, affects pupils’ concentration in the classroom. The content children see and the interactions they have can also be a concern, with risks ranging from online bullying, AI deepfakes, and misinformation, to grooming, exploitation and content encouraging self-harm.

“Welcome support for parents needs to be backed up by better controls on technology and expectations on online platforms to do more to ensure safety, above and beyond any move to raise the minimum age for using social media.

"Algorithms should be designed to minimise risks to children, and we support daily screen time limits and age restrictions on addictive features including infinite scrolling, autoplay, affirmation features such as likes and comments, push notifications, and personalised content recommendations.

"Online providers and social platforms must expand and improve moderation of their sites to minimise children’s exposure to harmful and inaccurate content, with clearer functions to report concerns and more transparent codes of conduct outlining the implications of misuse.

“Schools also need up-to-date guidance on supporting children’s learning online and digital safety, including the rapidly evolving uses of AI, and we urge the government to evaluate the resources available to to identify and address gaps.”