Skip to main content

Open petition: Change the legal age of consent to intercourse to 18

Created by Lucy Anne Herdman
Closes on

To change the legal age of sexual consent to 18 instead of 16

Legally you are not classed as an adult until you are 18 - at 16 you cannot buy alcohol or tobacco, get a tattoo, serve on a jury, buy fireworks, get married without parental permission, have a credit card and/or buy lottery tickets and scratchcards and you are still a child and tried as a child if you break the law. Children do not have the mentality to be able to consent to have sexual intercourse or to have a child.

Sign this petition

146 signatures


Petition progress

View all updates for this petition, with the most recent first.

  • Petition published

    This petition can now be signed.

    If this petition gets 10,000 signatures, government will respond to it.

    If this petition gets 100,000 signatures, it will be considered for debate in Parliament.

    This petition will stay open until 12 June 2026.