Parents get forum to air smartphone access concerns

Linzi Meaden has launched a group for parents concerned about their children using smartphones

A therapist from Kent has launched a group for parents concerned about their children using smartphones.

Linzi Meaden, from Tunbridge Wells, said more than 100 parents who refuse to give their children smartphones have joined the Delay Smartphones-Protect Childhood forum since it was created earlier this month.

An increase in the number of young people with anxiety and depression was the driving factor behind the initiative, Ms Meaden said.

“Children get in situations which they can't get away from, and it just spirals into something horrific,” she said.

Ms Meaden is also a campaigner for Smartphone Free Childhood, a parent-led organisation aiming to protect children from the dangers of using smartphones at a young age.

“We think it’s just Facebook, Instagram and TikTok that are damaging young ones, but it’s actually things like WhatsApp,” she said.

“We think that it’s safe but it can be one of the worst because there is a lot that can be shared which can be hidden.

“There is groups that can be set up where children can go on thinking that they're safe and find themselves in a situation where they are being asked to share naked pictures of themselves.”

Follow BBC Kent on Facebook, on X, and on Instagram. Send your story ideas to [e-mail] or WhatsApp us on 08081 002250.