STAYING in CONTROL

Why you should use parental controls (and how to make sure they work)

Nine out of ten children in the UK will own their own smartphone by the time they’re 11, according to a 2022 Ofcom study.

While this adoption of internet devices comes with many social and educational benefits, parents can be forgiven for wanting some sort of control over their kids’ digital lives. Despite this, Ofcom found that while 90% of parents are aware of internet safety controls, only 70% use them. As children’s lives become more entwined with the internet, it’s more important than ever for parents to understand exactly how parental controls work and how they protect kids.

Safety First

More than a third of children have seen something ‘worrying or nasty’ online in the past 12 months, according to Ofcom.

Parental controls can help reduce this risk by limiting what kids see and who they speak to online, allowing parents to track their digital activity and keep an eye on what they’re exposed to. No more watching over shoulders when the kids are on their phones. You can get peace of mind and let them explore the world of the internet with your own boundaries in place.

Healthy Online Habits

The younger generation are often described as ‘digital natives’, but even natives can be naive. Ofcom found that while the majority of 12-17-year-olds were confident they could identify a fake site online, only 11 per cent correctly clicked on the genuine social media post in a test. Parental controls can block these kinds of suspicious posts or websites, giving children an ongoing lesson in what sort of websites, links and posts to avoid.

Time Limits

Worried the kids are spending too much time on TikTok? Parental controls can let you set up time-restraints, helping reduce screen time and tackling unhealthy habits. You can also set access limits during certain hours of the day. This means you can prevent children from waking up in the middle of the night, grabbing their phone, and scrolling through social media until sunrise.

Making Sure Controls Work

Rather than setting up controls in every device and app your children use, one option to protect your family is to use parental controls that are set directly at your Wi-Fi router. There are a number of products that give you this control. Some broadband suppliers, like Swish Fibre, provide customers with routers featuring built-in parental controls which are managed with an app. This means that no matter what devices your children are using, you can be sure any parental controls you’ve set are keeping them safe. Visit

All statistics in this article were found in the following Ofcom report:

(ofcom.org.uk/research-and-data/media-literacyresearch/childrens/children-and-parents-mediause-and-attitudes-report-2022)