The government has indicated that features encouraging users to browse longer, such as videos automatically playing one after another, will also be turned off by default for older teenagers.
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Critics doubt the effectiveness of these measures, as teenagers will be able to disable these default settings themselves.
The planned restrictions were introduced a month after the government announced a planned ban on social networks for those under 16 years old. It is expected to cover platforms such as Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook, and X from next spring, but will not affect messaging apps like WhatsApp and Signal.
These measures are among the last actions of Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s government, so they will still require parliamentary approval. It is believed that his successor Andy Burnham will continue these plans.
UK Internet Safety Minister Kanishka Narayan rejected claims that teenagers would simply turn off optional social media curfews, calling such assumptions a “disservice” to young people.
He mentioned a recent pilot program conducted across the UK involving more than 300 teenagers and their parents. The program showed that social media use at night was significantly reduced, and it also helped improve sleep quality and concentration.
“For example, in October some platforms implemented such default settings – more than 90% of teenagers told us they kept these settings,” he said to Sky News.
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“So the evidence base is clear, the motivation is very clear, and I would not do a disservice to teenagers by saying they will all turn it off,” the minister asserted.
The main UK children’s charity NSPCC said these proposals will slightly improve young people’s experience on social networks, but they will not be enough on their own.
“If no further, stricter measures are taken, it will be just a temporary patch that will not help address the addictive design features that lead to long screen time and harm children’s wellbeing,” said NSPCC chief Chris Sherwood.
England’s Children’s Commissioner Rachel de Souza called the move positive, as young people want to reduce social media use but find it difficult to do so.
“I want to learn more about how such policies will be implemented, for example, the curfew, and will closely monitor whether it is effective,” she said.
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