EXCLUSIVE: The parents of more than a dozen children whose deaths are linked to social media will on Tuesday tell Lisa Nandy to get the ‘job done properly’ after years of failure in tackling online harms
Ellen Roome, who believes her son Jools, 14, died in an online challenge, said families will be asking Lisa Nandy ‘for the tightest regime possible’(Image: PA)
The parents of more than a dozen children whose deaths are linked to social media will tell Lisa Nandy to get the “job done properly” after years of failure in tackling online harms.
The families will tomorrow urge her to ensure an upcoming online safety package – including a social media ban for under 16s – includes “tough enforcement so the tech giants cannot wriggle out of it”.
The meeting, which is the families’ first with the Digital Secretary since she took over the online safety brief in July, comes ahead of a “fast-approaching” deadline to set out the details of the social media ban to Parliament.
Ministers have vowed to publish the ban’s legislation by the end of the year. It has meant parents have been waiting for details since Keir Starmer announced the ban in June. It is set to come into force from March next year.
Ms Nandy last month suggested tech firms could earn an exemption to the incoming ban in the UK if they make their platforms safe for teens. Teens aged 16 and 17 also face a default overnight curfew and a block on infinite scrolling – an addictive design feature – to prevent a cliff edge when the social media ban lifts.
Among the 19 parents to attend Tuesday’s meeting are Ellen Roome and Lisa Kenevan, who believe their children Jools, 14, and Isaac, 13, may have died in an online challenge that went wrong. The pair are among families suing TikTok over their deaths.
Other parents include Stuart Stephens, whose 13-year-old son Olly was stabbed to death after an online dispute, and George Nicolaou, whose 15-year-old son Christoforos took his own life after being sent “horrific messages” on an online forum.
Ms Roome, on behalf of the Bereaved Families for Online Safety, said: “For the first time, Lisa Nandy is meeting the Bereaved Families for Online Safety. We are all members of a club no one wants to join: families who have lost a child in connection with social media and for a long time it felt like no one was listening.
“Now this Government is saying all the right things, and we welcome that. But its own deadline for firm detail by Christmas is fast approaching. To prevent more children dying, it must be met and the job done properly.
“We will be asking her for the tightest regime possible – harmful platforms and features blocked for under-16s, proper age verification, and tough enforcement so the tech giants cannot wriggle out of it. Nothing will bring our children back. But we will do all we can to help the Government get this right within the timeframe promised, so no other family goes through what we have.”
Mr Nicolaou, founder of the Christoforos Charity Foundation, said “words and promises are not enough” from Government, as he called for “enforceable changes” He said: “Four years ago, we lost our beautiful son Christopher. He was exceptionally bright, with an IQ of 140+, and loved learning. Yet predators targeted him through social media, and we believe their actions murdered our son. If this could happen to Christopher, it could happen to any child.
“We founded the Christoforos Charity Foundation to turn our grief into action and help protect young people. Words and promises are not enough. Meaningful, enforceable changes must happen now, before more families are left grieving. Nothing can bring Christopher back, but we will keep speaking out so no other family has to endure this loss.’
Mr Janin said he is “fighting” for ministers to hold tech companies fully accountable for children’s safety. He said: “In 2021, I lost my only daughter, Mia, aged just 14, and a few months later, my wife, Marisa. More than five years later, I am still searching for answers I have not received.
“Alongside other bereaved parents, I am fighting for the State to take responsibility, to hold technology companies fully accountable for the safety of our children, and to ensure independent and transparent investigations when the system fails.
“The movement we began here is now being echoed by parents around the world. To me, this shows that these are not isolated tragedies, but a global problem that demands urgent action. We are not asking for privileges, only for our rights to be respected. I did not choose this fight. If I had been given a choice, I would still be living my life with my family. I carry on with the hope that no other family will have to experience what we have been through.”
