LSE wins grant for web safety study

A study into the risks children face on the internet conducted by the London School of Economics has been awarded a €2.5m (around £2.1m) EU grant.

The grant is one of the largest ever won by the LSE and it has been awarded to Professor Sonia Livingstone who has authored several books on the dangers children face online.

Professor Livingstone and her team at LSE will spend two years conducting research into online safety issues experienced by thousands of children aged from nine to 16 and their parents in up to 25 EU countries.

The study will focus on risks which include exposure to inappropriate content, such as pornography, unwelcome contact such as sexual grooming, and inappropriate conduct by children themselves, including bullying.

The pan-European study aims to inform public policy and counter "media panics", Livingstone said.

"This new project will examine the nature, extent and consequences of youthful experiences of online risk, as reported to the researchers by 1,000 9- to 16-year-olds," she said.

"At the same time, their parents will be asked how they see the risks and what they do to try to minimise them," she added.

A report by EU Kids Online found that as many parents as children are now online across Europe, so they can play an active role in helping keep children safe.

The grant was awarded by the EC Safer Internet Programme based in Luxembourg.