Coronation Street star Lucy Fallon has called for a ban on children using social media after meeting an online grooming victim
The soap actress has been involved in a disturbing sexual abuse stroyline
Coronation Street star Lucy Fallon has called for a ban on children using social media after meeting an online grooming victim while researching her latest plot.
Lucy, who plays teenager Bethany Platt, was moved to tears after being introduced to a young women who was abused for six years after meeting a man on the internet.
The actress spoke to the girl - who went by the pseudonym Lucy - in the build up to her shocking sexual exploitation storyline involving Bethany being groomed and sold for sex by creepy boyfriend Nathan Curtis.
And with the plot set continue into the summer, the 21-year-old has called for an age limit for those using social media.
Lucy said: “When we met I was really crying when we were talking to her.
“When you’re young, especially like Lucy, she was really vulnerable and didn’t have a good family support behind her so she went to social media to try and speak to people because she was lonely and that’s how it started with her.
“It’s changed how I feel about social media. And I think it’s changed my opinion on when I have a child if it’s a boy or a girl and how I feel about them being on social media from such a young age.
"I think that shouldn’t be allowed. There should be an older age limit. I think it should be 16."
The recommended age limit for Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, and Snapchat is 13, although recent figures suggest 78 per cent of children under the age of 13 have at least one social media account.
Bethany’s exploitative relationship with Nathan this week takes a darker turn when he sells her for sex to his friend Neil and the schoolgirl is drawn into the centre of a grooming ring.
Lucy said: “At first I was nervous about it because it’s a big storyline. But it’s exiting to get a gritty storyline to get your teeth into.
"I’m feeling good about it now because we spoke to the NSPCC and to Lucy who told us her story and it made me feel passionate about it and determined to do it justice.”
"Most people have been saying how it’s really amazing that Corrie are tackling such an important issue and that these things don’t get spoken about and if they don’t get spoken about then there’s no awareness about it so it’s been pretty much all positive apart from a few people."
Coronation Street airs weeknights on ITV.
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