Prevent and Protect are two strands of the British government’s counter-terrorism programme. Prevent aims to stop people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism, while Protect is to strengthen venues against terrorist attacks. But are they effective and how do they work together?
In this panel, we will be joined by Professor Paul Thomas, Figen Murray OBE and Sean Arbuthnot as they consider how these programmes work together. With case studies and discussions about recent changes to policy, we will explore opportunities for improvement and ways that we can all contribute to keeping the public safe.
Paul Thomas is Professor of Youth and Policy and Associate Dean (Research) in the School of Education and Professional Development, University of Huddersfield. Paul’s research focusses on how policies, such as the Prevent strategy, have been understood and implemented at ground-level. Paul is a qualified Youth and Community worker.
Figen Murray OBE has worked on Martyn’s Law since her son, Martyn, died during a terrorist attack at the Manchester Arena in May 2017. Martyn’s Law seeks to change current legislation to ensure venues provide adequate security to keep customers and staff safe from terror attacks. This includes risk assessments, reduction of identified risks, having a counter terrorism action plan, and free, government-provided staff training in counterterrorism. Since the attack in 2017, Figen has studied a Masters in Counterterrorism to better understand why terrorism occurs and the best practises in tackling it. She regularly lectures to young people at schools, colleges, and universities about the dangers of radicalisation. She has recently been awarded an OBE for her efforts.
Sean Arbuthnot has been a Prevent practitioner since 2013 and is currently the Prevent Coordinator for Birmingham. He is also a Fellow at the Centre for Analysis of the Radical Right (CARR). Prior to this Fellowship, he enjoyed a varied 12-year policing career and has a Masters in Conflict Resolution from Lancaster University.
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