Children ‘intoxicated by extremism’ as report warns of gaps in Prevent support

Children are being exposed to increasingly concerning violent and extremist content online, while schools and colleges can face “closed doors and dead ends” when seeking help through the government’s Prevent programme, according to a new report from the Children’s Commissioner for England.

Dame Rachel de Souza has called for a stronger safeguarding response for children who are fixated on violence, particularly those who do not have an identified extremist ideology.

The number of Prevent referrals involving children increased from 2,918 in 2016-17 to 4,715 in 2024-25. Analysis by the Children’s Commissioner found that 71% of referrals involving children in 2024-25 had no specific extremist ideology identified.

Professionals interviewed for the report linked some referrals to wider vulnerabilities, including exposure to harmful online content, fixation with violence, exploitation and unmet needs.

Of the 4,715 referrals involving children between April 2024 and March 2025, 79% were closed without progressing through the Prevent programme. Almost three in five referrals came from education settings.

At least 65% of referrals made by schools and colleges were returned to education settings when the Prevent case was closed. Of those returned, 93% had not been discussed at a panel or progressed through the programme.

The findings come amid continued scrutiny of Prevent following the Southport attack. Axel Rudakubana had been referred to the programme three times before murdering Alice da Silva Aguiar, Bebe King and Elsie Dot Stancombe at a dance class in 2024. His referrals were closed without further Prevent intervention, with the absence of a clear ideology becoming a key issue in subsequent scrutiny of the case.

The Children’s Commissioner is calling for children referred because of concerns about violence, exploitation or radicalisation to be assessed through local safeguarding teams, with Counter Terrorism Policing involved where appropriate.

Dame Rachel said the current system contains significant concern about children who may need help, but professionals can struggle to identify where responsibility for providing that support sits.

The report argues that a stronger safeguarding approach is needed to ensure children displaying concerning behaviour or a fixation with violence do not fall between existing services simply because they do not meet the threshold for a traditional ideological extremism case.

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