Prevent

Prevent in Waltham Forest is about protecting vulnerable children, young people and adults from radicalisation by any individual or organisation that could seek to exploit them.

We know that a lot of the time individuals are targeted in this way because they are vulnerable. This could be for any number of reasons, and our challenge is to understand what those reasons are and how they can be targeted so we can work to prevent this from happening.

Our aim is to:

• Engage with our community so they feel informed and confident to identify and challenge radicalisation and violent extremist ideologies in an appropriate way.
• Give young people the skills and confidence to come to their own conclusions and to challenge ideas that appear to be harmful to them or the people around them.

• Teach young people about the internet and social media safety and the risks of speaking to strangers online.

• Ensure that our work is focused on the whole family so that parents understand more about radicalisation and violent extremism and how they can help protect their children against these risks.
• Work with schools and educational settings to ensure that they too understand and promote the safety of children in all forms.

Delivery of Prevent projects is led and driven by analysis of the threat we face locally. One of which is the risks associated with internet radicalisation and online propaganda, which is specifically designed to be attractive to young people, filling them with fear and hate through a terrorist ideology.

We support secondary schools and colleges, who take part on a voluntary basis and focus on students and people who work with vulnerable young people.

Critical thinking skills are an important part of all of our project work, so recipients feel confident to question ideas they don’t agree with and learn tips for using the internet and social media safely to avoid individuals who sometimes prey on vulnerable people. Sessions provide a safe environment for residents to have discussions and debates.

• Working with young people to build their confidence, leadership qualities, and the skills to mediate and challenge any harmful ideas they may face in their community.
• Helping families improve their understanding of Prevent and giving them the skills and knowledge to identify the risks and potential dangers that their children can be exposed to.