The number of children who own a mobile phone has fallen for the first time as they turn to tablet computers to access the internet.
And the number of children who say they have an online social media profile has also fallen for the first time, down from 81 per cent last year to 68 per cent among 12 to 15-year-olds, figures by UK telecoms regulator Ofcom suggest.
While nearly all 12 to 15-year-olds with an active online profile continue to use Facebook (97 per cent), they are now less likely to have a profile on Bebo (four per cent, down from eight per cent last year) and more likely to have a profile on Twitter (37 per cent, up from 25 per cent).
The overall number of children aged five to 15 owning a mobile fell from 49 per cent last year to 43 per cent this year, the first decrease since Ofcom began compiling the figures in 2005.
This was mainly because the proportion of eight to 11-year-olds who own a basic mobile phone – as opposed to a smartphone – fell steeply to 15 per cent from 28 per cent last year.
Among this age group, 18 per cent now own a smartphone and the same proportion own a tablet computer. While the smartphone figure is largely stable year-on-year, tablet ownership has grown four-fold among eight to 11-year-olds since last year’s figure of four per cent.
Smartphones remain more widely used among older children aged 12 to 15, with 62 per cent owning one, but 26 per cent now own a tablet computer, up from just seven per cent last year.
Tablet computers are becoming a must-have device for children of all ages
Tablet computers are becoming a must-have device for children of all ages, according to Ofcom’s figures. The use of tablets has tripled among five to 15-year-olds, up from 14 per cent to 42 per cent since 2012, and more than a quarter (28 per cent) of three and four-year-olds now use a tablet computer at home.
Tablet usage is also rising rapidly among five to seven-year-olds, up from 11 per cent last year to 39 per cent, and eight to 11-year-olds, up from 13 per cent last year to 44 per cent.
The age groups are five times more likely than last year to use mostly a tablet when accessing the internet at home.
The proportion of children mainly using a laptop, netbook or desktop computer to use the internet has fallen from 85 per cent last year to 68 per cent.
Children with smartphones send an estimated 184 instant messages (IM) in a typical week, while those aged 12 to 15 send an average of 255 text messages per week, up from 193 last year.
Around one in five eight to 11-year-olds (17 per cent) now say they mostly use the internet in their bedroom, up from 12 per cent last year.
Conversely, the proportion with a TV in the bedroom has fallen to 52 per cent from 59 per cent last year, while 47 per cent of five to 15-year-olds have a games console in their bedroom compared with 56 per cent last year.
More than four in 10 parents (43 per cent) of five to 15-year-olds who use a home PC, laptop or netbook to go online say they have some kind of parental controls in place.
Although 18 per cent of internet users aged 12 to 15 say they know how to change online filters or controls, considerably fewer (six per cent) say they have done so in the past year.
A quarter of parents (24 per cent) of five to 15-year-old internet users are concerned about cyberbullying, while one in seven (14 per cent) said they were concerned about their child cyberbullying somebody else.
The findings are part of Ofcom’s report Children And Parents: Media Use And Attitudes, which examines how children access and use different types of media and the role parents play in overseeing them.
Siobhan Freegard, founder of parenting site Netmums.com, said: “The number of youngsters owning mobiles is falling for four key reasons. Firstly, children aged 11 and under use phones mainly for playing games rather than making calls, and it’s much easier to do this on a tablet than a phone handset.
“Secondly, tablets are more family-friendly. Parents are willing to buy one as the whole family can play on it together. They are sociable whereas a phone handset is solitary. Kids see tablets as ‘cooler’ than phones, making them a must-have for families.
“Thirdly, while a couple of years ago a tablet would cost around £500, now you can pick one up at Tesco for just £60 with your weekly shop.
“Finally, schools have become wise to the fact that tablets represent the future of computing and many now run iPad and tablet clubs at lunch or after school.
“Even parents who are against their children playing PC games have begun to invest in them as an educational tool which will benefit their child in a way no phone can.”