WHAT IS PREVENT?
From Wednesday 1 July 2015, all schools and childcare providers must have due regard to the need to prevent people being drawn into terrorism.
The government has defined extremism in the Prevent strategy as: “vocal or active opposition to fundamental British Values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs.”
Schools have an important role to play. It is our duty to keep children safe and promote their welfare.
We must do this by:
- Assessing the risk of children being drawn into terrorism.
- By having robust safeguarding policies.
- Ensuring that their safeguarding arrangements take into account the policies and procedures of the Local Safeguarding Children Board.
- Making sure that staff have training that gives them the knowledge and confidence to identify children at risk of being drawn into terrorism, and to challenge extremist ideas which can be used to legitimise terrorism
- Ensuring children are safe from terrorist and extremist material when accessing the internet
WHAT IS RADICALISATION?
“Radicalisation” refers to the process by which a person comes to support terrorism and forms of extremism leading to terrorism. During that process it is possible to intervene to prevent vulnerable people being drawn into terrorist-related activity.
WHAT IS EXTREMISM?
‘Vocal or active opposition to fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect and tolerance of different faiths and beliefs’. Being drawn into terrorism includes not only violent extremism but also non-violent extremism.
