Teaching About Terrorism: University of Salford

Teaching About Terrorism is a 2009/10 research project funded by C-SAP, one of the Higher Education Academy's subject networks. The project aims to research the extent and nature of teaching about terrorism in UK Universities, primarily in the disciplines of Sociology, Politics and Criminology.

Freedom of Information Request 1

• Does your institution provide any information or advice to students or staff on any potential liability under Terrorism legislation which might result from accessing materials for teaching or research ?

• Does your institution have any kind of procedure to review or assess reading lists, module descriptors or other teaching materials which explicitly or in practice considers questions of safety and risk under terrorism legislation as part of its remit ?

• Does your institution have any system, policy or procedure in place for dealing with any potential actions taken by the authorities against the institution, its students or staff under Terrorism legislation ?

• Does your institution have any system, policy or procedure in place for ‘preventing violent extremism’ as recommended for example in the government guidance document ‘Promoting Good Campus Relations’?

University of Salford response to the above questions in full:

In accordance with the requirements of the Freedom of Information Act 2000 this letter acts as a Refusal Notice. It is considered that the public interest in withholding the information outweighs the public interest in disclosing it. The exemption applied is s24 (national security). This exemption applies because the information requested relates to the University's stance on matters relating to terrorism whose release may lead to an increased likelihood of attack The reasons why the public interest favours withholding the information is that the public interest lies in reducing the likelihood of attack on any institution, person or building and not increasing it. I apologise that your request will not be met but if you have any further information needs in the future then please contact me.

Resources

• Freedom of Information Results, Teaching About Terrorism: FOI Results
• University of Salford, Response to Teaching About Terrorism FOI 1, Scribd