Committee publication · Correspondence · 19 May 2026
Letter from Roblox on Screen Time and Social Media dated 30.04.26
From: Education Committee
Inquiry: Screen Time and Social Media
Summary
Roblox responds to the Education Select Committee's questions on screen time and child safety, following oral evidence. The company describes safety measures including facial age estimation, AI grooming detection (Sentinel system), age-based account frameworks launching June 2026, and anti-bullying tools. It commits to providing UK usage data and outlines partnerships with child safety organisations.
Key findings
- Roblox introduced mandatory facial age estimation before communication features unlock (January 2026) and will launch age-segmented accounts in June 2026: ages 5–8 on Roblox Kids with all communication disabled; under-16s with restricted cross-age contact.
- Sentinel AI system proactively identifies approximately 35% of grooming cases before user reports; remaining cases identified through user reports or legal requests. Company notes low reporting threshold and does not track grooming specifically.
- Adults cannot send direct messages to child accounts; all users must complete facial age estimation before communication features unlock; cross-age communication defaults restrict adult-child contact based on estimated age.
- Community Standards prohibit bullying and harassment across all experiences, chat and profiles. Company uses filters, AI systems, and user reporting; violations result in warnings, temporary suspension, or permanent bans across the platform.
- Roblox partners with anti-bullying and media-literacy organisations including PROJECT ROCKIT, Anti-Bullying Alliance, Cyberbullying Research Center, and Internet Matters; platforms lack algorithmic amplification and public follower counts that typically spread misogynistic content.
Tone
ProceduralTopics
child-safetyonline-platformscyberbullyinggrooming-prevention
Key actors
Roblox, Helen Hayes MP, Education Select Committee, Internet Watch Foundation, NSPCC, PROJECT ROCKIT, Anti-Bullying Alliance, Ofcom
Notable line
“From June 2026, users aged 5 8 will be placed on Roblox Kids accounts with all communication disabled by default …”
Key Quotes
“Our team conducts regular and ongoing assessments of child grooming risks arising from our product design and systems.”
“… the mandatory introduction of facial age estimation before any communication features can be unlocked, rolled out in January 2026, and the development of Roblox Kids and Roblox Select.”
“… our Sentinel AI system which is designed to spot potential signs of grooming and proactively identifies approximately 35% of grooming cases before a user report is made.”
“… adults also cannot send direct messages to child accounts, all users must complete facial age estimation before any communication features are unlocked, and cross-age communication defaults restrict contact between adult and child accounts based on estimated age.”
“Roblox does not have the design features such as algorithmic amplification, public follower counts, broadcast commenting, through which misogynistic content typically spreads on social media platforms.”
“A report is sent directly to Roblox for review and we take action if we find a policy violation. We can warn, temporarily suspend, or permanently ban the accounts involved – not just in that one game, but across Roblox.”
Source · parliament.uk record ↗