On 15 June 2026, Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced that the UK will introduce a full ban on social media for under-16s. Platforms including TikTok, Snapchat, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X will be covered by the legislation, which is expected to go before Parliament before Christmas and come into force in Spring 2027.
The announcement follows a government consultation in which nine in ten parents said they supported a ban, and comes after Australia introduced similar restrictions in December 2025.
It is being described as one of the most far-reaching pieces of online safety legislation in the world.
A significant moment – but not the whole answer
At Jamma Wellbeing, we welcome the government’s decision to act. For too long, platforms have been designed to maximise the time young people spend online, with little regard for the anxiety, comparison and identity pressures that follow.
But a ban, however significant, is not the end of the conversation. It is the beginning of a more important one.
Richard Stewart, Director of Implementation at Jamma Wellbeing, reflected on what the announcement means:
“This is the right decision. For too long we have watched platforms prioritise engagement over the wellbeing of children, and the mental health consequences have been devastating. But legislation is only the beginning. We now have a responsibility to fill that space with something meaningful, education, understanding, connection. That is the real work.”
What about the children who are already struggling?
The ban will not come into force until Spring 2027. And even when it does, it will not undo the years many young people have already spent inside these platforms, the comparisons made, the self-doubt built, the anxiety that has quietly taken hold.
Anna Bateman, Education Consultant at Jamma Wellbeing, works with schools across the country and sees the impact of these pressures every day:
“A ban on social media for under-16s will be welcomed by many parents and teachers, and I understand why. We have all seen what constant comparison and the pressure to perform online have done to children, and there is real relief in a government deciding this is serious enough to act on. From the work I do in schools, the part I keep returning to is what happens after. Taking the apps away in 2027 will not take away the anxiety, or the feeling that everyone else is coping better. Those feelings will still be there, looking for somewhere to land. So the question I am most interested in is what we offer children instead. They still need to understand how their own minds work, and what is actually going on when the urge to compare takes hold. That can be taught, and teaching it well is the thinking behind the Brain Smart® work I am glad to be part of at Jamma Wellbeing. A ban can give children a little more room to grow up. What we help them do with that room is the part that will really count.”
What we put in its place is what will really count
For those working in schools and education settings, the question is already shifting from whether to act to what to do next.
Phil Dale, Senior Instructor for Transition at Jamma Wellbeing, works directly with young people navigating some of the most pressured moments of their lives:
“Today’s announcement is a significant moment. But a ban alone won’t undo the anxiety, comparison and identity pressures that young people are already carrying. The work now is to help children understand their own minds, so they can navigate a world that will always find new ways to pull at their attention. That is what Brain Smart® exists to do.”
The room to grow
A ban can give children something valuable, a little more space, a little more time, a little more freedom to develop a sense of who they are without the constant noise of a curated feed telling them who they should be.
But space alone is not enough. What children do with that room depends on the tools, understanding and support they are given.
At Jamma Wellbeing, that is what Brain Smart® is built for. Practical, accessible mental health education that helps young people understand their own minds, not in clinical terms, but in language they can actually use, in the moments that matter most.
If you work with children and young people and want to find out more about how Brain Smart® supports wellbeing in schools and transition settings, we would love to hear from you.