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The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Children's Online Safety
The APPG on Children's Online Safety is committed to safeguarding children in the digital age. The Internet Watch Foundation (IWF) performs the role of Secretariat to the Group.
Contact the APPG on Children's Online Safety.
"Children’s lives are increasingly online, it’s where they socialise and try to understand the world around them. The line between online and offline has blurred, and that means children are more exposed than ever to harmful content and new forms of risk.
That includes pressures on their mental health, and in some cases exploitation by criminal gangs who target children, often to extort sexual images or money. In 2025, the Internet Watch Foundation confirmed over 300,000 reports involving child sexual abuse material - roughly one every 101 seconds. It’s a stark reminder of the scale of harm that exists online and why we need to do much more to keep children safe.
I’m genuinely honoured to be taking on the role of Chair of the APPG on Children’s Online Safety. As parliamentarians we’ve got to make sure the rules are strong enough, and thatthey’re actually being enforced properly, so children can use the internet without being put at risk."
John Whitby MP
Chair of the APPG on Children's Online Safety
Member of Parliament for Derbyshire Dales, Labour Party
Member of Parliament for Derbyshire Dales, Labour Party
History of the APPG
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on Online Safety and Social Media (hereafter ‘the APPG’) was established in March 2018 with the support Royal Society for Public Health (RSPH). In July 2020 the Secretariat for the APPG passed from the RSPH to the UK Safer Internet Centre (UKSIC).
On Monday 9 November 2020, the APPG launched its inquiry “Selfie Generation: What’s behind the rise in self-generated indecent images of children online?”. After hearing evidence from academics, charities, law enforcement and industry, the APPG published a report highlighting the increasing dangers of children being bullied or coerced into producing images or videos of their own sexual abuse by adult predators on the internet. The report set out 10 recommendations for the UK Government and the tech industry to adopt to safeguard children online.
In September 2024, the Secretariat passed to the Internet Watch Foundation (IWF). Against the backdrop of the Online Safety Act and the Government’s ambitions for artificial intelligence, the APPG serves as a parliamentary platform to examine the impact of these developments on children and young people. Consequently, it was rebranded as the Children's Online Safety APPG to reflect a broader focus on the challenges young people face in the digital world.
The parliamentary register for the APPG is available here.
