Coronial investigative powers: social media and the death of a child

Introduction

Coroners have wide ranging powers and can, under Schedule 5 of the Coroners and Justice Act 2009, require the provision of written statements from either an individual or organisation, and / or to provide the Coroner with any document(s) in their possession or control that relate to a coronial investigation.  Schedule 5 Notices can be sent to a social media provider, or to the Regulator (the Office of Communications – “Ofcom”), in relation to the death of an adult or child.

However, as outlined in coronial Guidance on Obtaining information regarding social media use (April 2024), Coroners often encountered “difficulty establishing to whom Schedule 5 Notices should be sent to obtain information about social media use”, and additionally can often “struggle to frame notices in a way that elicits the most useful information”.

This article looks at the law around the disclosure of a child’s social media activity and the associated duties of service providers and Ofcom to the Coroner where there is a death of a child.

Legal framework

To assist Coroners to access relevant information for an investigation from a social media platform, the Online Safety Act 2023 encompassed provisions which took effect on 1 April 2024 which broadened the information that can be obtained and disclosed to the Coroner by Ofcom.

Section 101 powers – Online Safety Act 2023

Under this legislation, Ofcom were given broader powers in respect of a service which it regulates, to obtain information from a service provider in relation to the death of a child and respond to the Coroner.

Importantly, as coronial Guidance highlights: “Ofcom’s powers under section 101 of the Online Safety Act 2023 can be exercised in respect of either a living person’s use of a regulated service that is linked with an investigation into a child’s death (i.e. someone’s social media account that evidences bullying of a deceased child), or the use of a regulated service by the child whose death is under investigation (i.e. where a child has been exposed to harmful content via a social media platform’s algorithms)”.

Section 101 of the Online Safety Act 2023 allows Ofcom (when it receives a Schedule 5 Notice from a Senior Coroner in respect of a coronial investigation into the death of a child) to obtain from those service providers it regulates, online information related to: content encountered by the child, information about how the content came to be encountered by that child, how the child interacted with the content, and any content generated or uploaded by the child.  The power conferred to Ofcom must be exercised in a way that is proportionate to the purpose.

Section 124 powers - The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025

The Data (Use and Access) Act 2025 received Royal Assent in June 2025, although commencement dates for each provision vary.

Section 124 came into effect on 30 September 2025.  It again builds on the legislative framework strengthening investigative powers in cases related to the death of a child, and further allows Ofcom to require regulated service providers to preserve and retain data about a deceased child’s activity on their platform, where requested by the Coroner.

The powers within section 124 allow for Ofcom to issue Data Preservation Notices under which service providers who are identified must take immediate steps to prevent the loss, alteration or destruction of data in respect of a child’s social media use for their service.

Consequently, in line with this further legislation: 

• The Senior Coroner should notify Ofcom that they are conducting an investigation in connection with the death of a child, and should provide the following details – 
  
  1. the name of the child who has died, 
  2. the child’s date of birth,
  3. any email addresses used by the child (in so far as is known), and
  4. the name of any regulated service which is of interest in connection with the investigation into the child’s death.
• Where this occurs, Ofcom is able to give notice (by way of a Data Preservation Notice), requiring the service provider to ensure the retention of information relating to the use of the service by the child who has died, and this can also be provided to any other relevant person to ensure the retention of information relating to the child’s use of the service.

• Any Notice issued by Ofcom must: 

  1. specify or describe the information to be retained, 

  2. specify why Ofcom requires the information to be retained,

  3. require the information to be retained for a period of one year beginning with the date of the notice, and

  4. for Ofcom to be notified of the steps taken to ensure retention of any identified information.

Additionally, Ofcom may further extend the period by which information should be retained by an additional six months.

The scope of information that must be preserved is limited to that which Ofcom would have the power to require under Data Preservation Notices or which an individual may need to retain to provide information in response to a Notice.

• Any individual who is given Notice by Ofcom commits a criminal offence if they subsequently delete, alter or permits the deletion or alteration of any information required by the Notice, and the person’s intention was to prevent that information being available for the purposes of official investigation into the death of the child.

What next?

Ofcom is currently consulting with regards to draft Guidance for online platforms that sets out what information they will be required to retain about a child’s activity if their death is investigated by a Coroner. Ofcom in relation to the proposed Guidance indicate “Some online platforms automatically delete a user’s data if their account is inactive for a certain period.  The sooner Ofcom can issue a Data Preservation Notice to a platform after a child’s death, the more likely it is to be successful in preserving any information that might be relevant to a Coroner’s investigation.  To enable swift action in these circumstances and make it easier for platforms to locate relevant data, we are proposing to set out in Guidance the types of information Coroners may wish to provide Ofcom about the child if known at the time, and the types of data we will generally require platforms to preserve”.

The consultation process closes at 5pm on 28 October 2025 with the aim to publish final Guidance by the end of the year.

However, this does not preclude the Coroner’s use of powers within both the Online Safety Act 2023 and the Data (Use and Access) Act 2025, which are now fully part of their investigative armoury.

How can we help

Our specialist team brings a unique combination of experience and skill from across the health, social care, local authority and independent sectors; and represents a ‘one stop shop’ for services in relation to children’s law, inquests and data protection.  Consulting legal experts across all relevant fields brings a unique and innovative perspective to clients to meet the wider-ranging challenges faced organisationally as you deal with the various and complex legislation in these sectors.  That team understands the practical way the relevant legal frameworks impact with a range of issues faced, and the combined skill set of specialist lawyers brings a rich offering and benefit to both our public and independent sector clients.

If you wish to discuss the issues within this article or indeed any data protection, children’s law or inquest related issue facing your organisation, please contact Jane Bennett - Associate, Deborah Jeremiah - Legal Director or Amrita Hurst - Partner.