Chesswood Junior School

Chesswood Junior School is a school based in Worthing, West Sussex.

West Sussex and neighbouring East Sussex has seen huge public opposition to fracking in recent years.

Prevent policy linking anti-cracking activism with extremism

screengrab: Chesswood Junior School ‘Prevent Duty Policy’ presentation, introduction

screengrab: Chesswood Junior School ‘Prevent Duty Policy’ presentation, executive summary

Chesswood Junior School has implemented a similar policy to that of Driffield College and Sixth Form. The school’s July 2016 ‘Prevent Duty Policy’ suggests that ‘Environmental (Fracking)’ campaigners could present ‘safeguarding concerns’ for children. The introduction of the Chesswood’s prevent policy requests that all staff:

‘Recognise that radicalisation can take many forms in line with a wide variety of causes, all of which, at the extreme end, would present safeguarding concerns for any child regardless of cause e.g. Far Right, Far Left, Environmental (Fracking), Animal Rights, Nationalist (IRA), Al Qaeda.’

The report goes further, adding: 'Radicalisation refers to the process by which a person comes to support terrorism and extremist ideologies associated with any terrorist groups e.g Far Right, Far Left, Environmental (Fracking), Animal rights, Nationalist IRA), Al Qaeda)'

When informed of West Yorkshire’s inclusion of her arrest in their Prevent presentation, Caroline Lucas, who had been arrested for peacefully protesting outside Cuadrilla’s Balcombe well site in 2013, was quoted by the Times Educational Supplement in September 2015:

‘Equating peaceful political demonstrations with violent extremism is both offensive and deeply misguided. It’s this kind of thinking that has led police in this country to waste vast amounts of taxpayers’ money in infiltrating environmental groups.’

There are no reported cases that suggest anti-fracking campaigners have been involved in any form of domestic extremism or terrorist activity. Furthermore there is no evidence that ‘anti-fracking’ campaigners have created ‘safeguarding’ issues within UK schools.