More than 100 young people in Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent have joined the national debate on a potential social media ban for under-16s – and had the opportunity to share their views with the Minister for AI and Online Safety.

MP Kanishka Narayan visited NSCG Institute of Technology in Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent Sixth Form College on Friday (April 24) to speak to college students and pupils from local secondary schools.

A national consultation opened last month, which is seeking views on whether there should be a social media ban for children.

Concerns have been raised about content that can potentially harm children, such as the promotion of unhealthy body image, eating disorders or even suicide, while other material they could access may not be age-appropriate.

In Stafford, teenagers who took part in Friday's morning session had mixed views on whether or not there should be an outright ban for under 16s.

Some felt sites such as TikTok or Instagram could remain accessible to younger people, but with tighter restrictions on certain content or extra safety measures.

Joe Kingston, 19, said: "I don't think there should be a ban – that isn't the way to do it.

"I think it's more important to put stuff in place to protect people.

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"There is a lot on social media that's useful.

"I don't think the school system teachers the right things – you don't know how to deal with finances for example – and social media is a good way to learn things like that."

He did highlight the impact of some trends and views however, particularly in areas such as body image and politics.

"We have had trends like looksmaxxing and there is misogyny, which is really bad," he said.

"If you look at a certain political party on social media, it will push positives of that party rather than the negatives.

"The influence social media has on voting is quite dangerous – you are under pressure to vote what everyone else votes on TikTok."

Madya Jabeen, 17, said social media access should be banned for under-16s however, "We could have restrictions but people know how to bypass those – it's not hard for someone to post a video.

"When you are growing up I don't think your life should be around social media.

"There's more negatives than positives and there are so many bad things online.

"For girls its body image and the whole thing of social media pressuring you.

"You are being told 50kg (7st 12lb) is overweight.

"If people say 'I am going to vote for this party' they get so much hate.

"It's not a reliable source to get your views from."

Leigh Ingham was a youth worker before she was elected as an MP to represent Stafford, Eccleshall and the surrounding villages at the 2024 General Election. She said: "What gets missed in consultations is the voice of young people.

"They are 20% of the population, but 100% of the future.

"We invited every secondary school in the constituency to bring 10-12 young people today.

"When we make decisions that affect young people, we should be making them with them, not to them.

"That's why I wanted to bring the Minister to Stafford, so that the students here could speak directly to the person helping to shape these policies.

"I think it's really important we create a safe online environment, where companies are properly regulated and held accountable, and where children are supported to navigate the online world.

"Listening to the ideas and concerns from the young people at the event was such a vital perspective to take forward as the Government decides the best approach to do this."

Stoke-on-Trent Central MP Gareth Snell, who hosted the afternoon event in the city, said: "I share the Government's commitment to protecting young people from the harms that they might encounter online but to best achieve this we need to hear the voices and experiences of those young people.

"That's why it was great to have so many students take part in the consultation event and speak with the Minister directly.

"Their insight into the platforms that they use and their take on what works well and what needs to be improved is invaluable."

Mr Narayan said the comments made by students at Friday's events would go into the consultation to help inform the Government's work.

"There has been a really insightful chat about chatbots and AI, with some saying they find it useful and others saying they find it stops them from thinking for themselves", he added.

"One of the things that has been interesting is the different experiences of boys and girls through the different types of content shown to them.

"It's not because of their individual interests, but because of the platform's perception of them.

"Young people are the experts on their own online lives, and any policy on children's safety online has to start by listening to them.

"The students I met in Stafford and Stoke-on-Trent were thoughtful, informed, and didn't shy away from the hard questions – on infinite scroll, on age limits, on who should be held responsible when things go wrong."

The national consultation is continuing to seek views from parents, young people and educators on measures such as potential age limits for social media, overnight curfews and restrictions on addictive platform features such as autoplay and infinite scroll. The consultation closes on May 26.