Our Prevent duty

We are required by law to work to protect people from radicalisation. One of the ways we do this is through the government’s Prevent programme.

Prevent is not about:

• spying on a specific group, or section of our community
• trying to divide faiths
• stopping debate and free speech
• censoring people
• encouraging Islamophobia or views against Islam as a religion
• focusing entirely on the threat from Islamic extremism – there are many forms of extremism and we challenge all of them

Prevent is not a tool for spying

We are not allowed to carry out any covert activity or spy on anyone in the community through the Prevent programme.

Prevent is not about spying or intruding into anyone’s individual or family life. It is about supporting people who could get drawn into radicalisation and extremist ideas, before they act on those ideas or carry out any criminal acts.

One way we do this for example, is by helping teachers to spot behaviour that could be a concern at school.

If a teacher has concerns a pupil is being radicalised on the internet, they can help ensure that child gets the right support at an early stage.

The Prevent strategy does not target Muslims

Prevent is about safeguarding people who are at risk of radicalisation. It does not target a specific faith or ethnic group, it protects anyone being targeted by terrorist recruiters or who could be at risk of radicalisation.

Evidence suggests the greatest threat comes from terrorist recruiters inspired by Da’esh, but an increasing number of cases are linked to far-right extremism.

Thanks to Prevent, large numbers of people across the UK have been protected from targeting by extremists and terrorist recruiters..

Our focus

Our Prevent duty programme is about:

• keeping vulnerable people safe from harm
• tackling all forms of extremist views when people express them, regardless of where a person comes from
• working with our local community where there is a risk of anyone being radicalised

At the heart of Prevent

At the heart of Prevent we want to keep children and adults safe from extremist grooming and offer help early – before someone becomes radicalised.

This focuses our work on four areas:

• strengthening our protection against terrorist attacks
• where a terrorist attack cannot be stopped, reducing the impact of it
• stopping terrorist attacks
• reducing the number of people becoming or supporting violent extremists

This work is similar to the work we do to keep children and adults safe in other areas, for example from sexual exploitation, gang culture and other criminal behaviour.

Our Prevent strategy and delivery plan

Prevent strategy and delivery plan (PDF, 757KB)

Key areas

We work with people and groups before a crime has been committed, to ensure they understand extremist views are unhealthy and will not be tolerated.

This work focuses on:

• Ideology: challenging the ideological arguments or beliefs of terrorism and the threat we face from anyone trying to promote it
• Individuals: preventing people from being drawn into terrorism and make sure they are given appropriate advice and support
• Institutions: working with schools, colleges, community centres and places of worship where people may be affected by radicalisation

This involves training people and guidance so they know how to spot the signs of radicalisation and then supporting anyone showing concerning behaviour.

Programmes to help

The Channel programme is just one programme we run through Prevent. It is designed to help keep vulnerable people safe from being drawn into violent extremist or terrorist behaviour.

If you, or someone you know, has been exposed to extremist or terrorist ideas they can voluntarily go on a Channel programme.

A team of experts will work with the person and if they need it, support will be provided to help ensure they don’t become radicalised.

Channel is completely voluntary and confidential. It does not lead to a criminal record.

The kind of support someone receives will vary and will be decided through an assessment, but could include activities such as sport, education, employment, or housing assistance.

Extremism and radicalisation explained

What counts as an extremist view

An extremist view could mean any kind of view that opposes fundamental British values, our society or our way of life.

Rather than respect different faiths and beliefs, extremist views often attack people’s differences.

Extremist views take many forms from Islamic extremism to far-right extremism – and all types are dealt with through the Prevent programme.

What it means when someone is radicalised

Radicalisation is the process someone goes through when they start to believe extremist ideas and develop support for terrorism.

Many factors could lead to someone being radicalised and part of our work is to try and stop this from happening.

What causes people to become radicalised

We know that people become radicalised for different reasons, and that’s why we work with lots of different organisations to spot worrying behaviour so we can help people at risk of radicalisation, early on.

Mental health, substance abuse and social circumstances like a breakdown in a family can all be crucial factors in radicalisation but everyone is different.

Most people do not become radicalised because they don’t agree with the UK’s foreign policies. A number of complex factors can lead to someone being radicalised and every individual will be different.

Many people may disagree with foreign policy decisions – but they do not decide to use violence.

Education, resources and guidance

These resources have been developed by our Prevent team and quality assured by a teaching panel, Stop Hate UK and tested in schools within the borough. The aims of these lessons are to:

• reinforce safety on the internet and within our community
• help build resilience and train teachers in conducting difficult conversations
• help schools meet the expectations surrounding the Prevent duty as monitored by OFSTED.

There are no requirements to use these resources, if schools would like to alter these resources in any way, they are welcome to do so. If you would like to give feedback on the resources, please do so via the feedback form. Please let us know if you would like any help in delivering these resources or if you have suggestions in new content that could be added. If you would like to contact us directly please email the prevent team at: prevent@lbbd.gov.uk

For more information please see our Prevent information for schools document (PDF, 6MB)

Key stage 1: British values games

What are British values - part 1 (Powerpoint, 350KB)

What are British values - part 2 (Powerpoint, 350KB)

What are British values - part 3 (Powerpoint, 350KB)

Key stage 2: Community values and Internet safety

Identity and community (Powerpoint, 2MB)

Community and extremism (Powerpoint, 2MB)

Resilience against fake new (Powerpoint, 3MB)

E-safety on social media (Powerpoint, 350KB)

What are British values (Powerpoint, 300KB)

Key stage 3/4: British Law

Lesson 1 - Equality Act 2010 (Powerpoint, 200KB)

Lesson 2 - Freedom of speech (Powerpoint, 715KB)

Lesson 3 - Extremism and terrorism (Powerpoint, 270KB)

Lesson 4 - Fake news (Powerpoint, 3MB)

Lesson 5 - What are British values (Powerpoint, 370KB)

Feedback on education resources

Please let us know how you found the games and lessons.

You can download the education resources and guidance feedback form, fill it in and send back to prevent@lbbd.gov.uk

Advice and how you can help

Warning signs that someone is being radicalised

Every individual is different but the warning signs could include:

• cutting ties with friends and family
• starting to support violence
• being un-interested in activities they previously liked to do
• researching extremist material on a computer or phone
• following or speaking to extremists on social media

Concerns about a person becoming radicalised

If you are concerned about a loved one, friend or colleague, first, try to have a conversation with them about their worrying behaviour.

By talking openly, and listening, you may be able to tackle their negative ideas and arguments.

If you still have concerns they may do something that could harm themselves and/or other people, you can call the Anti-terrorist Hotline on 0800 789 321.

If your child joins an extremist group

If you suspect your child has joined an extremist group, or plans to travel to join a group overseas, you should report the situation and take advice from the police immediately.

Involving the police is obviously scary for any parent but doing this will help protect your child’s safety if your concerns turn out to be valid.

If you see something online

If you find online material promoting terrorism, extremism or radicalisation, you can report it anonymously to the Home Office.

This will help the government work with internet providers to get extremist content taken down so the internet is safer for everyone.

Report your concerns

Reporting any conversation you overhear about someone planning a violent act, trying to buy weapons, or planning a trip to a conflict zone, can help save lives.

No matter how minor a piece of information might seem, reporting it can help keep us all safe.

Our Prevent team

For further information about the programme or if you have a query or concern, don't hesitate to contact us by emailing prevent@lbbd.gov.uk.

Concerns about a child or vulnerable adult

If you have concerns about a child or vulnerable adult in the borough, not just in relation to radicalisation, you can contact us on 020 8227 3811 or email childrenss@lbbd.gov.uk.

Police

Call 999 in an emergency or 101 in non-emergency.

You can also report any concerns you have about a place or a person, whether it's a community centre, place of worship, a family member, colleague or neighbour.

The Anti-Terrorist Hotline

If you are concerned a person may do something to harm themselves and/or other people, you can call the Anti-Terrorist Hotline on 0800 789 321.