Children 'intoxicated by extremism' and schools 'miss opportunities' to refer pupils to anti-terror programme

Children are becoming "intoxicated by extremism" they view on social media and online, a new report warned. <div></div><p>In a new report, Dame Rachel de Souza, said the current process for referring to the anti-terror programme, Prevent, "risks missing opportunities" and called for a "stronger safeguarding response, particularly for children who are fixated with violence but have no identified extremist ideology".</p><div></div><p>As a result the government will "look very carefully" at what more can be done to protect children from online extremism, a minister said.</p><div></div><p>Speaking to Sky News, work and pensions minister Lilian Greenwood said the new report by the Children's Commissioner for England was "worrying".</p><div></div><p>The report suggests British children are becoming intoxicated by extremism they see online.</p><div></div><widget id="12"></widget><div></div><p>The report said: "It is clear that we have a cohort of children becoming intoxicated by extremism, radicalisation or a desire to harm others, who need interventions that Prevent is not able to provide. A merry-go-round of referral and inaction."</p><div></div><p>Ms Greenwood told Sky News: "My colleagues will want to look very carefully at this report and its recommendations and consider what more we can do.</p><div></div><p>"We're already looking at issues around young people and extremism in responding to the recommendations from the Southport inquiry. I'm sure that this work will add to that."</p><div></div><p>Ms Greenwood also reiterated that the government is committed to bringing forward a social media ban for young people.</p><div></div><p>Schools and colleges are also "finding closed doors and dead ends" when they refer children to the government's anti-terror programme, the children's commissioner said in the report.</p><div></div><div></div><p>It comes after Southport attacker Axel Rudakubana had been referred to Prevent three times, but his case was closed over a lack of clear ideology.</p><div></div> <widget id="10"></widget><p><strong><a href="https://news.sky.com/story/southport-killer-axel-rudakubana-moved-to-broadmoor-13566441" target="_self">Rudakubana is serving a 52-year sentence</a></strong> after fatally stabbing three girls – Alice da Silva Aguiar, Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe – at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class in Southport in 2024.</p><div></div><p>The chairman of the inquiry into <strong><a href="https://news.sky.com/topic/southport-stabbings-11249/1" target="_self">that attack</a></strong> has previously said officers were "hampered" by a lack of clarity on whether they should take someone on who demonstrated signs of being fixated on violence but without adherence to a particular ideology.</p><div></div><p><strong>Most Prevent referrals don't go through programme</strong></p><div></div><p>Analysis by Dame Rachel's office suggested seven in 10 (71%) referrals to Prevent involved children who did not have a clear ideology, with many linked to exposure to harmful content online such as videos of violence, discussion of weapons and sharing of extreme pornography.</p><div></div><p>Of the total Prevent referrals for children between April 2024 and March 2025, 79% were closed without progressing through the programme.</p><div></div><p>In this time period, almost 60% of Prevent referrals came from education, while police accounted for 20% and local authorities 11%.</p><div></div><p>But the commissioner's office found that at least 65% of referrals from education providers were referred back to education on closing, the vast majority of which (93%) had not progressed any further through the Prevent programme.</p><div></div> <widget id="1"></widget><div></div><p>Her report said: "This highlights that there is a group of children which professionals are greatly concerned about and seeking support for, but are finding closed doors and dead ends."</p><div></div><p>Dame Rachel said: "A referral should be the start of understanding a child's individual circumstances, not the end of the process. When a child does not progress through Prevent, we must be confident other services are there to understand and meet their needs.</p><div></div><p>"Simply returning children to services that made the referral, without a clear understanding of what is driving their behaviour or who will be responsible for meeting their needs, risks missing opportunities to provide the right support children desperately need.</p><div></div><p>"We need a stronger safeguarding response, particularly for children who are fixated with violence but have no identified extremist ideology.</p><div></div><p>"Professionals working with children need the expertise and support to identify children's needs and behaviours, intervene early and provide appropriate interventions."</p><div></div> <widget id="2"></widget><div></div><p><strong>Read more from Sky News:<br /><a href="https://news.sky.com/story/multiple-people-killed-and-others-injured-in-motorway-crash-in-county-kildare-irish-police-say-13573112" target="_self">Five teenagers dead in car crash</a><br /><a href="https://news.sky.com/video/stourbridge-residents-return-home-to-assess-damage-caused-by-fires-13573977" target="_self">Stourbridge residents return home</a></strong></p><div></div><p>A government spokesperson said: "We are committed to ensuring all children are safe from radicalisation, and Prevent plays a crucial role in this, moving more than 6,000 people away from violent ideologies since 2015.</p><div></div><p>"Every Prevent referral is assessed thoroughly by experts. If it's determined a person is not at risk of being drawn into terrorism, it is right they are supported by other, more appropriate services.</p><div></div><p>"We thank the Children's Commissioner for her report. We are reviewing it alongside our work in response to the Southport Inquiry – including developing further options to manage those fascinated with extreme violence."</p><div></div>