Acceptance of homosexuality among young people in Britain has fallen dramatically over the past four years, according to a large-scale study that researchers are calling a troubling reversal of a long-standing trend. The findings, drawn from the Health Behaviour in School-aged Children (HBSC) survey — a representative, quadrennial study conducted across nearly all European countries among children aged 12 to 16 — show that attitudes among both boys and girls have grown significantly more negative since 2021.

Among girls, the share who viewed homosexuality positively dropped from 78 percent in 2021 to just 51 percent in 2025. Among boys, who were already less accepting, the figure nearly halved, falling from 40 percent to 22 percent over the same period. The proportion of young people who believed their gay or lesbian classmates could openly discuss their sexual identity at school also declined sharply, from 60 percent to 45 percent. Gonneke Stevens, lead researcher and professor of youth well-being at Utrecht University, described the findings as "a worrying trend break" after years in which acceptance had been steadily rising.

Researchers point to several interconnected factors behind the shift. In recent years, sexual diversity has been challenged more openly by prominent public figures, including politicians. One notable example involved a conservative Christian foundation spreading misinformation linking a widely used primary school sex education programme to paedophilia — claims later rejected by a court ruling, but not before half of primary schools had already faced parental resistance to the curriculum. Researchers also highlight the role of social media, particularly the so-called "manosphere" — online spaces where influencers such as Andrew Tate promote rigid and often misogynistic ideas of masculinity. Marie Ricardo, director of COC, the national LGBT+ advocacy organisation, called on social media platforms to take greater responsibility for the content they amplify. "The young generation is urgently needed for a free country where everyone can be themselves," she said.

The findings on homophobia are part of a broader picture of declining well-being among young people. Classroom environments have become less welcoming, with more young people reporting bullying and finding school less enjoyable. Girls in particular continue to struggle with emotional and mental health difficulties at high rates — a trend first flagged in 2022 and linked in part to the Covid-19 pandemic, but which has shown no signs of recovery. Academic pressure, climate anxiety, fears about housing affordability, and heavy social media use — 45 percent of secondary school girls use TikTok throughout the day — all compound the problem. Researchers caution that no single cause explains the pattern, and that further study is needed to establish direct causal links between the spread of conservative online content and shifting attitudes toward homosexuality. What is clear, Stevens noted, is that young people's exposure to these views and their declining acceptance have moved in lockstep.