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Most parents believe physical punishment of children crosses the line

We’re calling on the government to change the law to end physical punishment once and for all

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  • Our new polling reveals four out of five parents with a child under 18 in England (81%) believe it’s unacceptable for adults to use physical punishment on their child, with a similar number of young adults (82%) in agreement.1 2
  • 73% of those parents also said they believe physical punishment negatively affects a child’s mental health.
  • We believe legislation is out of step with public attitudes and urge the government to change the law to end physical punishment once and for all.

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Our new survey has revealed the overwhelming majority of parents in England believe physical punishment of children crosses the line.

The YouGov polling showed four in five parents with a child under 18 years old (81%) believe it’s unacceptable for a parent to use force, however slight, against a child.

Young adults aged 18-24 (82%) questioned were also in agreement that it is unacceptable, highlighting a significant shift in attitudes amongst young people when compared to 2023 where 64% thought it was unacceptable.3

Overall, almost three-quarters (71%) of 3,500 adults polled in England said they believe using physical punishment to discipline a child is unacceptable, showing that the current legislation continues to be out of step with public attitudes.

Parents and young adults also expressed concern about the impact of physical punishment. Over two thirds of parents (73%) and young adults (85%) said they believe physical punishment negatively affects a child’s mental health.

There was strong support (59%) from parents calling to change the law to end the use of physical punishment.

As it stands, the current defence of ‘reasonable punishment’ allows parents to argue in court that it was reasonable to use force against their child. 

Lynn Perry, Chief Executive of Barnardo’s, said:

"Violence against children is unacceptable - and yet children continue to have less legal protection against physical assault than adults. That cannot be right. This new data shows that most parents agree.

“Physical punishment like smacking is harmful to a child’s health and development, and there's strong evidence that it influences their attitudes toward violence. At Barnardo's, we see firsthand how vital it is for children to feel safe and nurtured by those around them and to develop positive, healthy relationships.

“We have long campaigned for a change in the law to give children equal protection from assault and continue to call for action. It's time for all children to be legally protected from all physical punishment everywhere in the UK.”

There’s a wealth of evidence from the Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health (RCPCH) and University College London (UCL) showing that physical punishment has a detrimental impact on a child and doesn’t improve their behaviour.

Meanwhile, safeguarding professionals have also previously expressed that they would support removing the defence of ‘reasonable punishment’.

Whilst over 60 countries around the world, including Wales and Scotland, have put vital measures in place to protect children from harm, the defence of ‘reasonable punishment’ means children in England are not fully protected in law from physical assault.

We’re calling on the Government to act now to prevent falling further behind other countries and ensure out of date legislation which puts children at risk is updated.

We're urging parliamentarians in Westminster to amend the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, change the law by removing the ‘reasonable punishment’ defence clause, and give children equal protection from harm once and for all.

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Chris Sherwood, CEO at the NSPCC, said:

“Parents and young people are telling us loud and clear that they don’t want physical punishment to be a part of anyone’s childhood.

“Parents know their children and what works best for them. It is therefore crucial their experiences and opinions are not ignored or undermined, but act as a wakeup call.

“As Parliamentarians continue to debate the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill, we urge them to change the law to better reflect public attitudes to violence against children and ensure no childhood has to be tainted by physical punishment again.”

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References

  1. 1. All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from our polling with YouGov plc. The total sample size was 3,800 adults across England, of which 749 were parents with a child under 18 years old and 198 were aged 18-24-years-old, who were polled between 2nd July – 4th July 2025.

  2. 2. The survey was carried out online. All figures have been weighted and are therefore representative of all adults in England (aged 18+).

  3. 3. The table compares the responses of 18-24-year-olds who said it’s unacceptable for a parent to use physical punishment against a child over the past three years:

    2025 2024 2023
    82% 75% 64%