Conversations around social media (and how kids use it) are only going to heat up in the coming months. Just this week, MPs voted against a social media ban for under-16s in the UK. The ban, which would’ve been similar to one implemented in Australia at the start of this year , had originally been backed by the House of Lords , but was later defeated in the Commons. That said, it could still technically happen. The government is currently looking at children’s digital wellbeing (and how social media plays into that) as part of a consultation running until May. While we all know the myriad arguments for banning social media (addictive design; disruption to sleep, attention and mental health; exposure to harmful or distressing content; and opening kids up to bullying or abuse), campaigners and charities have warned a social media ban could drive teens to murkier, less regulated parts of the internet. It could also leave them “unprepared” for navigating the online world when they do eventually reach adulthood. Nova Eden, founder of One Power Collective and a children’s digital wellbeing expert, believes a ban would have offered children much-needed, urgent protection. “Ministers are already floating half-measures such as time limits and curfews [in their consultation], yet voting for the ban would have been immediate action,” she told HuffPost UK. “We cannot afford to waste any more time, children need protection now.” Similarly Dr John Allan, head of impact and breakthrough learning, at PGL Beyond, believes the latest vote against a social media ban is a “missed opportunity to reset children’s relationships with screens”. There’s no social media ban. So, what needs to happen now? Well, there are a few ideas. Rather than adopting a blanket ban, Lee Chambers, founder of Male Allies UK , is of the belief that tech giants should be facing more pressure to make the internet safer for children, He also wants the government to “take accountability for the ever-escalating risk and bad behaviour that is infiltrating our, and our children’s, phones”. “We need to invest in digital literacy, and we need to make the companies that are letting harm seep across social platforms accountable for their negligence,” he told HuffPost UK. “We need to tackle the root cause, not just switch the lights off.” For Geoffrey Williams and Jenny Garrett, co-founders of Rocking Ur Teens , a UK social enterprise supporting teenagers, there’s a lot more work that needs to be done. Geoffrey wants to see more education on ethical usage [of social media] and creation of spaces that reinforce positive messages, “rather than the negative content that currently dominates most platforms”. Jenny added that while a ban “would have been a wise move”, it’s “possibly too little, too late”. While regulation has an important role to play, both experts say real-world exposure, mentorship, and hands-on experiences are what help teenagers navigate social media pressures, develop confidence, and build resilience. Jenny’s daughter Leah struggled with low self-esteem as a teenager, which inspired the mum to create Rocking Ur Teens. We have been running a live experiment on children with platforms that were never designed with their psychological safety in mind. Leah Garrett, Dawn Intelligence Leah now runs Dawn Intelligence , which helps schools, workplaces and local authorities track and prevent gender-based violence using AI insights and real-time data. She thinks a social media ban alone wouldn’t solve the problem. Instead, stronger boundaries surrounding social media use are key. “We have been running a live experiment on children with platforms that were never designed with their psychological safety in mind,” she said. “I work in AI now. I understand how systems are built. Most of these systems are not built to protect the most vulnerable user in the room. They are built to retain attention.” Leah thinks a ban on its own is a “blunt instrument” and it should instead sit alongside education about how algorithms shape perception, amplify extremes, and how online identity can distort self image. “Otherwise we simply delay exposure rather than prepare young people for it,” she added. Wider context around social class is also often missing from the debate, she noted, and this needs to be addressed. “Some young people are parented through their devices because families are stretched, underfunded and exhausted,” she said. “We cannot moralise individual parenting decisions while ignoring structural pressure. If we want healthier digital environments for teenagers, we need investment in youth spaces, extracurricular access, community programmes and safe physical spaces to belong. “Technology is not going away. The real work is governance, literacy and accountability.” Noting that parents “have lost trust in tech firms’ ability to keep their children safe”, Ofcom recently announced it’s cracking down on major sites and apps that kids use the most. The regulator has given a number of major social media sites one month to implement effective minimum-age policies, strict grooming protections, safer feeds for children, and put an end to “product testing” new features on children. Related... I Tried Bricking My Phone And Was Shocked By The Changes In My Life 'Social Thinning' Might Be Impacting Kids' Mental Health – And We Need To Talk About It UK Social Media Ban For Under-16s: Parents And Experts Share Their Views