Yesterday the UK Government announced that under-16s will be banned from social media. Regulation is expected to pass before Christmas, with the ban coming into force by spring 2027.
A policy announcement of this significance makes robust, independent research more important than ever. We are still learning about the effects of digital technologies on young people’s mental health and wellbeing.
Our IRL (In Real Life) Trial is the world’s first major randomised experiment exploring the impact of reduced social media use among teenagers. It is designed to test whether limitations in social media use affect levels of anxiety, and examine related outcomes including sleep, bullying, and time spent offline with friends and family. We anticipate completing the trial before the UK social media ban for under-16s comes into force, with data collection completed before Christmas 2026.
Our research is funded by the Wellcome Trust and supported by the National Institute for Health Research.
About the trial:Â https://borninbradford.nhs.uk/irl-trial/
About the UK social media ban: https://www.gov.uk/government/news/social-media-to-be-banned-for-under-16s-in-landmark-government-move-to-givekids-their-childhood-back
