UK government to introduce social media curfew and addictive feature ban for teens

Older teens, aged 16 and 17, will face social media curfews and a ban on addictive features from spring 2027.

The UK government has announced that social media apps will have overnight curfews between midnight and 6am for 16 and 17-year-olds. It said that these measures should be in place by spring 2027 and says these measures are being taken to “back parents and protect the next generation online.”

Not only will social media be inaccessible to this age group during the early morning hours, addictive social media features will also be disabled by default. Addictive features include automatically playing videos (Reels, TikTok) and feeds that continually show you personalized content.

In June, the government confirmed that it would be banning social media services for under-16s from spring next year. The measures being announced today will ensure there is no cliff edge in protections. Essentially kids won’t go from zero social media to full access, they will instead get a limited, more healthy experience first before the guardrails are removed. This could help them learn to use social media healthily.

A government trial of 300 participants found that overnight curfews on social media quickly became part of routines and helped to improve sleep and concentration.

In addition to social media measures, the government said it is also bringing forward a package of measures to help children use AI chatbots safely. These measures include regular breaks for under-18s and working with regulators and across governments to address services that give dangerous, misleading, or unverified mental health advice. Chatbots could be banned if they post a serious threat to kids, the government said.

Furthermore, the government will publish new guidance on how to use AI safely via the Kids Online Safety Hub and provide improved media literacy skills through new Relationships, Sex, and Health Education (RSHE) classes. There will also be updates to the National Curriculum that will teach kids to work with new types of technology including AI, and give them the ability to identify mis- and disinformation as well as violent and misogynistic content.

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Posted Thursday 16 July 2026 at 7:42 am AEST (my time).

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