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How Parents Can Help Keep Young People Safe From Extremism

By Sofia Mahmood MBE, Founder of Empowering Minds

In 2015 I founded Empowering Minds to turn theory into practice and ensure we have the right practice happening in communities. An area of focus was to advocate for the role that families can play in building resilience to hatred and radicalisation. The importance of this role cannot be overstated when vulnerable young people are increasingly targeted for recruitment and influenced by extremists, particularly those using online platforms, forums and chatrooms.

Growth in the use of smart phones and gaming consoles in recent years means many young people are spending more time online, and the coronavirus pandemic has seen an increased reliance on the internet. Extremist groups have capitalised on this situation and are using platforms where they can hide behind encryption to promote their hateful ideologies and extremist narratives.

Extremist groups are clear – they seek to divide communities and fuel hatred by preying on young people. They manipulate how young people think by offering them “easy” answers to difficult questions on topics such as identity and belonging and can offer a false sense of social inclusion.

The ability extreme groups have to share this kind of information – and the absence of scrutiny – makes the work Empowering Minds delivers even more urgent. Our work seeks to develop mother’s critical thinking skills and educates them on what to do when they, their friends, or their children are exposed to extremist content.

Not only can families help build resilience to extremism in young people, they can often be the first to spot any worrying changes taking place. We signpost families to websites such as ACT Early and Let’s Talk About It, which provide advice on spotting the signs of radicalisation in young people and real stories of families affected by extremism.

Knowledge = power

Since our ‘Mothers Against Radicalisation’ programme was launched, we have trained hundreds of mothers across the country, creating an open dialogue to instil confidence to have those challenging conversations. It’s never easy to talk to a child about terrorism, but it might help to raise the subject when it’s relevant, perhaps when you both see something on TV. The NSPCC have guidance on talking about terrorism with your child.

We also train mothers to spot the signs of extremism which can include:

  • unusual introverted and secretive behaviour
  • sharing information which can be detrimental to others
  • racial and discriminative behaviour which leads to violence

At a time when extremist groups are able to share misinformation and intolerance so easily on social media platforms and via gaming platforms, I hope that we can inspire young people to have the honest conversations with their parents, friends and teachers so that we can remove the influence of extremist groups.


Next steps:

Popular Resources

Online safety advice for parents from Childnet International, a non-profit organisation helping to make the internet a safe space for children. Whether you’re puzzled by parental controls or would like to know more about gaming, Childnet International can help parents keep up to speed with what children and young people are doing online. The website includes a whole host of useful ways to keep your child safe, from the basics every parent needs to know, to hot topics and emerging web trends.

 


A note about our third-party resources 

Third-party resources are those not created directly by the Educate Against Hate team, or by the Department for Education. All third-party resources hosted on Educate Against Hate have undergone a quality-assurance process, a due diligence assessment and content review before being added to the site, so you can have confidence that you’re using trusted, accurate, high-quality content.

You should use any resources on this website at your own discretion. When selecting resources and materials to use, schools may find it helpful to review guidance produced by the Department for Education on using external agencies.


 

The FAST website provides support for families whose children have travelled to conflict zones or who may be about to plot, or commit, acts of terror in the UK.

 


A note about our third-party resources 

Third-party resources are those not created directly by the Educate Against Hate team, or by the Department for Education. All third-party resources hosted on Educate Against Hate have undergone a quality-assurance process, a due diligence assessment and content review before being added to the site, so you can have confidence that you’re using trusted, accurate, high-quality content.  

You should use any resources on this website at your own discretion. When selecting resources and materials to use, schools may find it helpful to review guidance produced by the Department for Education on using external agencies.  


 

Support and advice to parents, with contributions from the leading experts and organisations in matters related to young people and families in a digital world. Parent Info is a collaboration between Parent Zone and NCA-CEOP. It aims to cover all of the issues amplified by the internet and can be recommended to parents looking for support on how to ensure their children keep safe online.

 


A note about our third-party resources 

Third-party resources are those not created directly by the Educate Against Hate team, or by the Department for Education. All third-party resources hosted on Educate Against Hate have undergone a quality-assurance process, a due diligence assessment and content review before being added to the site, so you can have confidence that you’re using trusted, accurate, high-quality content.  

You should use any resources on this website at your own discretion. When selecting resources and materials to use, schools may find it helpful to review guidance produced by the Department for Education on using external agencies.  


 

A link to quickly and anonymously report online material promoting terrorism or extremism. Anyone can report material such as: articles, images, speeches or videos that promote terrorism or encourage violence; content encouraging people to commit acts of terrorism; websites made by terrorist or extremist organisations; and videos of terrorist attacks. All referrals made through this tool go directly to the Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit in the Metropolitan police for assessment and investigation. School staff may become aware of inappropriate content through students or through online monitoring software.