Children fixated on violence fall through gaps in Prevent programme, says commissioner

A recent report by the children’s commissioner reveals that the government’s Prevent counter-extremism initiative is ill-equipped to handle a growing cohort of children who are fixated on extreme violence without adhering to a defined ideology. Referrals to Prevent have climbed from 2,918 in 2016-17 to 4,715 in 2024-25, but the majority are sent back to educational settings because the scheme is designed to counter ideological terrorism.

Dame Rachel de Souza noted that 71% of these referrals lack any identified extremist creed and often involve exposure to illegal online material, self-harm encouragement, and an obsession with mass-shooters. The report follows the 2024 Southport dance-studio murders, where the 17-year-old attacker had previously been referred to Prevent three times for similar interests. De Souza urges a wider safeguarding response, recommending that referrals be handled by local multi-agency teams that can involve counter-terrorism police where appropriate, and calls on Ofcom to enforce stricter controls on harmful online content.