iOS 27: New Apple Child Safety and Screen Time Tools

What Changed

Apple says its new child safety tools are available now with iOS 27, iPadOS 27 and macOS 27, released on 14 September 2026. They include a simpler setup with a recommended set of essential apps for new child accounts, Ask to Browse (parents approve a new website in Safari), Time Allowances that give age-tailored starting guidance for time in Social Media, Entertainment and Games apps, and a redesigned Screen Time. Apple also says Communication Safety now covers gore and violent content as well as nudity, but its support page says gore and violence detection is only available in FaceTime video messages, not in live calls. All devices in a Family Sharing group must be updated to use the Screen Time update, and Apple's UK child safety page lists these features with no UK exclusion.

What to Review

• •Check that every Apple device in your Family Sharing group has been updated to version 27 of its software, because the Screen Time update only works if they all are.
• •Open Settings, tap Family, then your child's name, and look at Time Allowances and the website filtering options.

Parent Actions