At the point of involvement in the Channel programme, since my son had been referred to Prevent, this fundamentally altered how professionals viewed him, and it had real consequences for how they interpreted and responded to risk, vulnerability, and identity – the whole process was punitive and did not do justice to my autistic son.  I wanted to share my son’s story to show how Prevent and Channel processes can fail to meet the needs of neurodivergent children, and how they can misinterpret autistic traits such as hyperfocus, imitation, and social vulnerability as ideological commitment, especially when it comes to adolescence and digitally mediated environments. We engaged with Prevent and Channel in good faith and I hope his story informs more proportionate, neurodiversity-informed practice. I do not dispute the importance of safeguarding or responding to genuine risks of extremism. My son Luke* has had difficulties from nursery age. He was first diagnosed […]