Murdered teen's father welcomes social media ban

The father of murdered teenager Olly Stephens has welcomed a social media ban for under 16s and says, had it been in place in 2021, his son would still be alive.

Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said he hoped the ban on children accessing apps such as Snapchat, TikTok and Facebook would be in place by Spring 2027.

Olly was 13 when he was stabbed to death in Emmer Green, Reading, Berkshire, on 3 January 2021, following a dispute on social media.

Stuart Stephens says he and other bereaved parents hoped to work with the government to help shape the new legislation.

He said: "It's been a long time coming. If we had had this 10 years ago, when all of this tech was starting to surface, then a lot of us, our children would still be here.

"No child should be targeted under 16 for social media - it is addictive, it is corruptive, it is corrosive and it's predatory."

Some schools in the south of England have already introduced their own mobile phone bans.

For the last three weeks, pupils at Thomas Hardye School in Dorchester, Dorset, have been putting their phones in lockable pouches when they arrive at school.

Assistant head teacher Rachel Glennie said she welcomed a social media ban.

She said: "There were a couple of responses saying we should be preparing students for it rather than banning them completely.

"From our perspective, allowing students to use their smartphones all day isn't necessarily preparing them for later life - it's just preparing them for a life that's consistently on their screens."

Toby, 13, and his parents, Sam and Carly, from Portland, Dorset, are less supportive of the ban.

Toby said: "Obviously, it's kind-of annoying but there are going to be ways around it and it doesn't get rid of the stuff on social media."

His dad, Sam, agrees. "I think it's the wrong action," he said.

"I get why they are doing it but it's not just children, it's adults. It needs a level of control that a simple blanket ban won't solve."

Carly said: "Half the problem is they are always on WhatsApp groups or PlayStation, X-box and all the rest."

Sam added: "For their generation - it's their form of communication."

Twelve-year-old Olivia from Moreton, Dorset, also disagrees with an outright ban but accepts there should be more controls.

"I'm 50/50 about it but I don't think it should be totally banned," she said.

"We need to have a change and we need to protect our young people," she said.

"I think it's going to help a lot of parents to try and restrict it - because it's quite difficult.

"I think it's something all parents will struggle with. I thi