Terrorism415 children under 10, 1,424 secondary school children, referred to U.K. anti-extremism program

Almost 4,000 Britons have been referred to the U.K. government’s counterterrorism program last year, among them children under nine. 

The rise in the number of referrals to the government’s Channel program follows instructions by the government to prisons, NHS Trusts, and schools to tackle extremism more vigorously.

International Business Times reports that in 2015, 3,955 people were reported to Channel — up from 1,681 in 2014. 

The figures, which were obtained by the Guardian through Freedom of Information Request, are the first since the new counter-extremism rules came into force in July last year. 

Analysts say that the data suggest the U.K. law enforcement authorities have become more vigilant about tackling extremism.

Recent cases such as a 3-year-old child being referred to the service have highlighted the anxiety over the number of both families and lone fighters travelling to Syria to fight in ISIS ranks. 

Dr. Erin Saltman, a senior counter-extremism researcher at the Institute for Strategic Dialogue, told the Guardian the figures were “highly significant.”

She said: “It’s indicative of a couple of things. One is that there’s a huge amount of awareness around radicalization that just didn’t exist before — it’s now a buzzword whereas five years ago it wouldn’t have been.

“The other is an increase in fear. We are seeing an increase in fearful rhetoric around radicalization, particularly when we see foreign terrorist fighters and females in unprecedented numbers joining ISIS.”

The figures released in January show 415 children aged 10 or under and 1,424 secondary school aged children had been referred to the program in England and Wales since July.