THOSE we take for granted as “digital natives” are not all having a good experience online.

A new Prince’s Trust report, Slipping through the Net, carried out by the LSE and supported by Samsung, raises serious concerns about young people’s vulnerability online and is causing them to fall further behind in life.

Many young people across Wales lack the rudimentary skills they need to navigate the online world with confidence.

The research highlights that around 40 per cent of young people struggle in dealing with the negative behaviour of others online and 46 per cent of them say that no one or almost no one could be trusted online.

While an emphasis is often put on developing young people’s technical abilities online, our report calls for increased training around softer skills to help the next generation use the internet effectively and ensure their wellbeing online.

Acquiring these skills will not only make them feel more comfortable online, it will also help them harness all that the Internet has to offer in terms of education and employment prospects.

At The Prince’s Trust we work with young people who often lack traditional literacy skills, experience difficulties navigating the web, leaving them frustrated and leading to them seeking offline solutions, further narrowing their access to the jobs market.

Samsung is supporting The Prince’s Trust embed digital learning across our programmes to bridge the gap between disadvantaged young people and their peers. But we know there is so much more to do.

We hope government, businesses and other youth organisations will join us in developing new solutions to ensure that young people, whatever their background, can not only navigate the internet safely and without fear but also make the most of the online world to advance in life.

This year marks our 40th anniversary. Together we’ve changed more than 825,000 young lives. Tell us how you’ve been #partofPT

Phil Jones

Director

The Prince’s Trust Cymru