Overview
- Government-commissioned research finds about 98% of two-year-olds use screens daily, averaging 127 minutes and exceeding the World Health Organization’s one-hour guideline.
- The study reports wide disparities by ethnicity and income in screen habits and home learning, including much lower rates of daily reading in poorer households.
- Higher exposure is associated with poorer language outcomes, with the most pronounced link observed above roughly 86 minutes per day.
- Children averaging around five hours of daily screen time named 53% of test words, compared with 65% among those averaging about 44 minutes.
- A national working group led by Dame Rachel de Souza and Professor Russell Viner has been convened, with terms of reference due today and the first official guidance scheduled for April.