'I'll be bored!' - Blackpool girl, 11, reacts furiously to Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer's social media ban

An 11-year-old Blackpool girl says she'll be "bored every single day" without social media after her mum filmed her emotional reaction to the ban.

Hayley Parry, 51, captured her 11-year-old daughter falling to the floor and crying after hearing she'd no longer have access to social media off the back of Prime Minister Sir Kier Starmer’s announcement on Monday, June 15, that the UK government will ban social media for under-16s by early 2027.

This is in an effort to protect children from the dangers of platforms like Instagram, TikTok, Snapchat, Facebook and YouTube, but the tween girl, who wishes to remain nameless, can be heard yelling about "being bored every single day" and "having nothing to do".

She said she can't meet up with her friends as she's "not got FaceTime" and wouldn't know what to chat about as there will be no social media "trends to talk about".

Hayley was surprised to see her usually quiet and reserved daughter react in this way, especially since she'd only got her first phone a year prior. Herself a former primary teacher near Blackpool, Hayley said: "I was just so taken aback. I had just told her that the parents at her school were suggesting starting to phase out the social media usage before the official ban next year.

“And she clearly wasn't a fan of the news."

As part of Hayley's job as a teacher at a primary school, she wrote the school's guidelines on internet safety and had taught several lessons on social media. Therefore, she implemented screen time rules at home and limited and monitored her activity on social media.

Hayley said: "I've been aware of the dangers kids can find online, in part because it was literally my job at a certain point. We don't allow screens at dinner time and she is limited on the social media access she can have.

"She got her first phone for her tenth birthday as a hand-me-down from her older sister, and she's not allowed on Snapchat or Instagram, but does have a private TikTok account which we monitor."

‘Addicted without me realising’

After getting her first phone a year ago, Hayley's daughter began making dancing video with friends and singing videos of herself. She also fell into the habit of scrolling videos in the evening after dinner, which is why she was complaining of being "bored" in the video.

Hayley said: "It's strange how even with the limitations, it feels like she got addicted without me realising. She likes to watch 'Get Ready With Me' videos, and sometimes I see her pouting at the camera - in those moments it feels like she's wanting to grow up too fast.

"I want her to remember she's still just 11 and shouldn't want to be an adult sooner than she has to be."