Keeping children safe online

A calm, practical guide for parents, grandparents and anyone who looks after children. Most of what helps is free and takes under an hour to set up, whether you're confident with tech or not.

A grandmother and her granddaughter looking at a tablet together on the sofa

The three things that matter most

You don't need to understand every app your child uses. You need three things in place, and this guide walks through each one.

  1. A filter on your home internet, so every device on your Wi-Fi gets some protection. Jump to broadband filters.
  2. Sensible settings on each device: phone, tablet, laptop and games console. Jump to device settings.
  3. A child who knows they can come to you when something online feels wrong. Jump to talking about it.

The rules are changing. The UK Government has confirmed that under-16s will lose access to major social media apps, with changes expected from spring 2027. Nothing changes yet, and you don't need to do anything now. What's planned.

Start with a conversation

Settings help, but no filter catches everything. The best protection is a child who will tell you when something online upsets, confuses or worries them.

  • Be curious, not suspicious. Ask them to show you their favourite game or video. You'll learn a lot, and they'll see you as interested rather than as someone who'll take the tablet away.
  • Agree the rules together. Where devices go at night, how long is reasonable on a school day, which apps are allowed. Children stick to rules they helped make.
  • Promise a calm reaction. Many children hide problems because they fear losing their phone. Tell them plainly: "If something goes wrong, you won't be in trouble for telling me."
  • Keep talking as they grow. A five-year-old needs simple rules, like "ask before you download". A teenager needs to understand why: scams, pressure to share photos, and people who aren't who they say they are.

Questions that open things up: What's the best thing you've seen online this week? Has anyone online ever made you feel uncomfortable? If a friend got into trouble online, what would you tell them to do?

Switch on your broadband filter

All the big UK broadband providers include a free filter that blocks adult and harmful websites on every device connected to your home Wi-Fi. Some are switched on already. It's worth checking yours.

BTBT Parental Controls
  1. Sign in to My BT with your BT ID.
  2. Find your broadband package and choose to manage your extras.
  3. Set up BT Parental Controls and pick a filter level. It can take up to two hours to start working.
SkySky Broadband Shield

Sky Broadband Shield is switched on automatically. To check it or change the level, sign in to My Sky and look for Broadband Shield.

Virgin MediaEssential Security

Virgin Media's free filter (once called Web Safe) is usually on from the start. Check or change it in My Virgin Media, under your account settings.

TalkTalkHomeSafe

Sign in to My Account on the TalkTalk website and look for HomeSafe. Some newer full fibre customers with an eero router use eero Secure instead, set up in the eero app.

Another providerPlusnet, Vodafone, EE and others

Sign in to your provider's website or app and search for parental controls or content filter. If you can't find it, call them and ask. It's a common question.

Remember: the broadband filter only works on your home Wi-Fi. When a phone uses mobile data, or a friend's Wi-Fi, the phone's own settings are what count. UK mobile networks block adult content by default on new contracts, so leave that switched on for a child's SIM.

Set up each device

Every phone, tablet and console has free parental controls built in. Set them up with the device in front of you, ideally with your child, so they know what's been switched on and why.

iPhone and iPadScreen Time and Family Sharing
  1. On your own iPhone, go to Settings, tap your name, then Family, and add your child. If they're under 13, create a child account for them here.
  2. On their device, open Settings, Screen Time, and set a Screen Time passcode they don't know.
  3. Use Content & Privacy Restrictions to set age limits for apps, films and websites.
  4. Turn on Ask to Buy, so you approve every download and purchase.
Android phones and tabletsGoogle Family Link
  1. Install the free Google Family Link app on your own phone.
  2. Follow the steps to create or link your child's Google account and connect their device.
  3. Set app approvals, daily time limits, a bedtime, and content filters for Google Play and YouTube.
Windows PC and XboxMicrosoft Family Safety

Create a free Microsoft family group and add your child's account. You can then set screen time, filter websites and approve purchases. For Xbox, the free Xbox Family Settings app lets you manage it all from your phone.

PlayStation and Nintendo SwitchFree parent apps
  • PlayStation: set up Family Management in your PlayStation account, or use the PlayStation App. Set age ratings, play time, spending limits and who can message them.
  • Nintendo Switch: download the free Nintendo Switch Parental Controls app and link it to the console. Set play time, age ratings and limits on chat and sharing.

Keep passwords to yourself. Parental controls only work if your child doesn't know the passcode to change them. Use one they won't guess, and store it somewhere safe.

Apps, games and social media

Most social media apps require users to be at least 13. Many younger children use them anyway, often with accounts set up with a false age, which switches off protections meant for children.

  • Check the age rating before you say yes to a game. UK games use PEGI ratings: 3, 7, 12, 16 and 18. The rating is about content, not difficulty.
  • Use the child versions where they exist. YouTube Kids is designed for younger children, and YouTube offers a supervised account for older ones.
  • Set accounts to private and turn off location sharing, so only people they know can see what they post or where they are.
  • Turn off chat with strangers in games such as Roblox and Fortnite. Most games let you limit chat to friends, or switch it off.
  • Use the built-in teen settings. Instagram, for example, puts under-16s in Teen Accounts, which are private by default and need a parent's permission to loosen.
  • Sit together for the first set-up. Go through privacy settings side by side, and agree who they'll accept as friends.

A quick checklist by age

Under 5Close by, and in shared spaces
  • Use devices in the same room as you, not alone in a bedroom.
  • Download the apps and videos they use yourself, and switch on airplane mode so they can't wander off.
  • Use YouTube Kids rather than the main YouTube app.
Ages 5 to 10Filters on, and simple rules
  • Broadband filter and device controls switched on.
  • Ask to Buy or app approvals turned on, so nothing is downloaded without you.
  • Simple rules: never share your name, school or address, and always tell a grown-up if something feels wrong.
  • Game chat limited to friends, or off.
Ages 11 to 13First phone, more independence
  • Agree phone rules before you hand it over, including where it charges overnight.
  • Keep Screen Time or Family Link on, and review the settings together every few months.
  • Talk about group chats, pressure to share photos, and what to do if a stranger messages them.
  • Most social media is 13 and over. Agree together which apps they'll use, and when.
Ages 14 to 17Trust, with a safety net
  • Loosen controls gradually as they show they can manage, and explain why.
  • Talk about scams, fake profiles, sharing images, and how to spot AI-made fakes.
  • Make sure they know how to block and report on every app they use.
  • Keep the door open: they'll come to you if they know you won't overreact.

If something goes wrong

Signs that something may be troubling a child online include becoming secretive about their device, seeming upset or withdrawn after using it, new online "friends" you don't know, or unexplained gifts or money. None of these prove anything, but they're a reason to talk.

  1. Stay calm and thank them for telling you. How you react now decides whether they come to you next time.
  2. Don't delete messages yet. Note usernames and dates. If the messages include sexual images of a child, do not screenshot, save or forward them. Report them instead.
  3. Block and report the person or content on the app or game where it happened.
  4. Get the right help using the numbers below.
  • A child is in immediate danger: call 999.
  • An adult is talking to a child in a sexual way, or trying to meet them: report it to CEOP, part of the National Crime Agency.
  • A nude or sexual image of an under-18 has been shared: use Report Remove from Childline and the Internet Watch Foundation to get it taken down.
  • Your child wants to talk to someone: Childline on 0800 1111, free and confidential.
  • You want advice as a parent or carer: the NSPCC helpline on 0808 800 5000.
  • Harmful content a site won't remove: Report Harmful Content, from the UK Safer Internet Centre.

What's changing in the law

Since 2025, the Online Safety Act has required sites likely to be used by children to protect them from harmful content, and adult sites must use proper age checks.

In 2026 the Government went further. It plans to stop under-16s using major social media apps, including Snapchat, TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, X and YouTube (but not YouTube Kids). Messaging apps such as WhatsApp are not included. Games and other services will have to switch off features like livestreaming and contact from strangers for under-16s. The changes are expected from spring 2027, and families will be told more before then. This page will be reviewed as details are confirmed.

Trusted places for more help

  • Internet Matters: step-by-step parental control guides for almost every device, app and game.
  • UK Safer Internet Centre: advice for parents and carers, including broadband provider guides.
  • NSPCC online safety: talking to children about online risks, by age.
  • Childnet: conversation starters and family agreements.
  • CEOP Education: the National Crime Agency's online safety site, with sections for children of each age and for parents.

Would more help be useful?

Some families have asked us whether someone could sit down with them at home and set up parental controls on their devices. We don't offer this at the moment. Before we decide whether to, we'd like to know if it would be useful to you.

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