Protect children from sunbeds

• Using a sunbed before the age of 35 increases the risk of cancer by 75 per cent
• More than a quarter of a million 11-17 year olds in England have used a sunbed
• The most common cancer in young people aged 15-34 is malignant melanoma (the most dangerous form of skin cancer)

The link between sunbed use and skin cancer is proven. Experts believe that along with excessive exposure to the sun, sunbed use is helping to fuel the increase in skin cancer incidence across the UK, particularly amongst the young.

3 May 2011: Sunbeds Act passed in Northern Ireland

On 3 May the Northern Ireland Assembly passed the Sunbeds Act (Northern Ireland) 2011. This is fantastic news for our campaign, meaning that under-18s in Northern Ireland will be protected from the increased risk of skin cancer that sunbeds expose them to. The Executive is yet to announce the exact date when these laws will be officially brought in.

These new laws for Northern Ireland are particularly significant as they form some of the strongest regulation of sunbeds in the whole of Western Europe. The Act also stops under 18s in Northern Ireland from being able to buy or hire sunbeds, ensures that sunbed salons will have to be supervised and salon staff will have to be properly trained and could require that all salons are registered and licensed. We’re also pleased that health information on the risks of sunbed use will have to be provided to adult users and buyers, and salons won’t be able to claim any health benefits of using sunbeds. Protective eyewear will need to be available in all salons, and salon staff will need to encourage customers to use it.

We’re really pleased about this news and we’ll be keeping a close eye on the date when these laws will be ‘switched on’ to help protect a whole generation of young people in Northern Ireland.

March 2011: The Sunbed Act comes into force and Wales outlines further measures

Under-18s in England and Wales will be better protected from the harmful effects of sunbeds as The Sunbeds Act comes into effect on 8 April.

We’re really pleased that under-18s will not have access to sunbeds in England and Wales from 8 April because skin cancer is one of the most common cancers in the UK, and is on the rise . In addition to this the Welsh Assembly Government has gone a few steps further. From 31 October all sunbeds in all sunbed businesses will have to be supervised to make sure that under-18s are not able to access these facilities, and health information will have to be available for all adults wanting to use sunbeds. Adults will also be required to wear safe and appropriate eye-protection.

So many of our supporters campaigned for this change. We’re so grateful for their support, and this shows the progress that campaigning can have when we all work together to beat cancer.

Sarah Woolnough, Director of Policy at Cancer Research UK, said:
'We are delighted that young people will be protected from sunbed use from April 2011 and that the Welsh Assembly Government will introduce supporting regulations to make the legislation as effective as possible. We believe the legislation will help save lives.'

You can find out more on the Welsh Government news pages.

2010: The Sunbeds Bill becomes law

We are delighted to confirm that the Sunbeds Bill has now become law. The Sunbeds Act (as it will now be known) will restrict the use of sunbeds to over 18s in England and Wales (Scotland already has this legislation), and a generation of our children will be protected from the damage they can cause. A huge thank you goes out to all those who emailed their MPs on this issue. 

Important first steps have been made in England to protect young people from the risks associated with sunbed use. But to make the legislation really effective, we’re urging the government to introduce the supporting measures included in the legislation as soon as possible. These would to bring England in line with the other nations of the UK

These additional measures will ensure that all sunbed salons are supervised by trained staff and that all adults above the age of 18 are given accurate health information about the risks – so they can make an informed decision about whether to use a sunbed.

Without these measures we’re concerned that some young people will still be able to access sunbeds at unmanned/coin-operated salons and that adults won’t be made sufficiently aware of the risks before using them.

For more information about what we think about sunbeds and sun awareness, see our policy pages.

For more information about the damage caused by sunbeds see our healthy living pages.