Alan Campbell MP has joined with more than 1,000 schools, charities, and businesses to pledge their support for making the internet a safer place for children and young people.

Today (February 11) is Safer Internet Day, a globally recognised celebration promoting the safe and positive use of digital technology for children and young people.  The event, coordinated in the UK by the UK Safer Internet Centre (UK SIC), is celebrated in over a hundred countries.

New research by the UK SIC reveals the internet is a fundamental part of young people’s identity, and that online experiences are an essential part of who they are offline, with 38% saying it’s easier to be themselves online than offline.

But, despite the positives the internet can bring, there are downsides too. UK SIC found a quarter (25%) of 13-17-year olds say they have been targeted with online hate in the last month because of their gender, sexuality, race, religion, disability or gender identity, with 45% of disabled teens and 32% of BAME teens reporting this. According to the research 62% of children aged 8 to 17 years old have said they are more careful about what they share online because of people being mean based on who they are.

Alan said “I am urging constituents who are concerned about online safety to visit https://www.saferinternet.org.uk/safer-internet-day/2020”