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National Counter Terrorism Awareness Week 7-11 September 2015

Wednesday, 9th September 2015.

It is a sad fact that in today’s world we regularly bear witness to reports of terrorist atrocities through the media involving activist groups and individuals, but we rarely hear about the good work that happens locally to support people who may be at risk of becoming involved in extremist activities. This week is National Counter Terrorism Awareness Week, a UK wide effort to get people talking about the work communities undertake to reduce the threat of potential terrorist activity.

As part of the Government’s wider counter terrorism strategy, ‘Prevent’ has been developed as a multi-agency approach to tackling the problem of terrorism at its roots, preventing people from supporting terrorism or becoming terrorists themselves.

Suffolk County Council’s Cabinet Member for Communities, Cllr Sarah Stamp said: “In Suffolk, the delivery group for the Government’s Prevent agenda is made up of partners from local authorities, education, health, probation and the police. At the heart of our Prevent work is safeguarding children and adults and providing early intervention to protect and divert people away from being drawn into terrorist activity.”

At West Suffolk College there are 800 trained members of staff who are able to recognise the signs that someone may be vulnerable to radicalisation and are ready to assist with providing access to support for those individuals. Throughout this week, students will be using an e-learning package to enable them to find out more about radicalisation and extremism and what to do if they are worried about any friends.

Lindsey Johnson, Vice Principal Curriculum and Quality at West Suffolk College said: “We are committed to delivering the Government’s Prevent agenda and have worked hard to train staff to identify young people who may be at risk from radicalisation, and to make students aware of their role in preventing terrorism. All students at College this week will be undertaking the online training at the start of term.”

Frontline staff from across the public, voluntary and community sectors receive training to recognise those who are vulnerable to radicalisation. When a referral is made, the individual’s needs may be considered by a multi-agency panel called ‘Channel’. Assessment then takes place to explore the nature and extent of the risk. Where necessary, an appropriate support package will be created. This is about diverting people away from the risks they may face. Often this support comes through mentoring or diversionary activities.

If you have concerns about anyone who you may believe is facing pressures or is at risk of radicalisation, please call Customer First on 0808 800 4005. More information about Prevent and Channel can be found on the ‘Let’s Talk About It’ website at: http://www.ltai.info

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