A shocking report has found that 50% of children have seen internet porn by the time they are just 16-years-old.
The report revealed that 25% of children under 11-years-old had seen explicit images online with that number doubling by the time they reach 16.
Surveying 1,000 children, the Children’s Commissioner, the NSPCC and Middlesex University have encouraged discussions on further restricting access to explicit material online.
Children’s Commissioner Anne Longfield spoke about the report’s findings saying:
"Many children and young people who view pornography are disturbed by it. It is worrying that millions are viewing it, whether they're stumbling on it by accident or actively searching for it."
Speaking to Sky News, these teens discussed just how accessible this content is.
"You get it on social media like Instagram, Snapchat, even things come up on Twitter like porn websites that you might accidentally click on,” 15-year-old Kieran said.
"People who are 10 and 11 - they don't know what it is and they click on it."
However, it’s just the fact that children are watching this explicit content but that they are now trying to emulate what they see online.
Over a third of 13 to 14-year-old boys admitted to wanting to copy the behaviours they saw in these videos.
"Some people are getting pressured into having sex because of porn. It's sort of expected, nowadays,” 15-year-old Maddy said.
Psychotherapist Paul Hall does not think banning the explicit content will solve the problem either.
"I don't think it is possible to ban pornography, that is just not realistic at all.
"Putting blockers in place, trying to restrict access to young people and vulnerable people obviously makes sense, but I think we'd be naive as a society to think that would stop young people from accessing it."
The main worry is how this will effect children as they grow up.
Anastasia de Waal from Family Lives’ Teen Boundaries programme said:
“The reality is that we could end up pushing young people towards porn because we’re not equipping them with the reality of sex education.
“It’s really clear that porn is plugging a gap when it comes to sex education. Young people are not able to find the information they need, and are seeking it out elsewhere.”
