Four in five Northern Ireland parents view online safety as essential life skill

Four in five parents of primary school age children in Northern Ireland (80%) say they view learning to use the internet safely as essential a life skill as learning how to swim.

Research commissioned by Fibrus, one of Northern Ireland’s fastest growing Full Fibre broadband providers, revealed learning how to use the internet safely has now overtaken riding a bike (63%) as an absolute necessity for primary aged children as they move into their teenage years.

Four in five Northern Ireland parents (80%) ranked internet safety ahead of swimming (77%), tying shoelaces (75%), handling money (72%) and cycling proficiency (63%) as the most fundamental of life skills – higher than the UK-wide figure of 75%.

Interestingly, despite the obvious digital offering, when it comes to telling the time, 86% of parents rank the analogue way as the most essential life skill.

There are some differences across the counties. Parents in Antrim and Down are the most likely to rank using the internet safely as essential (82% in both), compared with 79% in Armagh and 74% in Derry/Londonderry.

Down parents are also the most likely to put financial literacy on the list, with 80% ranking it as essential versus 71% in Derry/Londonderry and 69% in both Antrim and Armagh.

Following on from this year’s biggest social debate which saw 9 in 10 parents back the under-16 social media ban (gov.uk survey, June 2026), this latest research shows that only 11% of parents in Northern Ireland think the internet in general should be totally restricted.

Instead, 89% favour a ‘teach, not ban’ approach to internet usage with a focus placed on knowing when to switch off, with Derry/Londonderry parents the strongest advocates at 92%, compared with 88% in both Antrim and Down and 85% in Armagh.

More than three-quarters (77%) believe the internet, and learning to use it safely from a young age, will open up more opportunities for their children than they had themselves – rising to 85% in Derry/Londonderry and falling to 71% in Armagh – whilst fewer than 1% think it will offer fewer.

Nearly two-thirds (64%) of Northern Ireland parents agreed that a child’s broadband connection now impacts their future opportunities as much as the school they attend.

This striking statistic proves high-speed internet access is no longer just a household convenience but a foundational pillar of academic and future professional success. Conviction is strongest in Armagh, where 81% agree (including 27% who strongly agree), compared with 68% in Derry/Londonderry, 61% in Antrim and 57% in Down.

For many parents, the internet is an educational lifeline, with 95% of parents in Northern Ireland admitting they rely on it to help their children with homework – rising to 98% in Antrim and 96% in Derry/Londonderry, compared with 87% in Down.

Math and numeracy (60%) top the list of subjects requiring online support, led by Derry/Londonderry (67%), while 54% of parents value the internet as being an important part of the development of creative skills such as drawing, music and video editing.

Down leads on both creative skills (57%) and coding or programming (29%), almost double the 15% in Antrim.

For 47% of families in Northern Ireland, streaming TV together is the thing they’d miss the most if the internet was turned off tomorrow, rising to half of families in Derry/Londonderry (51%) and Antrim (50%), compared with 41% in Down.

In Down, one in five (20%) would miss working from home the most, versus 12% in Derry/Londonderry.

This challenges the common narrative that technology isolates us, offering a positive indication that the internet fosters togetherness despite the picture often painted that families are more disconnected than ever, and that we are in an isolation epidemic.

For 60% of all respondents in Northern Ireland, it’s no surprise that broadband now ranks second only to electricity as the most important household item, beating a car (58%). In Armagh, the gap is even wider, with 58% choosing broadband versus 40% choosing a car, whilst in Down the two are neck and neck (64% and 63%).

The data signals that families see connectivity as critical household infrastructure.

Colin Hutchinson, Managing Director of Fibrus, said: “In a year that has seen much debate around the use of the internet safely, there is no doubt that it requires continued effort from industry and users alike to discuss, understand and develop some guardrails around its usage.

“We were keen to examine how the internet could be a force for good in the lives of families, and in light of the under 16 social media ban conversation, understand the views of parents of primary school aged children for whom the next 10 years will be critical in shaping an understanding of how the internet can help the next generation.

“We absolutely agree that safe use of the internet is a necessary life skill and that’s why we’ve shaped a primary school targeted internet safety booklet and have been rolling out workshops across Northern Ireland and Cumbria. But we’re also heartened to see from the research just how much of a fundamental role the internet plays in the daily lives of people across the UK.

“We know how critical it is to foster connection, helping both young and old. We have seen firsthand how giving rural communities access to essential utilities - often taken for granted in cities - empowers people to thrive both personally and professionally.

“The internet is not all bad and with the right measures in place, it can really enable people to learn, play, connect and create.”