The Educator Magazine U.K. Jan-April 2024 issue - Magazine - Page 20
Empowering and safeguarding
young people from radicalisation
Act Early Stories (actearlystories.lgfl.net)
- a powerful pack of free educational
activities and lessons for schools and
youth centres designed to raise
awareness of extremism, spark discussion, and promote critical thinking
in young people - has been launched
by charity LGfL-The National Grid for
Learning.
Created by LGfL’s safeguarding team,
the resources are designed to
complement Counter Terrorism
Policing’s ACTEarly Campaign.
The original ACTEarly Campaign was
launched after worrying trends showed
that record numbers of young people
began showing up in their casework,
indicating a clear need for teachers,
parents, friends and family to do more
to protect the young people in their
care from extremism. In the year
ending March 2022, there were 6,406
referrals to Prevent due to concerns
that an individual was vulnerable to
radicalisation. The Education sector
made the most referrals (2,305; 36%),
followed by the Police (1,808; 28%).
Based on the real-life stories of three
young people whose lives have been
affected by extremism, the Act Early
Stories resource explores extreme
right-wing narratives and religious
extremism, and includes powerful
videos, ready to use session slides
and guidance notes to encourage
discussions around peer pressure,
grooming and exploitation.
All are designed to be used by
experienced practitioners as well as
those who may not have much
knowledge of the issues raised.
The aim is to empower teachers and
other practitioners to speak to young
people about extremism in different
educational settings.
Session One features Micheal, who
lost his older brother to religious
extremism after he joined a terrorist
group. It explores vulnerability and
encourages young people to recognise
how extremists exploit issues around
identity for their own agenda, through
group-led discussion and reflection.
Session Two focuses on John, who was
radicalised by the extreme right wing
and includes a letter to his younger self.
Students are encouraged to unpick the
building blocks of extremism, to
recognise the consequences of not
challenging extremist behaviour and
where to seek support and help.
Session Three features a drama-based
video and literacy activity about the
indicators of exploitation, to help
students understand peer pressure and
the grooming process. This provokes
discussions around what extreme views
are, the implications these can have,
why some people are more likely to be
influenced than others, why it may not
always be easy to leave and how to seek
support.
Commenting on the partnership and
new resources, Mubina Asaria, Online
Safeguarding Consultant, DigiSafe
Team, LGfL-The National Grid for
Learning, said, “Steering young
people away from extremism is all
about safeguarding. As educators we
are all aware of the dangers that young
people face from the online space in
which they spend so much of their
lives. The growth of extremist content
online is touching more and more of
our students’ lives, and we can all play
an important role in helping them build
some resilience to the dangerous
narratives they may come across.
“Our simple, ready to use resources will
help you tackle these difficult issues
head-on, and will give your pupils the
skills and confidence to make decisions
which will protect them from potential
harm.”
Superintendent Heather Wilson,
Deputy National Coordinator for
Prevent at Counter Terrorism Policing
said, “Teachers, youth workers, and
educational practitioners are
absolutely vital when it comes to
speaking to young people about
radicalisation, and through this
fantastic partnership we hope they
will feel empowered to tackle these
difficult conversations in the classroom.
“At Counter Terrorism Policing we
are, sadly, continuing to see growing
numbers of children and young people
featuring in our casework - which
makes innovative projects like this even
more important.
“By sharing the stories of those directly
affected by radicalisation we hope that
young people learn that this can
happen to anyone, and that there is
help out there for people who need it.
“Working with partners such as
LGfL-The National Grid for Learning
creates opportunities to reach
audiences who are most at risk, and
hopefully helps us change lives for the
better.”