The Centre for Young Lives has published research, supported by the National Education Union, examining online masculinity content and ‘looksmaxxing’, and its impact on boys and young men. The report, titled ‘Don’t blame life, blame your face’, is the first national study on looksmaxxing and is part of the ‘Big Tech’s Little Victims’ campaign. Researchers created alias accounts posing as a 14-year-old boy, carried out 11 expert interviews and held group discussions involving 33 boys and young men…
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A new UNICEF report has revealed the growing scale of the climate crisis facing children, warning that nearly half of the world’s children, around 1.1 billion, are now exposed to at least three overlapping climate hazards, including drought, extreme heat, heatwaves, floods and storms. The report, Children’s Climate Risk Report 2026, found that almost every child globally faces at least one climate-related threat, with some experiencing as many as six. Drought, extreme heat and heatwaves emerged…
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Misogyny is increasingly evident in children’s everyday lives, including on public transport, in education settings, and online, yet it is often normalised or left unchallenged, findings from research by charity Barnardo’s report. The children’s charity interviewed more than 4,000 young people aged 13 to 20 across the UK to explore experiences of online misogynistic content and the impact on attitudes and behaviours. The research highlights the way misogyny affects all genders, with a quarter of…
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Sweden has issued new guidance urging parents to cut back on their own smartphone use around children, following research showing that adults’ screen habits can negatively affect child development and family interactions. The country’s Public Health Agency is encouraging parents to put their phones away during family time, create phone-free areas in the home such as bedrooms and dining tables, and be more mindful about sharing photos and videos of their children online. Officials say…
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The UK government’s national consultation on how children use digital technology and potential restrictions on social media closes this week. The consultation received 70,000 responses from charities, campaigners, and the public with their views on a ban or possible interventions. These include banning certain features, introducing night-time curfews, disabling autoplay and infinite scroll, tightening age checks, and limiting children’s access to AI chatbots. Several organisations argue that regulation should focus on specific platform features rather than banning entire apps, with police leaders suggesting that “high-risk” features such as private messaging should…
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A government-commissioned review led by former Labour minister Alan Milburn warns that Britain risks creating an “anxious generation” of young people struggling to adapt to modern working life. Milburn says the government spends 25 times as much on benefits for young people than it does on supporting them into work, which he describes as “shameful”. Nearly one million 16- to 24-year-olds are currently not in education, employment or training (NEET), with mental health issues now cited as the main barrier to…
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Researchers from Linköping University in Sweden have published new research looking at how teenage girls make meaning of the mental health content provided by popular online influencers. The research, published in the journal Childhood, was inspired by what the authors describe as the “pressing issue” of how children and young people’s health and well-being are affected by social media. While existing research had measured the effects of social media on aspects of young people’s lives, including…
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Published in The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, a first-of-its-kind essay, written by young people on the “harm that leaves no bruises”, combines lived experience and scientific evidence to highlight the impact of harmful adult language. The essay describes how harsh language from adults – including blaming, shaming, humiliating, and criticising – can become “an inner voice that did not begin as our own”, shaping children’s sense of self, safety, and belonging. FK&Y research found that…
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Research by the Institute of Cancer Research and Imperial College London finds that eleven cancers are becoming more common in young people in England. These include bowel cancer, thyroid, multiple myeloma, liver, kidney, gallbladder, pancreatic, endometrial, mouth, breast and ovarian cancers, with bowel and breast cancers the most common in younger adults. Researchers analysed national data on cancer rates and lifestyle trends to understand why cases are increasing among people in their late teens through to…
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Children’s charity Words Matter has launched a new free, evidence-based resource for teachers designed to support classroom communication and help strengthen children’s sense of belonging so that they feel valued, safe, and ready to learn. Words Matter: A practical guide for communicating with children in any classroom so that they flourish has been developed in collaboration with Dr Fiona Pienaar, a child and adolescent mental health specialist and former teacher, and Delyth Lynch, Director of Safeguarding at Wellington College….
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