YouTube's global head of family and learning Malik Ducard has sought to reassure creators of children's channels about the service's crackdown on inappropriate content.

After recent reports of disturbing videos finding their way onto the screens of children, YouTube has been removing content and in some cases entire channels from its service.

"I wanted to take some time to explain what we are working on and to let you know – we hear you and we are listening," wrote Ducard in a guest column for children's media industry site Kidscreen.

"While we can’t talk with everyone, we are actively engaged with creators, educators, family experts, trusted partners and flaggers, influencers and more to get this constantly evolving landscape right, and will continue to expand that effort."

Ducard added that YouTube has recently removed hundreds of accounts and more than 150k videos that violated its policies around family-friendly content, while a further 50k channels and 2m videos have had advertising removed.

"These actions are broad and sweeping because this is an area that is absolutely non-negotiable to us: We must stop the bad actors and the impact they have on the broader creator community. We’re trying hard not to make mistakes – but we know our systems aren’t perfect and we apologize for that," wrote Ducard.

"We know that some of you feel like you may be getting caught in the broader net of our actions, and have questions about what works and what doesn’t work on the platform. We know you need more clarity, and as soon as we can, we pledge to provide it."

YouTube is planning to launch a "comprehensive guide of best practices' for creators of children's channels, which Ducard said has been in the works for months.

"We know sometimes the lines are blurred when it comes to the do’s and don’ts of creating family content, but we’re here to help and show you what type of content is eligible for consideration in the YouTube Kids app."