UEL installation at Westfield Stratford exposes online harms
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Published
25 September 2025
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Parents, carers, and shoppers were confronted with the hidden dangers children face in today’s digital world at a powerful immersive pop-up installation at London’s Westfield Stratford City on 24 September.
The free installation, created by experts at the University of East London (UEL), drew large crowds throughout the day as passers-by stepped inside two full-sized pre-teen bedrooms. What looked like ordinary spaces were in fact filled with hidden apps, private chats, and toxic influencers across smart tech, gaming consoles, and computers. Visitors were challenged to spot the dangers for themselves, sparking conversations about how to keep children safe online.
Born out of UEL’s world-leading research into child online harms—developed in partnership with the National Crime Agency, NSPCC, Ofcom, the Home Office, and the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS)—the installation formed part of a global call-to-action on the urgent need for prevention strategies.
Bringing UEL’s research to life, the installation revealed the risks of grooming, cyberbullying, manipulative algorithms, and other serious harms, such as exposure to terrorism, body stigma content, self-harm, suicide, and hate material – issues that can have devastating and lasting effects on children and young people.
Despite robust measures in place, harmful online content remains easily accessible. UEL’s research, which surveyed more than 8,000 young people across eight countries, brings this to the fore, shining a light on one of the most urgent issues of our time, with uncharted risks growing exponentially alongside the ever-growing popularity of AI, virtual reality and metaverse simulations.
“Online harms are often subtle; it’s important to work with children and young people to help them recognise the signs and respond appropriately,” said Professor Julia Davidson OBE, one of the UK’s leading experts on child online safety and Director of UEL’s Institute for Connected Communities.
The University of East London’s installation aims to help people identify the warning signs of online harm and encourages having difficult but vital conversations at home with children and young people about online safety to help protect them.
We’re not just talking about online safety, we’re changing how it’s understood, taught, and protected in legislation.”
UEL’s installation also explored gendered pathways into harm, with boys more often affected by gamified misogyny, violent content, bullying behaviours, and exposure to toxic online cultures, while girls were disproportionately targeted with image-based abuse, sexual harassment, and body shaming. A subtle interplay between the two rooms demonstrated how these risks are interconnected, reflecting UEL’s research into the complex and overlapping realities of online harms.
