The Prevent Duty – Whole Community Response

The Prevent duty – Departmental advice for schools and childcare providers: a whole school response

The statutory Prevent guidance makes clear that schools and childcare providers are expected to assess the risk of children being drawn into extremism. From 1 July 2015 all schools are to have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism . This duty is known as the Prevent duty. It applies to a wide range of public-facing bodies, including schools.

At Newlands we have a comprehensive approach that enables us, as a whole-school community, to tackle extremism.

Our measures include:

  • Training teachers about Prevent, extremism and terrorism as well as links to bullying, hate crime, internet safety & critical thinking
  • Signposting teachers to appropriate Prevent resources such as ‘Prevent for Schools’  http://www.preventforschools.org/index.php?category_id=62
  • We explore opportunities for delivering appropriate lessons through Citizenship, PSHE, RE, and other subjects and work with external providers to produce a menu of themed assemblies linked to the UNICEF calendar.
  • Although extremely rare, we review how possible hate crime is recorded and dealt with by conducting an annual audit and monitoring behaviour/anti-bullying records on a regular basis.
  • We have encouraged all staff to access online training: http://course.ncalt.com/Channel_General_Awareness/01/index.html.
  • We Equip children and young people to stay safe online, both in school and outside by regularly visiting our ‘SMART’ guidance and by running specific training events throughout the year.
  • Through P4C (Philosophy for Children) we build pupils’ resilience to radicalisation by providing a safe environment for debating controversial issues.
  • We provide a ‘rights respecting’ environment that encourages young people to participate in decision-making.
  • We provide a robust Citizenship programme which helps to provide pupils with the knowledge, skills and understanding to prepare them to play a full and active part in society. Through the curriculum, assemblies, visits and visitors to school, we prepare our pupils for their next steps in life.
  • We ensure that all RE (religious education) is in line with the Hampshire Living Difference programme.