Young people in Oldham help shape national online safety debate through youth-led hackathon

Young people in Oldham are helping shape Government thinking on social media and online safety, as a new youth-led hackathon brings together families, community leaders and decision-makers to reimagine how we grow up online.

The event, part of Mahdlo Youth Zone’s 15-year anniversary programme, feeds directly into the Government’s ongoing ‘Growing up online’ national consultation.

Recent research from OnSide Youth Zones shows that 76% of young people now spend most of their free time on screens, while findings from Ofcom highlight how platform design features such as autoplay, infinite scrolling and personalised algorithms are built to keep users online for longer.

Against this backdrop, the Oldham initiative brings together young people, parents, carers, teachers and community leaders to co-design healthier relationships with technology, ensuring towns like Oldham are actively represented in national conversations about growing up online.

From powering the Industrial Revolution to rethinking the digital one, Oldham is once again stepping into a defining moment of change.

Taking place at Mahdlo Youth Zone, the hackathon will create space for honest conversation, practical solutions and creative storytelling. Participants will explore the realities of digital life, develop ideas to improve wellbeing, and feed their lived experiences directly into the national consultation.

With proposals under consideration including potential social media restrictions for under-16, this event represents a critical opportunity for young people to influence decisions that will shape their everyday lives.

Outputs from the day will include community-led toolkits, youth-driven campaigns and locally rooted insights with the potential to inform national policy.

Lucy Lees, Chief Executive Officer of Mahdlo Youth Zone, said “At a time when nearly half of UK teenagers describe social media as addictive, Oldham is choosing not to wait for change, but to lead it. 'Enter the Group Chat’ is about putting their voices at the centre of a national conversation and making sure communities like Oldham help shape what comes next.

We’re proud to be hosting this hackathon at Mahdlo and would encourage all young people and families from across the community, whether they’re Mahdlo members or not, to come along and get involved.”

Luca, aged 14, a member of Mahdlo Youth Zone, said “Social media and being online is a big part of everyday life for young people now. It can be really positive, but there’s also a lot of pressure and stuff that adults don’t always see.

It’s good that we’re finally being asked for our opinions. If changes are going to be made about social media and phones for young people, then our generation should be part of that conversation because we experience it every day.”

The hackathon forms part of Mahdlo’s wider Made in Oldham campaign, built around four key pillars: Get Connected, Get Ahead, Get Sorted and Get Creative—supporting young people to thrive both online and offline.

By end 2026, the initiative aims to engage over 2,000 young people and develop a model that could be adopted across the UK.

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