Ellen Roome, an MBE from Cheltenham, has won a significant victory after years of campaigning for parents’ rights to access their children’s social media data following their death. This victory comes after the UK Government confirmed plans to introduce automatic preservation of children’s social media information upon their death.
Ellen’s campaign was sparked by the tragic loss of her 14-year-old son, Jools Sweeney, in April 2022. Ellen believes his death resulted from an online challenge gone wrong. On Friday, she received a personal call from Liz Kendall, Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, confirming the Government’s decision to amend the Crime and Policing Bill accordingly.
Under the new amendment, children’s social media data will now be automatically preserved within five days of their death, except where online activity is clearly irrelevant to the cause of death. This will prevent social media companies from deleting critical data before families or investigators can access it.
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Ellen expressed her relief and gratitude: “Liz Kendall called to tell me the Government will introduce this automatic data preservation following a child’s death. No parent should have to beg social media companies to save their child’s data or be left in the dark during such a painful time.”
She continued, “Jools’ Law ensures evidence will be preserved, giving families the answers they deserve. It establishes accountability and protects families in their darkest hours. By proving what children saw online, we can hold social media companies accountable for their role.”
This legislative amendment is part of a wider package of online safety measures announced by Prime Minister Keir Starmer, which include tougher rules on AI chatbots and stronger enforcement of the Online Safety Act.
Addressing concerns about harmful content from AI chatbots, Liz Kendall told Times Radio that existing regulations already cover much of this area. “We’ve taken immediate action on harmful content related to self-harm and suicide that children have received,” she said. “We’re particularly worried about the impact of one-on-one AI chatbots on young people, and we’re taking steps to halt any illegal content they share.”
Ellen is also among a group of British parents pursuing legal action against TikTok in the US, emphasizing the challenges families face when social media companies delay data access or delete content crucial for investigations.
Reflecting on the victory, Ellen said, “This breakthrough happened because people listened—because bereaved parents spoke out and Parliament heard us. But my journey isn’t over. I am awaiting the Attorney General’s decision on my application for a fresh inquest into Jools' death. Sadly, this new law is not retrospective, so it won’t help my family, but it will help others. Preserving data is only the first step; access and accountability must follow.”
She added, “We must go further and focus on preventing harm and deaths among children in the first place.”