Prevention of terrorism
By law, schools, colleges and other public organisations must have "due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism". This is known as the 'Prevent duty'.
Out-of-school settings supporting children
The government's GOV.UK: Prevent duty guidance contains the following in relation to children educated from home:
"51. Many children attend a range of out-of-school settings other than childcare including supplementary schools, and tuition centres to support home education. These settings are not regulated under education law.
Local authorities should take steps to understand the range of activity and settings in their areas and take appropriate and proportionate steps to ensure that children attending such settings are properly safeguarded (which should include considering whether children attending such settings are at risk of being drawn into extremism or terrorism).
In assessing the risks associated with such settings, local authorities should have regard to whether the settings subscribe to voluntary accreditation schemes and any other evidence about the extent to which the providers are taking steps to safeguard the children in their care.
Where safeguarding concerns arise, local authorities should actively consider how to make use of the full range of powers available to them to reduce the risks to children, including relevant planning and health and safety powers."
The risk of extremism in our area
There is no evidence that children educated from home in Thurrock are at greater risk than any other group of children, or that Thurrock children in general are at greater risk than in other parts of the country, but that is not a reason to be complacent.
Extremism can take many forms, including political, religious and misogynistic. Some of these may be a bigger threat in our area than others. We want to support you in making sure your children are protected from extremist views and the dangers of radicalisation.
Further information
The threat to children's safety posed by terrorist groups via the internet and social media is real and present. It is important that all parents and children know how to be safe online.
Parents and carers can also download a helpful booklet with advice and guidance from Educate Against Hate: protecting your child from extremism.
Get further advice on prevention of terrorism.