Under the Online Safety Act (the “OSA”), Ofcom must produce a report on content that is harmful to children at least every three years. Ofcom has published a call for evidence to support its first report.
Background – duties towards children under the OSA
The strongest protections in the OSA have been designed for children. Providers of regulated services must complete a children’s access assessment to consider whether the service is likely to be accessed by children. If so, the service must carry out a children’s risk assessment, as well as implementing a number of measures to protect children from content harmful to children online.
Bates Wells have written a previous blog on Ofcom’s Protection of Children Codes and Guidance.
Ofcom’s call for evidence
This call for evidence is an opportunity to contribute to Ofcom’s first report on content harmful to children and potentially shape policy going forwards.
The purpose of the report is to understand UK children’s online experiences, including how often they encounter harmful content and the severity of any harm caused as a result. The report must also include advice to the Secretary of State as to whether Ofcom recommend any changes to the kinds of content harmful to children that are currently specified in the OSA. Therefore, if you or your organisation have evidence you think is relevant, this is a good opportunity to contribute to, and shape, the debate.
Ofcom are seeking evidence on the following in particular:
- the incidence of content that is harmful to children on regulated services;
- the severity of harm that children in the UK suffer (or may suffer) as a result; and
- evidence that suggests it may be appropriate to make changes to specific kinds of harmful content (referred to as primary priority content and priority content) covered by the OSA.
Those interested in submitting evidence have until 5pm on Tuesday 10 March 2026. The final report and advice to the Secretary of State must then be published by Ofcom by 26 October 2026.
If you would like to discuss the child safety measures under the OSA, either in order to comply with the requirements or to respond to the call for evidence, please contact Natasha Davies. Further information about how we can help organisations with the OSA is available here.
The material in this article is provided for guidance and general information only and is not intended to constitute legal or other professional advice upon which you should rely. In particular, the information should not be used as a substitute for a full and proper consultation with a suitably qualified professional. Please do contact the Bates Wells team if you require further information.