The number of referrals to the UK’s deradicalisation programme has increased by 39 per cent, with the proportion fascinated with extreme violence matching those suspected of Islamist extremism.
Latest figures for Prevent show that there were 10,293 referrals, compared to 7,408 the year before, the highest number recorded in a single year. The figures, which cover the year ending in September 2025, also show a more than doubling in the number of people on Channel, a part of the scheme that deals with the most extreme cases.
Referrals of people with a “fascination with extreme violence or mass casualty attacks” increased throughout the first half of 2025, peaking at 286 referrals between April and June, before falling to 183 between July and September. The Home Office says the decline may be linked to reduced referral activity from education settings during summer holidays.
Security Minister Dan Jarvis said: “The record number of referrals to Prevent and the increase in the threat level underlines the scale of the challenge we face in protecting the public from terrorism.
“The statistics also show the crucial role the programme plays in keeping the public safe, with more than 6,000 people moved away from violent ideologies that could have resulted in harm to themselves or others.
“We will continue to improve Prevent to ensure it has the tools it needs to do its job of stopping people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism. We all have a role to play in keeping each other safe and spotting the signs of radicalisation.”
Overall, extreme right-wing concerns accounted for 20 per cent of referrals, Islamist extremism accounted for 8 per cent, and a fascination with extreme violence and mass-casualty attacks accounted for 8 per cent as well. For those referrals where ethnicity was specified, 68 per cent were recorded as white, 18 per cent were Asian, and 8 per cent were black.
Prevent came under the spotlight when it emerged that Southport attacker Axel Rudakubana was referred to it three times but his case was closed due to a lack of a distinct ideology. A report by MPs on the House of Commons Home Affairs Committee expressed concern that the scheme is outdated and unable to face the challenges posed by online extremism.
Former senior counter-terrorism police officer Tim Jacques took over from David Anderson in April, following the findings from an inquiry into the murder of three young girls by Rudakubana. Mr Anderson was the acting Independent Prevent Commissioner and took over from Michael Stewart, who resigned in February 2025 following a report into Prevent’s failings over Rudakubana.
Mr Anderson was asked by Yvette Cooper, who was home secretary at the time, to look at Rudakubana's case and the demands for an inquiry into Ali Harbi Ali, who murdered MP Sir David Amess in 2021. Harbi Ali was first referred to Prevent as a teenager in 2014, amid concerns he was being drawn towards Islamist extremist ideology.
