Prevent Duty
Prevent Overview
The Prevent Duty is an aspect of safeguarding which focuses on violent extremism/terrorism. Our aim is to build community resilience against hateful and harmful narratives that are espoused by violent extremist/terrorist organisations. It is the responsibility of educators to report victims of grooming into extremist narratives and groups. We promote freedom of speech within the limitations of the 2010 Equality Act which strengthened government powers against ‘hate speech’ and ‘minority discrimination’.
The Prevent strategy has existed in various forms since 2007.
The Prevent Duty - From 1 July 2015 the Counter Terrorism and Security Act placed a new statutory duty on schools, LAs and other specified authorities and institutions, to prevent people being drawn into terrorism and extremism. Since 2012, it has been required by law for teachers “not to undermine fundamental British values, including democracy, the rule of law, individual liberty and mutual respect, and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.” The Ofsted inspection framework ,which was updated in September 2019, sets out expectations on preventing extremism. It directs inspectors to examine a school’s response to extremist behaviour when considering the behaviour and safety of pupils, as well as the effectiveness of the leadership and management of the school in preventing extremism. The Government has strengthened these provisions in the October 2019 Ofsted inspection which highlights the importance of protecting minority groups against hatred based on the 2010 Equality Act.
