Set parental controls in layers: link a child account to a parent or family group, configure restrictions on the child’s device and the services they use, and add home broadband filtering if available. Each setting covers a different place, and home Wi-Fi controls do not follow a child onto mobile data or other networks. This UK-oriented guide explains where to start and how to check that the settings apply to the child’s actual accounts and devices.
Before you begin, decide what needs limiting
List the devices and accounts your child uses, including phones, tablets, computers, consoles, browsers and video services. Then choose the limits that fit their age and circumstances: for example, access to adult websites, explicit media, app downloads, contact with other people, or device use at certain times. There is no single control location for all of these; restrictions may belong to an account, device, app or home network.
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Parental controls can help manage access and filter content, but the cited guidance does not establish that any filter catches all harmful material. Treat the settings as practical safeguards to check and adjust, rather than as a guarantee.
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Set up the child’s account and family group
Where a platform offers family management, start by linking the child’s own account to the responsible adult or family group. This gives you a place to manage settings and avoids relying on an adult account shared with the child.
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- Apple: Apple’s UK instructions require Family Sharing and the child’s Apple Account to be part of that group for family management. Apple notes that available controls can vary by device, region and age. See Apple’s parental-controls guide.
- Google: Google’s Family Link setup uses a family group, and the parent needs their Google Account password to configure or change a child’s controls. Google lists Android 6.0 or later, iOS 16 or later, or a compatible Chromebook for downloading the parent app; check Google’s current setup help for live compatibility and feature details.
- Microsoft: Microsoft recommends starting with a family group, adding family members, and connecting devices for activity reporting. Its Family Safety setup guide covers supported contexts and links Xbox privacy and online-safety settings to a separate area.
Set restrictions on the child’s device
iPhone or iPad
Apple’s current UK guide gives this route to website filtering on a child’s device: Settings > Family > child’s name > Apps & Websites > Restrictions > Filtering under Websites. The guide lists “Limit Adult Websites” and “Ask to Browse”; it describes “Approved Websites Only” as the setting for Ask to Browse. Menu availability and defaults can depend on software version, region and the child’s age, so the route or labels may differ on your device. Use the linked Apple guide for the instructions that match your software.
Windows, Xbox and Microsoft Family Safety
Microsoft Family Safety supports screen-time limits and app and website restrictions in specified contexts. Set up the family group, add the child, apply the restrictions, and connect supported devices if you want activity reporting. Check the guide for the particular device and browser before depending on a restriction; Xbox privacy and online-safety controls are managed separately.
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Android and Google accounts
Use Family Link’s current setup flow for the child’s Google Account. The Google help page establishes the parent-app compatibility requirements and password requirement, but specific controls and filtering results should be confirmed in the interface for the child’s account rather than assumed from the name of the service.
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Device restrictions do not automatically set the rules for every service. Check frequently used apps and sites for their own family, privacy and content controls; the UK government’s parental-controls guidance directs families to manufacturers and providers for device and console instructions.
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YouTube supervised accounts
If supervised access is suitable, YouTube allows a parent to create a supervised child account for a child under 13, or the relevant age in their country or region. During setup, the parent selects a content setting that limits the videos and music accessible to the child. This is a YouTube-specific control, not a filter for other video services or the web. Follow YouTube’s supervised-account setup instructions.
Add home broadband filtering, with its limits in mind
Your broadband provider or existing router may offer filtering for devices using the home network. Check its controls before buying anything: a router with parental controls is only useful if its supported features suit your needs, it works with your broadband setup, and you understand which connected devices it covers. You do not need new hardware if your current provider or router already offers suitable controls.
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Home-network filtering applies only on that network. The NSPCC warns that controls configured on a child’s device and home broadband will not work when the child switches to mobile data, public Wi-Fi or another person’s connection. See the NSPCC guide to parental controls.
Check the settings where your child actually uses the internet
- Sign in to the child’s profile on each device and confirm the restriction is active there.
- Check the browser and the specific apps or services the child uses; a setting in one service does not establish that another service is filtered.
- Consider the connection: home broadband controls do not cover mobile data or other Wi-Fi networks.
- Revisit the setup when your child gets a new device, account or browser, or starts using a different connection. Menu labels, defaults and available features can change with software, region and age.
The UK government’s fact sheet, updated 18 September 2026, describes proposed online-safety measures with an intended Spring 2027 implementation. Those measures are a future plan as described on that date, not a parental-control feature already in force; see the government fact sheet for current policy information.
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