This article is more than 9 months old

This article is more than 9 months old

One in 10 referrals to the government’s controversial anti-radicalisation Prevent programme resulted in specialist support, with the remainder leaving the process or being signposted to alternative services, fresh figures reveal.

The total number of referrals to Prevent in the year to March 2019 was 5,738, down 21% from the previous year, when there were 7,318 referrals, statistics released from the Home Office show.

Of the 5,738 referrals, 4,407 (77%) were deemed not suitable for specialist support aimed at people vulnerable to being drawn into terrorism, with most of these referrals (64%) signposted to other services, such as the education sector.

For the first time, the majority of cases that received specialist support, known as the “channel” process, were for concerns about suspected far-right radicalisation, with 254 cases, compared with 210 cases referred for suspected Islamist radicalisation.

The stated aim of Prevent, a voluntary programme, is to divert people from terrorism before they offend. Crucially it deals with individuals who have yet to cross the criminality threshold.

Every individual referral has their details stored without their knowledge in the Prevent case management database, regardless of whether they went on to receive further support, as revealed by the Guardian and Liberty in October.

The proportion of cases that entered the channel process was up in the year to March 2019 to 10% from 5% the previous year. This equates to a total of 561 cases.

The counter-terrorism policing’s national coordinator for Prevent, Ch Supt Nik Adams, said in 2018 a new assessment tool was introduced, which improved the way police dealt with referrals.

Adams said: “To see an increase in the number of channel cases while overall referrals are declining is a good indicator that our improved assessment processes are working and that professionals, friends and families who make referrals better understand the risks of radicalisation and how Prevent can help.”

An independent review of Prevent was announced in January but swiftly attracted controversy when it emerged the man appointed to lead the exercise, Alex Carlile, had admitted to parliament that he “may be somewhat biased towards” the programme and had pledged his “considered and strong support” to it, prompting calls for him to step down.

Further criticism was triggered by the terms of reference for the review, published last month, which suggested the exercise would not “consider past decisions” made under the programme.

Lord Carlile sought to reassure critics by claiming that “everything is up for discussion, including scrapping” the programme.