What this framework is
The Children's Digital Wellbeing Framework (CDWF) sets out what genuinely child-centred digital design looks like, across a product's whole lifecycle. It gives digital teams, commissioners, policymakers and parents a shared, evidence-based language for judging whether a product actively supports children's development. The core premise is simple: children's wellbeing is not an add-on to good product design, it is its foundation.
People, not assets
The framework draws a clear line between experiences that treat children as assets to be optimised and those that treat them as people to be served.
Actively supportive
A product that captures attention through compulsion, over-collects data, or encourages emotional dependency on an AI is not well designed, even if it breaks no rules.
Rigorous & credible
Developed by Dr Amanda Gummer through cross-sector working groups and advisory panels, applying the rigour of physical-play accreditation to the digital space.
How accreditation works
CDWF accreditation runs in three stages. The General Floor is binary: a product either meets every requirement or it does not. There is no partial credit.
General Floor
Every product must meet all General Floor requirements. Failure at this stage disqualifies a product from proceeding.
Assessed sections
Products that pass the Floor are assessed against the sections relevant to their type: Age-related, Online, AI and Activity-related, proportionate to features and audience.
Accreditation decision
TDA assessors decide based on evidence submitted. The CDWF mark is awarded only on full Floor compliance and a satisfactory assessment across all applicable sections.
The five age bands
Age bands refer to typical developmental stages, not chronological age. Children with SEND may be at a different developmental stage, and products must accommodate a range of levels within each band.
Guidelines only. No accreditation pathway. For reference for teams considering this group voluntarily. WHO advises no sedentary screen time under 2 (caregiver video chat excepted) and no more than one hour per day for ages 2–4.
Early childhood. Play-based learning, adult mediation essential, very limited digital literacy.
Middle childhood. Growing autonomy, emerging critical awareness, peer relationships developing.
Pre-adolescence. Increasing self-direction, social complexity, commercial awareness developing.
Adolescence. Greater autonomy, identity formation, digital literacy expected. Products should actively support commercial and AI awareness rather than assume children arrive with it.
Part 1 · General Floor Requirements
The minimum safeguarding and design standards every product must meet, regardless of age group, content type or platform. Floor is the threshold for eligibility; Better and Best describe stronger practice. Click a category to expand.
Part 2 · Age-Related Design Considerations
Each principle sets out desirable features, red flags, and guidance for your selected age band. Change the age band in the filter above to see different developmental guidance. Click a principle to expand. (Principles 2.09 and 2.10 — AI emotional and cognitive safeguards — are addressed in the AI Guardrails section, so the numbering runs 2.08 to 2.11 here.)
Part 3 · Online Guardrails
Additional requirements for any product that enables interaction between users: messaging, comments, collaboration, social feeds, profiles or community spaces. Products with none of these features are exempt from this section.
Part 4 · AI Guardrails
Additional requirements for any product with AI-driven features: generative AI, conversational AI, AI tutoring, recommendation systems, AI moderation or AI-generated content. Products with no AI features are exempt, though the General Floor still applies.
Part 5 · Design guidance by activity type
The same principles, cross-referenced against four activity types so you can find the most relevant guidance quickly. Use the product-type filter above to focus the table; "N/A" means the principle does not apply to that activity.
| Principle | Screen-based content | Solitary play | Multiplayer | Online communication |
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Annex A · Dark patterns reference
"Dark patterns" are design choices that manipulate users into acting against their own interests. In children's products the patterns below are treated as disqualifying under the General Floor. Drawn from the ICO Children's Code, the EU Digital Services Act and academic research.
Glossary
Self-assessment: is your product ready?
Work through the General Floor requirements, then the Online and AI guardrails if they apply to your product. This is a design and planning aid, not a substitute for formal TDA assessment. Your progress is saved in this browser.
A high score indicates strong alignment with the framework's minimum standards, but only TDA assessors can award the CDWF mark, based on evidence submitted and reviewed against the full framework.