Prince William has said no parent ‘should ever have to endure’ what the family of Molly Russell faced.
The 14-year-old died in November 2017 after viewing ‘graphic’ content on platforms including Instagram and Pinterest.
An inquest into her death had come to a close today.
In a statement released on Twitter, the Prince of Wales wrote: ‘No parent should ever have to endure what Ian Russell and his family have been through.
‘They have been so incredibly brave.
‘Online safety for our children and young people needs to be a prerequisite, not an afterthought.’
The message was signed up with ‘W’, the mark of a personally written statement.
Prince William had met with Molly’s father, Ian, in 2019.
Online material viewed by 14-year-old Molly ‘was not safe’, senior coroner Andrew Walker had concluded earlier today.
In a hearing which put tech giants in the spotlight, he said material she was consuming in the lead up to her death ‘shouldn’t have been available for a child to see’.
Social media companies vowed to take action following today’s ruling.
Anyone can contact Samaritans, free, 24/7, 365 days a year, on 116 123, email jo@samaritans.org or visit www.samaritans.org.
Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@metro.co.uk.
For more stories like this, check our news page.