The adaptation of the education profession in identifying radicalisation in schools. A review of the evidence and observations from a cohort of educators and prevent practioners

This thesis examines how the educational profession has adapted to the role of identifying extremism in the classroom. It explores how in a liberal, secular democracy, a security policy, Prevent, has been wrapped in the language of safeguarding and implemented as such. The Prevent duty was made a statutory requirement under the Counter Terrorism and Security Act 2015 in which responsible authorities must have due regard for those at risk of radicalisation. This research explores the lived experiences and assessments of a cohort of Designated Safeguarding Leads and senior school leaders. It further asks a group of Prevent practitioners, whose responsibility it is to investigate claims of vulnerability and concerns of extremism, how they see the adoption of the duty by educationalists. The thesis looks at a portion of the published literature which focuses its attention on Prevent in the classroom, which questions the educational professional about how the policy is working in their school. Through a series of semi-structured questioned interviews, this thesis seeks to understand the feelings of those tasked to have due regard for young people vulnerable to extremism. Finally it asks whether they think the Prevent duty achieves its aims. The analysis of responses indicates a profession comfortable with the Prevent duty and their role within it. It shows how educationalists and practitioners have worked together in understanding each other’s perspectives, but feel there is more to do and understand. This thesis concludes that the Prevent duty has been legitimised and normalised into school safeguarding policies. The terminology adopted emulates that of other safeguarding procedures and provides common ground for educator and Prevent investigator. It is now part of every day school life, its effectiveness imprecise and it remains a complex theory in the eyes of educationalists and practitioners.