May 14, 2026 (6:30 - 8:00 PM, followed by drinks)

LSE & online

A public lecture by the DFC 

Major online safety regulations and legislation are now in force across the UK and EU. Platforms have new duties, regulators have new powers, and expectations are high. But what has actually changed for children?

Bringing together leading voices from regulation, legal scholarship and child rights, as well as new research evidence, the event will reflect on how regulation reshapes platform design, governance and accountability in practice. 

Speakers:

• Steve Wood, PrivacyX Consulting, former Deputy at the Information Commissioners's Office (ICO) will present new research, followed by responses from the panel members:
  
• Baroness Beeban Kidron, Crossbench Peer, House of Lords, UK Parliament and Chair of the Management Committee at the Digital Futures for Children centre
  
• Professor Orla Lynskey, Chair of Law and Technology at UCL
  
• Professor Lorna Woods, OBE, Emeritus Professor of Internet Law at the University of Essex

Chair: Sonia Livingstone, Professor at the Department of Media and Communications, LSE and Director of the Digital Futures for Children centre

Steve Wood: “The research shows that regulation has yet to drive systemic change in safety and privacy by design for children. Instead, platforms are investing more in parental controls than in default protections. At the same time, we observe a rise in age assurance measures and early regulatory effects on AI services used by children.”

More information & free registration: https://www.digital-futures-for-children.net/events/child-rights-regulation

Recent from the DFC in case you missed it:

African children's rights in relation to the digital environment: child-informed provocations to guide digital policy and practice - https://www.digital-futures-for-children.net/our-work/African-childrens-rights

The impact of General comment No. 25 in the UNCRC monitoring process and around the world: https://www.digital-futures-for-children.net/our-work/impact-gc25

DFC annual research insights day blog overview: https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/medialse/2026/04/14/childrens-rights-in-the-digital-environment-have-been-defined-now-they-need-defending/