Referrals to Prevent anti-terror scheme at record high

Nearly 10,000 people were referred to the government's anti-terrorism scheme Prevent in the year to September 2025, Home Office figures show, a record number for the programme.

Figures show 10,293 referrals were made in England and Wales for 9,957 people - up by 39% from the previous 12 months and the highest number in a single year since records began in 2015.

Where the age is known, 393 referrals were for children under 10, the largest proportion concerned 11 to 15-year-olds at 36%, followed by 16 to 17 year-olds at 13% of referals.

The Home Office said the spike was in part due to "heightened public awareness of Prevent" after the Southport attacks in July 2024, where a teenager killed three girls at a dance class.

Axel Rudakubana was 17-years-old when he stabbed 11 children and two adults, killing nine-year-old Alice da Silva Aguiar, seven-year-old Elsie Dot Stancombe, and six-year-old Bebe King at a Taylor Swift–themed yoga and dance workshop.

Rudakubana was referred to Prevent on three occasions between 2019 and 2021 due to his interest in terrorist attacks and school shootings, but there was no evidence of a fixed ideology or motivation.

A government review found that his case was closed "prematurely", and that counter terrorism officers staffing the Prevent scheme had "sufficient information" to escalate Rudakubana's case to the next stage - known as Channel - which would have included enhanced monitoring for those deemed at risk of radicalisation.

The Home Office said the Southport attacks may have also led to a 117% increase in referrals discussed at a Channel panel, rising from 997 to 2,159.