UK’s young staring at screen 36m hours a day screen

On average, youngsters clock up an hour and 50 minutes online a day, and watch TV for 2.7 hours, according to the Childwise annual monitor report.

It says that today’s youngsters have access to a wide range of technology and gadgets, with many owning laptops or PCs, with internet access in their bedrooms.

The study questioned almost 2,500 five to 16-year-olds about their computer, TV and reading habits.

The findings show that nearly two-thirds of five to 16-year-olds have their own computer (62 per cent) – even amongst five and six year-olds this figure is 24 per cent.

Almost half (46 per cent) of all children questioned said they have internet access in their room.

Two thirds (65 per cent) of children go online most days, with the average child using the internet 5.2 times a week.

In total, Britain’s children spend 13 million hours on websites every day.

The study also says many children, including young children, are spending time on social networking sites. A third (36 per cent) of all seven to 10-year olds visited Facebook in the last week, it found, along with 71 per cent of 11 and 12-year-olds and 85 per cent of 13 to 16-year-olds.

Despite many children spending hours online, TV still has the strongest hold over the nation’s youngsters.

Collectively, children watch 23 million hours of TV a day, and 62 per cent have a television in their own room.

More than four in five youngsters now use internet “on demand” TV services.

Margaret Morrissey of lobby group Parents Outloud, said children could not be blamed for spending time on the computer or in front of the TV.

The creation of new housing estates meant that gardens had been reduced to the size of a “pocket handkerchief”, she said.

“If we are building houses that are smaller, children are not going to be as physically active.”

“And it is not really possible in this day and age for them to play out in the street on their own.”

Mrs Morrissey added: “We cannot complain as the generation in charge when they (children) use the things we have provided and don’t have space to do recreational things outdoors with their parents.”

The report also shows that fewer children are buying magazines, and an increasing number are aware of, and even own, eBooks and eReaders.

One in three (33%) are aware of eReaders, while 5% own one, it says.

Nearly one in four (23%) are already saying that they would prefer to read a book in electronic form, although two in five (41%) still prefer a traditional book.

:: The survey questioned 2,445 children aged five to 16 in 120 schools during autumn last year.