CAMPAIGNING mums who believe their sons died as a result of “dangerous” social media trends have warned new measures aimed at keeping children safe online do not go far enough.

Hollie Dance, from Southend and Lisa Kenevan, from Basildon, are part of a group of 11 parents who form Bereaved Families for Online Safety.

They appeared on BBC Breakfast yesterday to question the bosses of regulator Ofcom on how they will enforce steps to safeguard children from online threats.

The regulator has set out more than 40 steps that social media services must take to keep children safer.

It includes rules which mean sites and apps must introduce robust age checks to prevent children seeing harmful content such as suicide, self-harm and pornography.

But Bereaved Families for Online Safety have sent a joint letter to Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer, urging both to pledge to do more for child online safety ahead of the approaching general election.

Hollie’s son Archie Battersbee died aged 12 in 2022 after a “prank or experiment” which went wrong at their home in Southend.

Lisa’s son Isaac, 13, died after it was believed he took part in a blackout challenge on social media.

Both parents joined Esther Ghey, mother of Brianna Ghey, who was killed in Warrington in 2023 in questioning Ofcom chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes on how the regulator would “hold social media companies to account.”

The questions came as Ofcom looks to bring about the Online Safety Act in 2025 to provide parents with increased control over what their children see.

Hollie said: “Ofcom is going to do what we want to see, but at the cost of how many children’s lives before laws are implemented around dangerous online media.

“I was unaware that Archie was on Tiktok and I was naïve to social media, I didn’t really believe that Archie was on his phone much, but I have had my eyes opened now to how huge the issues are and how sinister it is.

“Archie was 12 and I asked Ofcom what they are going to do about verifying a child’s age, it doesn’t take a genius to lie past an age verification gate, the child can simply type in what they want.

“I can’t let this be laid to rest as I need to know what his access was to social media and what he was seeing and what was put in front of him. Us parents need to know.”

Lisa, from Basildon, added: “It was incredibly emotional to stand alongside other parents who have had similar traumatic experiences.

“As a parent who lost a child, we want someone to hold our hands and give us direction, not vague and woolly guidance.

“Ofcom should invest in a safeguarding officer system to help parents who have been affected as me and Hollie have been. That is where their money should be going.”

It comes months after the pair collaborated on a new hard-hitting video to warn parents about the dangers of online challenges.

Ofcom chief executive Dame Melanie Dawes told the BBC’s Radio 4 Today programme the proposals will result in “big changes” for social media companies and would publicly name those who did not comply.

“They will be responsible for the first time in law for actually looking at their own services, who’s using them, what the advantages are of course, but also what the risks are,” she said.

“Ofcom is going to be marking their homework and doing so transparently as well so that the public can see the results and the marks that we’re giving.”