Module 2 of 2 · 35 minutes
Making a referral, and what Channel actually does
By the end of this module you will be able to
- Make a Prevent referral that is proportionate and evidenced
- Describe the Channel panel process and its voluntary nature
- Explain what happens when a referral does not meet the threshold
- Maintain a therapeutic relationship after raising a concern
Work through it
1 interactive for this module, built on the WAJD Teach engine. Nothing moves until you ask it to, and every one has a written version if you would rather read it.
Amara If I do make a referral, what should actually be in it?
Nadia The same as any safeguarding referral. Facts, observations and exact words. What changed, when, and what you saw or heard.
Amara And what must not be in it?
Nadia Religion. Ethnicity. Nationality. Dress. Political opinion. Assumptions about what somebody believes. And rumour dressed up as observation.
Amara Give me a bad one and a good one.
Nadia Bad: he has become very religious. That is not a concern, it is a description of somebody's life, and referring it is discriminatory.
Amara And good?
Nadia Over six weeks he has withdrawn from his family, stopped attending college, and formed a close relationship with an adult who has encouraged him to see violence as justified. On Tuesday he said, and then quote him.
Amara The difference is change and exploitation.
Nadia Exactly that. Change over time, an exploiter, and something he actually said. None of which requires you to have an opinion about anybody's beliefs.
Amara What happens after I send it?
Nadia It goes to your safeguarding lead, then the local authority or police Prevent team, who assess it. And most referrals do not proceed to Channel at all.
Amara So most are wasted?
Nadia No, and I want to push back on that framing hard, because it is what stops people referring. A referral that finds nothing has done its job. The alternative is a system where only certainties get reported, and certainties arrive too late.
Amara What is Channel, actually?
Nadia A multi agency panel. Local authority, police, and whichever services are relevant, so health, education, social care. It assesses vulnerability and decides what support might help.
Amara And the person has to take part?
Nadia No. It is voluntary and it requires consent, and for a child the consent of parents or guardians. It is not a criminal sanction and it does not create a criminal record.
Amara What sort of support?
Nadia Mentoring. Help getting back into education or work. Housing. Mental health support. Sometimes theological or ideological engagement. It is safeguarding support, which is why the grooming comparison holds all the way through.
Amara Here is my real worry. I still have to work with this person.
Nadia You do, and that is a genuine tension rather than something to be waved away.
Amara Do I tell them?
Nadia Not always, and it depends on risk. But deceiving somebody who later finds out destroys the relationship and their trust in every service standing behind you, not just you.
Amara So where it is safe?
Nadia Be open. I was worried about you and I spoke to somebody who can help. That is a defensible sentence, it is usually true, and most people take it better than professionals expect.
Amara And if nothing comes of it, was I wrong?
Nadia No. The threshold for referring is a concern. The threshold for acting is higher and it belongs to somebody else. Judging your own decision by their threshold is precisely how people stop referring anything at all.
The written material
What a referral should contain
The same discipline as any safeguarding referral. Facts, observations and exact words, not conclusions. What changed, when, and what you saw or heard that concerned you.
What must not appear: religion, ethnicity or nationality as the basis of the concern; assumptions about what somebody believes; and second hand rumour presented as observation.
A good referral is specific and behavioural. 'Over six weeks he has withdrawn from his family, stopped attending college, and formed a close relationship with an adult who has encouraged him to see violence as justified. On Tuesday he said ...' That is evidence. 'He has become very religious' is not a concern and should never be referred.
What happens next
The referral goes to your safeguarding lead and then to the local authority or police Prevent team, who carry out an initial assessment. Most referrals do not proceed to Channel.
If it does, a Channel panel is convened: a multi agency meeting including the local authority, police, and relevant services such as health, education and social care. It assesses vulnerability and decides what support might help.
Channel is voluntary. It requires consent, and for a child, the consent of parents or guardians. Support might be mentoring, education, help with housing or employment, mental health support, or theological or ideological engagement. It is not a criminal sanction and it does not create a criminal record.
A significant proportion of referrals result in no Prevent action, and many are signposted instead to mainstream support the person genuinely needed. That is a successful outcome, not a wasted referral.
Afterwards, and the relationship
You may still be working with this person. Handle that honestly: you do not have to disclose a referral in every circumstance, but deceiving somebody who later finds out destroys the relationship and their trust in every service behind you.
Where it is safe and appropriate to be open, be open. I was worried about you and I spoke to somebody who can help is a defensible sentence and it is usually true.
Record your reasoning either way. And if a referral did not proceed, that does not mean you were wrong to make it. The threshold for referring is a concern; the threshold for acting is a different and higher one, and applying somebody else's threshold to your own decision is how people stop referring.
Knowledge check
The knowledge check and your certificate need a free account, so that your progress and results can be saved as evidence.
The learning itself stays free and open. You are reading all of it right now without an account.