Real stories

Micheal’s brother Thomas was a normal teenager who enjoyed going to the pub and worked as an electrician. He became interested in Islam at the age of 19 and gradually started to change. He insisted on using his own pans to cook and becoming angry at his mother or brother for watching TV and listening to music. He changed his name and his appearance and lost his apprenticeship after repeatedly expressing extremist views at work. He travelled abroad telling his mother he was going to study Arabic, but the following year called to say he had joined a terrorist group. Shortly after, he was killed which devastated his mother and brother. Read the heart breaking letter Micheal would have liked to write to Thomas.

Mustafa was a follower of multiple radical clerics and expressed and promoted extreme views. He is now a spoken word artist working within the non-governmental organisation sector as a trainer, facilitator and creator of counter-extremism expertise.

Jane’s son Cameron is a bright teenager with autism. He doesn’t have any friends, either in school or online and likes to spend time researching topics that interest him. It was during his research that he developed a concerning interest in extreme right wing.

This is her story. 

“I felt alone and that I couldn’t ask anyone for advice, it’s not like you would be asking about Minecraft or something.

I knew something was wrong and I felt frightened, nervous like the sand was shifting under my feet.  I feel I was naive as I thought it was a passing phase, but you don’t see terrorism or think about terrorism where we live. We live in the countryside and terrorism doesn’t seem real. It felt overwhelming to think about involving the police, I didn’t know what to say.  I felt relieved when the school referred my son to Prevent.

The Prevent officer, Sally, has been great. She organised for my son to visit a car manufacturer, as he’s interested in engineering. He’s very bright. He can be obsessive and needs a shift in focus. A new direction, maybe an apprenticeship. I thought she was amazing to do this for him, to redirect him. I am not close to my son, he’s become out of reach.  I just want to peel back the layers like an onion. It’s still him inside. It feels like this should be happening far away, but it’s not it’s happening in my home.” Cameron is continuing to work with Prevent officers and he is getting the support he needs to move away from extremism.

Mika’il was struggling with his identity as a Muslim teenager in Britain. He found some radical Islamist teachings online, which made him feel part of a bigger cause. 

Mika’il thought those views gave him the direction he had been missing. When Mika’il’s teachers heard him make worrying comments about terrorism in class, they referred him to Prevent. He says “I almost took a wrong turn towards a radical, extremist ideology. These views I was exposed to had the potential to bring harm to others and myself.”

We worked with our partners to find out what kind of support would help Mika’il best and he was offered a specialist mentor. They met weekly, so that Mika’il could talk about his worries and explore the future. Mika’il’s mentor had been in a similar situation, which helped Mika’il feel less judged and more open to discuss his views. He explains “a significant reason why I felt the process I went through worked, was that I was provided with a mentor coupled with excellent support from my school teacher. It meant I had positive influences that overcame the negative ones.” Working with teachers at his school, Mika’il went on to study interfaith reconciliation at university – and is now thinking about a career in counter-extremism. “Having completed the Prevent programme I can truly say that it has benefitted and helped me have a clearer idea about my future.”

Thirteen-year-old Ali was witnessing domestic abuse at home and was feeling bullied and rejected by his peers. Angry and isolated he started to watch extreme violent videos online. A school social worker noticed he had started to draw violent images and asked him more about it. Ali was referred to Prevent and working together with his local authority a comprehensive support package was put in place for Ali and his family. Over time Ali‘s confidence and self-esteem grew and his vulnerability to radicalisation diminished.

Liz faced a period of homelessness after her marriage had broken down due to domestic abuse. Isolated and alone she turned online to find new people to connect with and became involved with an extremist group and made plans to travel abroad to meet them. She failed to raise funds to do this however.  Liz was arrested and police found extremist material on her computer. She was offered support through the Prevent programme and was assigned a mentor who worked with Liz and helped her to get her life back on track. This support meant that Liz was diverted away from a pathway towards extremism. She felt confident to learn new skills that could help her get back into work and now has a part time job.

Sixteen-year-old Owen was referred to Prevent by his school for his extreme right wing views. He was assessed and considered at risk of radicalisation. A support package was put in place over the next two years including being assigned a mentor who was able to unpick and challenge the false narratives the extreme right wing groups were using to lure Owen down the wrong path. Owen was also provided with help and support around work placements and is now in a job. He has improved his confidence and personal relationships and is no longer considered vulnerable to radicalisation.