Britain’s school inspectorate Ofsted marked down the Little Ducklings pre-school in Hove, south England, for failing to spot if children as young as two are at risk of becoming extremists.
Nursery school staff were told they needed to improve in being able to recognise children at risk of being radicalised by family members or others as part of the British government’s Prevent anti-extremism strategy, reports The Argus.
“Although the manager and staff have reviewed some aspects of their safeguarding knowledge and updated the policies and procedures, not all staff have a secure understanding of how to protect children who may be at risk from extreme behaviours or views,” the report read.
Inspectors said Little Duckings staff must “ensure all staff use the information gained through training to improve their knowledge of the ‘prevent’ duty and wider safeguarding issues” by September or it would fail to meet the requirements to remain on the country’s official childcare register.
One mother, whose four-year-old son attends the nursery, called the grading “bonkers”.
“This is bonkers — absolutely ludicrous,” she said, according to The Mirror.
“Of course it’s important to stop children being radicalised, but come on. Little Ducklings hardly strikes you as a hotbed for international terrorism.”
This is not the first time ‘big government’ inspectors have come down heavy on a school otherwise fulfilling their duties to provide safe and enriching learning environments.
In the past few years, the quango has targetted Jewish and Christian faith schools for not fostering progressivism enough, and for insufficiently teaching about LGBT issues and Islam.
London Assembly Member David Kurten, UKIP education spokesman, remarked that “Ofsted is now part of the red blob which is pushing cultural Marxism”.
Under the British Counter-Terrorism and Security Act 2015, schools and other childcare providers — including nurseries for toddlers — must adhere to the Prevent Strategy, where staff and teachers must be able to identify children who may be vulnerable to radicalisation.
Authorities behind the government’s Prevent Strategy were forced to reorientate from their focus on those at risk of Islamic fundamentalism — the ideological source for the vast majority of acts of terror in the UK — after pressure from far-leftists, progressive educators, and minority activists who said that it “disproportionately targets” Muslims.
Since then, authorities have ramped up referrals of young people at risk of “far right” radicalisation and who hold “extreme right-wing views”, with referrals increasing in predominantly white English communities and targetting youngsters who oppose the wearing of the Islamic headscarves in British society and who support the pro-sovereignty, anti-globalist party UKIP.
However, it would appear that Prevent referrals may be both toothless and meaningless. Iraqi migrant Ahmed Hassan, who came to the UK in the back of a lorry as a child asylum seeker, was set to be given the all-clear by the deradicalisation programme shortly before he planted a bomb on a London tube train at Parsons Green — his teacher said he refused to engage with the programme.