Parents should avoid sudden phone bans and build realistic family habits, experts say. The UK government plans default midnight-to-6am curfews for 16 and 17-year-olds on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube. Teenagers may opt out. Autoplay videos and infinite feeds will also switch off by default to support sleep, focus and family life. Start Small and Work Together Child psychologist Dr Jane Gilmour advises parents to introduce changes during a neutral moment. “Changing a habit is always going to be hard,” she says. “Calm brains communicate best.” A designated charging place can create a routine. “Have one place for chargers… so when the phones go away, they go on the charger and that’s it.” Dr Maryhan Baker says teenagers should help shape screen-time rules. Parents should recognise social pressure rather than dismiss it. “I understand that that’s where you connect with your friends. I understand the social pressure if you’re deemed not to be on this. I really get it. “So let’s have a conversation about how we can begin to create space within our day, and your day where you’re not on that phone all of the time.” Parenting coach Olivia Edwards agrees. “We have to have a strong relationship with our child because that is what’s going to get us towards co-operation [and] teamwork.” Turn Scrolling Into Learning Parents can discuss how platforms hold attention and earn money. Edwards suggests asking: “How do you think social media works? How do you think that app works to keep people looking at it? Did you know they make money off the more time people spend on it?” Gilmour recommends checking online claims together. “There might be content that you can look at together and say, ‘OK, do you think that that is true? How would I figure out if that’s true or not?’” Model Good Habits and Stay Calm Baker urges parents to admit their own struggles. “We’re all guilty of this, I’m not as great on my relationship with [my phone] as I could be.” Gilmour says boredom supports reflection and creativity. “Being on the screen, it keeps us looking at the external world. When we go into our internal world and we sort of stare into space, into the middle distance, it allows us to think about the past, it allows us to visualise the future, it predicts creativity. “So when your kids are protesting [that] there’s nothing to do, they’re just staring into space – that’s OK. And actually that’s a positive thing.” Read More: Doctor Says One Bedtime Habit Could Increase Your Cancer Risk Dr Tony Sampson of the University of Essex warns against panic. “There is a tendency for anxious parents to become caught up in a prevailing media panic and see all adolescent brains as simply hardwired for social media addiction,” he says. “We read a lot about the ways in which social media erodes attention,” Sampson says. “[But] social media does not shorten or erode attention. It captures it and diverts it toward engagement with commercial content.” He adds: “Positive technological use can help boost neuroplasticity for creativity, exploration and learning.”