Following a recent APPG meeting on children and smartphones with the author Laura Wyatt-Smith, the APPG sent a letter to various political figures.
We have attached the response from Dame Rachel de Souza, Children’s Commissioner for England.
Dear Freddie van Mierlo MP,
RE: Parenting with Smartphones
Thank you for writing to me in your capacity as Chair of the Fatherhood APPG and for drawing my
attention to Laura Wyatt-Smith’s research on parenting with smartphones. I agree that children need
support to use technology not only productively, but, most importantly, safely.
This is why, in December, I published a guide titled ‘What I wish my parents or carers knew…’, which
aims to help parents and carers have open conversations with their children about the content they
encounter online and how to manage their digital lives. The guide provides practical advice grounded
in children’s lived experience, and can be accessed here:
https://www.childrenscommissioner.gov.uk/resource/what-i-wish-my-parents-or-carers-knew-aguide-for-parents-and-carers-on-managing-childrens-digital-lives/
Ensuring that technology is safe for children is also a key priority for me. As your letter highlights,
children are navigating an online environment that is not always designed with their needs in mind. It
is essential that technology companies take greater responsibility for creating safer spaces, with
robust protections to prevent harm and age-inappropriate content. Children should not be left to
manage these risks alone.
I am determined to ensure that children’s voices are central to these discussions. Their lived experience
is vital in shaping effective policy and practice. I am currently convening a youth advisory group in
partnership with Ofcom, which is informing regulatory approaches and helping to ensure that
children’s perspectives are heard directly. In addition, I have recently launched my final survey, The Big
Future, which seeks to capture children’s views on the future, including their experiences of and
relationship with technology.
Thank you again for bringing Laura Wyatt-Smith’s research to my attention. I will continue to consider
the issues you have raised as part of my wider work to improve outcomes for children growing up in
the digital age.