Few schools and academies can be unaware of growing concern about the potential rise of extremism in some British schools,recently fuelled by dramatic headlines about school pupils running away to Syria to join the Islamic State jihadist movement.
Many will be now be considering how best to manage the highly sensitive issue of monitoring and preventing the growth of radicalisation and extremism within their own institutions without damaging the all-important relationship of trust and confidence that exists between them and their pupils and parents.
Following the introduction of specific legal duties under s26 Counter Terrorism and Security Act 2015, and Prevent Duty Guidance 2015, schools and academies should now be urgently reviewing and updating their safeguarding and other relevant policies and procedures and putting in place training to ensure that all members of staff are fully aware of, and confident in, their new monitoring and reporting duties in this area.
These steps should help schools and academies to avoid the potentially damaging consequences of being found by OFSTED or the DfE to have taken insufficient steps to monitor and prevent extremism and radicalisation amongst their pupils. Consequences may extend to being downgraded by OFSTED from ‘Outstanding’ or ‘Good’ status to ‘Requires Improvement’, accompanied by increased frequency of inspections and unwelcome media coverage.
Schools and academies remain under a legal duty to ensure that the diverse racial, cultural and religious backgrounds of all their pupils are equally valued and respected, and that no pupil is discriminated against on grounds of race, religion or belief (ss9 & 10 Equality Act 2010). They must also continue to act in the best interests of their pupils’ health, safety and welfare in line with current safeguarding legislation (Working Together to Safeguard Children 2015; Keeping Children Safe in Education 2015).
However, where it is suspected that a pupil may be at risk of being radicalised, there can be reluctance on the part of individual staff to report such suspicions, for fear that it will result in the pupil, and his or her family and friends, coming to the attention of criminal justice system. At the same time, failing to alert the appropriate authorities at an early stage may risk storing up greater difficulties for the school or academy further down the line. These and other potentially conflicting duties will need to be addressed with care.
If you are a school or academy considering any of the above issues and would find it helpful to talk matters through on a confidential basis, please contact Edlex on 0203 176 4390 or email us your details at info@edlex.co.uk