This month we took down every photo of a young person North East Sport has ever put online. Thousands of photos from eighteen years. Every Facebook and Instagram post, every photo on our Google profile, and the pictures from 247 news stories on our website. We closed our Twitter account too, with over 13,000 followers.
Why we took down photos of young people
Young people are not content. The real reason why kids do stuff is completely lost. I am pleased I grew up in an age of phone freedom.
Our camps are phone free, staff included. We ask kids to put their phones down and just play. It didn’t sit right that we’d then put those same kids all over the internet to get likes. From next year in fact under 16s are banned from social media, so what is the point of it for them? None.
A parent ticking a consent box when they book a camp isn’t the same as a nine year old agreeing to have their childhood online for good. Those photos don’t go away. They get screenshotted, shared and saved, and now they can be lifted and changed with AI in seconds. This year the National Crime Agency warned schools to take recognisable photos of children off their websites, after criminals used AI to turn ordinary school photos into abuse images. Some children can’t be identified for their own safety, and one photo in the wrong place can undo a lot of careful work.
What it cost us
It took us ages to try and ensure that every photo was removed. At the end of the day a simple press of the delete was all it took, but lots of them. I was that determined to make a change.
It wasn’t an easy call. That Twitter account took years to build. Posts without faces get less attention. Funders still ask for photos, and we have to explain ourselves every time. Some parents loved seeing their kids on our page, and I understand that.
But I keep coming back to why we started. North East Sport exists to be there for Sunderland’s young people, week in, week out. They come to us to play, not to be content.
It’s a brave decision, but it’s one we’re happy to make. We may well be one of the first to go this far, and I’m sure others will follow. I’ve never been afraid to do something different. I cannot tell anyone to do anything, it’s entirely up to them, but I do feel relieved that I am no longer part of this sometimes ridiculous parade.
What it means for parents and teams
Nothing changes for the kids. Same sessions, same coaches, same football. We’re keeping Facebook and Instagram, but only to tell families what’s on.
Happy for our teams and parents to keep and share their own memories, as this will last a lifetime to them, but at the same time is personal to them and should be cherished. If you’re posting from a match, please only include other players if their parents have agreed. The North East Sport page will post results in words and point you to the team’s own page. It won’t repost photos of players, even when we’re tagged. It’s one rule, the same for every team, and it sits alongside our safeguarding approach.
If you want to see what we do, come down to a session. Book on the North East Sport website.
Peter Curtis
Founder and Director, North East Sport
This first appeared on our Substack, where I write longer pieces. You can subscribe there for free.