'One in six parents cannot work kids' gadgets'

Photograph: Robin Utrecht/AFP/Getty Images

Once parents relied on their kids to help them set the video recorder. But in the age of apps, iPods and 3D transportable games consoles, the digital divide may have got a tiny wider.

One in six 16% of parents admitted purchasing their kids a tool or gadget that they did not fully understand how to make use of, according to a survey published on Wednesday.

The document, on how parents control their kid's access to adult media, said a quarter of children were allowed to play games classified above their age, & 40% were allowed to watch films above their age limit.

The online survey by ParentPort featured 1800 respondents from the UK's two largest online parenting communities, Mumsnet & Netmums.

ParentPort said it revealed the "challenges & pressures parents face when it comes to keeping the media their kids see age-appropriate".

More than four-fifths 82% of parents said they closely supervised what films and tv programmes their kids watch, and 77% said they always or usually know what sites their kids visit.

But parents were also concerned about their kids being given smartphones & laptops as gifts which would give them unsupervised access to the world wide web, & inappropriate 18-rated video games.

ParentPort was set up in October last year to make it simpler for parents to complain about inappropriate content across the media. It was jointly developed by bodies including the BBC Trust, the Press Complaints Commission & Ofcom.

The Ofcom chief executive, Ed Richards, said: "This survey reveals the challenges facing parents when it comes to their kid's use of the media.

"ParentPort now gives parents an simple way to register their concerns with the media regulators who work to protect children from inappropriate material."

Source : Guardian