Prevent

The Prevent Duty and University of Derby

The University of Derby in common with all other UK universities has a statutory duty to have due regard to the need to prevent people being drawn into terrorism. Prevent is about supporting and protecting people who might be susceptible to being drawn into terrorism.

The University of Derby is committed to implementing practices to meet requirements under this “Prevent Duty”. Prevent is part of the Government strategy on counter-terrorism known as CONTEST.

The University of Derby is also committed to ensuring that freedom of speech within the law is secured for members of the University and visiting speakers. However, preventing terrorism will mean challenging extremist (and non-violent) ideas that may lead to people moving from extremist groups or from extremism into terrorist-related activity.

As part of the University of Derby’s registration with the Office for Students we must follow guidance and provide evidence and assessments that demonstrate that we are fulfilling the duty. The University Governors oversee our implementation of the duty and ensure we are exercising appropriate judgements, and therefore review that evidence.

Prevent seeks to stop vulnerable people being radicalised, therefore our approach is to consider Prevent as a form of safeguarding, recognising that we have a duty of care to protect vulnerable adults and children from neglect or abuse. Our approach to safeguarding aims to be broad and we encourage anyone with concerns about the well-being of a student or member of staff to take appropriate action.

What should I do if I am worried about a student?

The University of Derby approach is to break our thinking and action about causes of concern into three steps:

Notice

Are you concerned about a student? Perhaps you’ve noticed a change in behaviour; are they becoming withdrawn, or acting differently? Maybe it’s something the student has said that’s worrying you. Staff in front-line support roles will often be the first to notice if a student is experiencing difficulties.

Check

Don’t ignore your concerns – check with others who may also have noticed something. You could speak to the student directly, or talk to colleagues/academic tutors, to see if they share your concerns.

Share

If you are still worried about a student, please report via the Cause for concern reporting form to share your concerns and one of the team will contact you to discuss this further. The team may be able to offer support and guidance to the student

What will happen if I raise concerns that a student is at risk of being drawn into violent extremism/terrorism/being radicalised?

Most concerns raised are not Prevent related and staff/students are supported, following well-established ways of working developed by our student support and wellbeing teams. If it seems appropriate to respond to a concern in relation to Prevent, the Prevent Lead will carry out further CHECKS with colleagues in the University to build a clear picture. It is possible that the Prevent lead might seek advice from the relevant police officer.

If it is Prevent related, the University’s Prevent Lead will discuss the most appropriate and supportive actions, calling on expertise from within the institution and the Prevent team in the City (eg Channel, police, etc).