Issue - meetings

          The Board received a report which provided an update on the role of Prevent and the work that had been undertaken during 2024/25 and the first quarter of 2025/26.  The report also outlined the current actions being taken in regard to the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025.

          Prevent was a National Programme that aimed to stop people from becoming terrorists or supporting terrorism and it worked to ensure that people who were susceptible to radicalisation were offered appropriate interventions. 

          Some Prevent work is funded by the Home Office and delivered in the Liverpool City Region (LCR) through Liverpool City Council’s Prevent Team.  Halton’s lead and point of contact was the Emergency Planning Manager and supported by the Director of Community and Greenspaces.  Halton received no dedicated funding for Prevent.

          The Home Office tested compliance via the Prevent benchmarking process as part of its annual assurance programme to monitor the delivery of Prevent and focussed on the following areas:

·       Multi-Agency Partnership Group;

·       Local Risk Assessment Process;

·       Partnership Plan;

·       Referral Pathway;

·       Training Programme;

·       Reducing permissive environments;

·       Communications and engagement; and

·       Channel Panel

It was confirmed by the Home Office in May 2025 that Halton had met all the criteria for the annual Prevent benchmarking exercise for 2024/25.

          The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025, often referred to as PROTECT but most commonly known as Martyn’s Law, was designed to improve public safety and required certain premises and events to prepare for terrorist attacks.  Martyn’s Law enacted in response to domestic terror attacks and inquiries like the Manchester Arena inquiry and aimed to enhance protective security and organisational preparedness across the UK. 

          Halton had an officer working group which was chaired by the Head of Service for Stadium and Markets.  The Council had also engaged on the offer from Counter Terrorism Police to deliver training for Council employees.  A number of sessions had taken place, which had included SCaN Customer Facting and SCaN training for CCTV operatives.  The Stadium and Leisure Services had also engaged directly with the Police regarding advice and training for staff.

          Following some questions from the Board it was confirmed that the Council were responsible for the Stadium and the event organisers were responsible for Creamfields.

It was also suggested that the Council should be notified of any events that happen in the Borough, however, this was not a mandatory requirement.

          RESOLVED:  That the Board:

1)    note the report; and

2)    endorse the action the Council is taking in regard to the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025.