Prevent risk assessments webinar

We don’t provide templates for risk assessments because each assessment is specific to an individual provider’s circumstances. It is for individual providers to decide what particular structure or format a risk assessment should be to best suit their needs, but in creating or revising your risk assessment we would always strongly recommend you seek advice from your DfE regional Prevent coordinator.

The information, advice and guidance provided is designed to help inform approaches to help make each individual risk assessment effective.

It is for individual providers to make their own decisions on how frequently they should update their risk assessments based on their specific circumstances. However, the OfS needs to be assured that they are living documents and up to date.

We require as part of the accountability and data return that the governing body or proprietor is assured that the Prevent risk assessment has been refreshed in the past operating year.

No. But either the Prevent team or your DfE regional Prevent coordinator would be happy to take a look at any changes to your risk assessment and provide guidance where necessary. We would also expect your governing body or proprietor to approve any significant changes. 

Providers can exchange knowledge and ideas through their regional Prevent forums facilitated by Department for Education (DfE) Co-ordinators.

We will also look to publish case studies of effective approaches taken on risk assessments where we find them.

The statutory guidance makes clear that providers should take a risk-based and proportionate approach to implementing the Prevent duty and that policies should be properly thought through in order to demonstrate compliance.

Undertaking an effective risk assessment is a cornerstone to ensuring that the overarching approach taken by a provider is appropriate within their operating context.

Providers should speak with their local Prevent partners around obtaining CTLP information. We understand this is not always accessible and therefore we recommend that providers take advice from partners on what their risk and threat picture looks like, rather than solely focusing on the CTLP.

We would suggest that you liaise with your local Prevent partners including the police and your DfE Co-ordinator.

We would suggest you work with your Prevent partners and other providers in understanding what the local risk and threat picture looks like in your community.

Your DfE Co-ordinator will be able to advise you on these groups and where they meet. Groups may have different names but there are regional forums for providers to attend.

The OfS doesn’t inspect providers. We referred to some of the findings from the Prevent review programme where we meet with key Prevent staff to take assurance that the provider is showing due regard to the Prevent duty.

Legal responsibility for the Prevent duty rests with the governing body or proprietor of an organisation and so they should be assuring themselves that the organisation is compliant with the statutory duty.

The statutory guidance is clear that people in leadership positions ensure they actively implement the duty so therefore we would expect suitably senior people be involved in the development and ownership of a Prevent risk assessment.