WellbeingIrish 10–17-year-olds
46.3%
felt low at least once a week
In 2022, 46.3% reported feeling low weekly or more often, up from 23.0% in 1998.
Social media, AI and young people
Helping adults guide young people through social media and AI.
Waypoint gives parents, teachers, youth workers and organisations practical, evidence-based ways to understand young people’s online lives, start better conversations and respond with confidence.
Waypoint’s position
Understand what is happening. Know what to say. Decide what to do.
Field note / 00
Start with a calm question.
Choose what you have noticed. Waypoint will help you find a useful place to begin.
What have you noticed?
Try asking
“What usually happens in the hour before you go to sleep, and what might make tonight easier?”
Look at timing, notifications and what phone use may be replacing. Agree one small change, then choose a time to check in again.
Connect first, then correct. Act immediately when safety is at risk.
Evidence / 01
The concern is real.
Adults need practical ways to respond.
These figures point to three different issues: mood, time online and conversations about AI. Waypoint explains what each one means and what adults can do next.
HBSC Ireland trends, 1998–2022
Time onlineAges 15–24
71.1%
spent more than two hours a day on social media
In 2025, 71.1% reported this level of use. The next question is what they were doing, when and how it affected daily life.
CSO Irish Health Survey, 2025AIAges 8–12
50%
said no adult had spoken to them about AI
The figure was 45% among 12–15-year-olds. Young people are already using AI, so adults need to start the conversation now.
CyberSafeKids, 2026Approach / 02
Screen time is only part of the picture.
One hour online can include friendship, harassment, schoolwork, comparison, creativity or harmful content. To understand the effect, start with what actually happened.
Understand the experience
What exactly was happening?
Was it supportive, upsetting, threatening, sexual, violent, commercial, health-related or simply fun? The name of the app tells you very little about what happened inside it.
What to ask nextAsk what happened, who was involved and what the feed showed next.
People / 03
Different roles need different tools.
Waypoint makes the evidence clear and gives each audience practical actions they can use straight away.
For parents and carers
A strong relationship helps keep a young person safe.
A young person is more likely to ask for help when they expect a calm response. Learn how to listen, understand what happened and agree a sensible next step together.
A practical next stepSpend 15 minutes reviewing settings together, then agree when you will check in again.
Sessions / 04
Bring the whole school community into the conversation.
Combine student sessions, a practical staff briefing and a parent evening in one visit, with clear and consistent language for everyone.
Plan a school visit- 01
Young people
Age-appropriate sessions on recommendation feeds, online pressure, AI, privacy, asking for help and staying in control.
- 02
Staff
What to notice, what to ask, what falls within their role and when to follow safeguarding procedures.
- 03
Parents and carers
Clear language, practical boundaries and a calmer way to begin difficult conversations.
For youth and community organisations, Waypoint offers tailored workshops and practitioner training built around your setting and safeguarding procedures.
About / 05
Led by
Darren Bracken.
Platform expertise. Clear guidance on social media and AI.
Darren is a former Global Head of Policy Enforcement at TikTok and former integrity operations manager at Meta. His experience inside major platforms gives Waypoint a first-hand understanding of how social media operates, how platform rules are enforced and how online risks are managed.
Through Waypoint, he makes social media and AI understandable for parents, educators and organisations: how these systems shape young people’s experiences, what to pay attention to and how to respond.
Darren also volunteers with young people in Dublin and has done so for more than 17 years. This gives him a community perspective alongside his professional platform experience.
Next step / 06
Better understanding leads to better conversations and safer choices.
Tell us who the session is for and what you want them to understand or do afterwards.
Book a Waypoint session