University College London (UCL) has published research on the physical punishment of children in the UK. Funded by the Nuffield Foundation and supported by the NSPCC, the research used data from the Millennium Cohort Study following the lives of approximately 19,000 children who were born in the UK between 2000 and 2002. Key findings show: physical punishment is still common in the UK; physical punishment does not improve behavioural outcomes in early childhood; and adolescents who experienced physical punishment in early childhood were more likely to report behaviours such as bullying and physical aggression at ages 14 and 17. The researchers are calling for the removal of the legal defence of reasonable punishment in England and Northern Ireland and for the physical punishment of children to be banned by law.
Read the news story: Physical punishment of children is harmful and must be banned in England and Northern Ireland
Download the report: Physical punishment and child outcomes in the UK (PDF)
Source: UCL
Date published: 10 June 2026
