Retired Lioness Jill Scott urges under-16 social media ban: 'Swap screens for sport'

Former England midfielder Jill Scott has thrown her support behind proposed government legislation to ban social media platforms from offering services to under-16s, urging young people to replace screen time with physical activity and sport.

“We need children to have friends and that human contact,” said Scott, 39, who represented England 161 times between 2006 and 2022. “We know iPhones, iPads, technology is a big part of the world today. But we need to keep those human connections up, because we don’t want that next generation to feel alone. Sport can help with that.”

The proposed legislation, which would restrict platforms including Snapchat, TikTok, YouTube, Instagram, Facebook and X from providing services to under-16s, has the backing of nine in ten parents according to the government. It is expected to be brought before Parliament before Christmas, with protections anticipated to come into force in Spring 2027.

Scott, who grew up in Sunderland and joined her local club Boldon Girls at the age of nine, drew on her own childhood to make the case for boundaries around technology. “When I was younger, I would spend time on the computer, but I always remember my mum saying, ‘you’ve got an hour, and that’s it,’” she recalled. “Getting out in the fresh air, playing sport and exercising is so good for you. You don’t have to send kids on an hour run — you can just have them kicking a ball about and they don’t even realise they’re exercising.”

The former midfielder also credited sport with keeping overthinking at bay, a benefit she only fully appreciated after retiring at 35. “When I retired, I suddenly was like, ‘wow, I do a lot of overthinking’,” she said. “I realised that sport stopped me from doing that. Now I get my thoughts out by going for a run.”

Scott’s playing career spanned 18 years and included seven seasons at Everton, where she won the FA Women’s Premier League Cup and the FA Women’s Cup, before moving to Manchester City. It culminated in a historic triumph with the Lionesses at the 2022 UEFA Women’s Euros. Since retiring, she has remained prominent in the game as a pundit and podcast host, and was the first female player to captain England for Soccer Aid in 2023.

While firmly backing the ban, Scott was careful to frame her message around balance rather than outright rejection of technology. “It’s about everything in balance, really. There’s a lot of good things from technology, but I think it should never come at the expense of sport,” she said. “You’ll remember the games you played, not your time spent scrolling.”