Home Office to implement in full recommendations from Independent Review on Prevent

The Government is set to shift the delivery of its counter-extremism strategy Prevent to a regional model as part of its agreement to implement all of the recommendations made in an independent review.

It has also committed to consider extending the Prevent Duty to immigration and asylum centres, in line with another of the 34 recommendations made by William Shawcross, who led the Independent Review of Prevent.

Under Prevent, local authorities are required to establish or use existing multi-agency groups at the local level, work with partners to assess the threat in a particular area, coordinate Prevent activities, and have in place arrangements to evaluate the effectiveness of safeguarding work.

Writing in his report, Shawcross criticised failings of Prevent, noting that “all too often those who commit terrorist acts in this country have been previously referred to Prevent.

“Prevent apparently failed to understand the danger in these cases and this review demonstrates how such failures might be avoided in the future.”

He found the duty to be “especially effective in schools” but believes the focus of Prevent should shift from safeguarding – i.e. an emphasis on protecting those referred into Prevent from harm – to protecting the public from those inclined to pose a security threat.

The Home Office currently provides 42 local authorities with additional funding to carry out Prevent work.

In cities like London, Shawcross heard complaints from people who believed the funding designations between boroughs to be arbitrary, while in non-priority areas, he reported a feeling that a lack of funding was hampering any proactive efforts to identify individuals at risk. These findings led him to conclude that a regionalised Prevent model would allow for better use of resources.

Some of the recommendations in Shawcross’ report include the following:

• Amend the 2015 Counter Terrorism and Security Act to stipulate that relevant agencies must “have due regard to the need to prevent people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism”. This alters the current duty to “have due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism”. Amend duty guidance and CONTEST accordingly.
• Explore extending the Prevent Duty to immigration and asylum (through UK Border Force, Immigration and Protection Directorate) and to job centres (via the Department for Work and Pensions).
• Move national Prevent delivery to a regionalised model that has consistent lines with the centre of Prevent in the Home Office. “Regional Prevent advisers should sit alongside the same geographic areas as regional counter-terrorism units. Advisers should support, oversee, and guide Prevent delivery within their region and serve as a communication point between central and local Government.”
• Streamline the Channel case management process by testing a hybrid model for referrals, risk assessment and information gathering. “The Police and local authorities would handle referrals simultaneously. Initial discussions with the referee would be carried out by either of these authorities, while the Police would complete risk assessments and information gathering.”
• Develop a new training and induction package for all government and public sector staff working in counter-extremism and counter-terrorism.
• Training for Prevent, Channel, and public sector staff subject to the duty should include clear guidance on how and when to make appropriate referral decisions. “Training must clearly specify new Prevent thresholds and the requirement to ensure referrals have an identifiable ideological element and terrorism risk. Thresholds and decision-making must be implemented consistently across all ideological threats.”
• Create a new standards and compliance unit answerable to ministers on the Prevent oversight board. The purpose of the unit should be to process and investigate complaints from Prevent practitioners and the wider public.

Work to implement the recommendations of the review has already started, and the majority of recommendations are expected to be actioned within 12 months, the Home Office has said.

A report on the implementation of the recommendations will be delivered a year from now, it added.

Home Secretary Suella Braverman “wholeheartedly” accepted all 34 recommendations.

In response to the review, Cllr Nesil Caliskan, Chair of the Local Government Association’s Safer and Stronger Communities Board, said the removal of funding for councils’ counter-extremism work, budgetary pressures on all council services and long-standing uncertainties about how national policy on extremist threats will change “has had a significant impact on what councils are able to achieve”.

Cllr Caliskan added: “We have long argued that stopping terrorism requires a broad and joined-up approach. Investing in a long-term approach, which includes a multi-agency support offer for those at risk, is vital in addressing some of the wider issues that may contribute to individuals becoming radicalised and create tensions in our communities.

“We are pleased Government is committed to staying vigilant against all threats. But we cannot afford to take our eye off the ball in countering broader extremism issues, online conspiracy theorists and harmful influencers, which currently pose a direct threat to councillors and council officers, and our wider communities.”

She also raised concern that too narrow a focus for the Prevent strategy in future that may no longer include support under the Channel programme for those with ‘mixed, unclear or unstable’ ideologies “could mean people in need of significant support or intervention fall through the gaps”.

Cllr Caliskan concluded that the Government should commit to continued investment in the Prevent and wider counter-extremism space, including providing resources for local training.

The Shawcross review had been boycotted by a coalition of 17 human rights and community groups including Amnesty International and Liberty. Amnesty said the report had "no legitimacy".

Adam Carey