Mubina Asaria, Safeguarding Consultant at edtech charity LGfL-The National Grid for Learning shares advice for schools on supporting parents to navigate online gaming and keep their children safe.
Online gaming is firmly embedded in today’s childhood experience – part of everyday life for many children. Some start playing games online as young as 3-5 years old, with over three quarters of teenagers aged 13-17 regularly participating in online gaming (Ofcom 2025). It can be a positive social and recreational outlet for many children, but while its appeal and prevalence are undisputed, without sufficient supervision it also has a darker side. Last year, an investigation by ITV News and the Global Project Against Hate and Extremism (GPAHE) uncovered multiple examples of extremist content available on the popular gaming platform Roblox. Children as young as seven, play on this gaming platform.
Many parents have concerns including: their children talking to strangers; encountering bullying through chat features; pressure to make in-game purchases; exposure to violent, sexual or disturbing content; and harmful or offensive language. (Children and Parents: Media use and attitudes report 2026) These concerns can provide schools with natural starting points to open discussions around gaming, to help support parents to understand the risks, and feel confident about having informed conversations with their children.
Parental controls
Although parental controls and privacy settings are the first line of defence, some parents may be unaware or unsure about how to use them. Demystifying controls and settings and demonstrating how these settings are used, is a useful way to start a wider conversation.
If controls have been set, and children are trying to navigate around them and conceal their behaviour, parents automatically lose the opportunity to identify any concerns. The problem here isn’t so much ‘breaking the rules’, but the hidden activity their child may be involved in, it may also make them less likely to share concerns about any disturbing content they may have come across, or if they feel unsafe. It’s important parents recognise that visibility and communication equals safety, and that secrecy online increases vulnerability.
Online friends vs real friends
Many children view anyone they regularly play games with as a ‘friend’ – even if they’ve never met them in real life. Parents need to be aware of this blurred boundary and reinforce with their child that a fellow gamer isn’t the same as a real-world friend. Trust should not be assumed simply because they are playing a game together.
The games chat feature allows gamers to communicate with other players, and while communication via games is a valuable social tool for many children, it can sometimes leave them vulnerable to unwanted interactions. Sixty four percent of 8-17s who game online, chat through the game with friends and/or people they know in real life, however, 31% of children also communicate with strangers as well.
Over half (54%) of parents were worried by the possibility of their child being bullied by other players; and 12% of children aged 8-17, said someone had been nasty or hurtful to them through an online game.
Encourage parents to talk with their child about who they are playing with and to check what communication features are available on the games their child is using. A simple rule for children is to only discuss the game itself when using in-game chat features to talk to online friends. If another player asks for personal information, to meet up in person, or for images and videos, it’s important they show these messages to a trusted adult. This kind of contact from others online can be blocked, reported to the game and reported to CEOP.
Gaming together
Gaming together gives parents a firsthand experience of their child’s online environment and offers a way into discussions around gaming safely. It’s a chance to gauge the level of violent or disturbing content, bad language, and the pressure exerted on players to make in-game purchases for access to upgrades or loot boxes.
Loot boxes contain useful and tempting items for the player – in-game currency, new clothing ‘skins’, or even characteristics to change the player’s abilities. Games advertised as ‘free’ often make money through these in-game offers, attracting gamers to purchase them through a range of tactics similar to those used to attract people to gamble.
Research by GambleAware found children’s online spaces ‘saturated’ with gambling-like content and advertising. Nine out of ten young people report that loot boxes are available in the games they play, and 52% of parents expressed concerns on the impact of these purchases.
Family agreements
The strongest safeguarding is open conversation rather than strict surveillance. It’s important that parents are proactive and make clear agreements with their child around screen time, spending, and what to do if bullying occurs online. Regular conversations about who they are playing with, what information they are sharing, how long they spend gaming and how money is used online, all help reinforce healthy boundaries. It’s also safer for technology to be used in shared family spaces rather than bedrooms, particularly for younger children.
Understanding age ratings (PEGI)
A common misunderstanding is that age ratings relate to difficulty level. In reality, PEGI (Pan European Game Information) ratings are based on the type of content within the game, including: violence, sexual content, bad language, gambling themes and substance use. Children may ask for higher-age games because they feel younger ones are ‘too easy’, but parents need to understand that higher ratings often mean exposure to adult content.
PEGI helps parents to make informed decisions when buying video games. The age rating confirms that the game content is appropriate for players of a certain age – it considers the age suitability of a game, not the level of difficulty.
Ultimately, online gaming is not something to fear but something to understand. With the right guidance, clear boundaries and open conversations, parents and schools can work together to help children enjoy the positive aspects of gaming while staying safe from potential harms. Signpost parents to trusted sources such as Common Sense Media, which provides clear parent reviews of games and apps. There’s also a wealth of free resources available from edtech charity LGfL-the National Grid for Learning, for schools, at https://parentonlinesafety.lgfl.net/, and also for parents, at https://parentsafe.lgfl.net/.
By taking a proactive, informed approach and keeping children’s wellbeing at the centre, we can ensure that the digital spaces they inhabit are places of play, connection and learning.
