Ofsted, the education watchdog in England, has scrapped guidance for inspectors that connected autism with extremism following a campaign by celebrities including naturalist Chris Packham, comedian Paul Whitehouse, and actor Johnny Vegas.
Updated training document removes autism reference
An education minister disclosed that the revised training document “no longer includes reference to children with autism” after the previous version was criticised as “offensive” and “clumsy” discrimination. The change comes amid rising concerns over the number of autistic children referred to Prevent, the government’s deradicalisation programme.
The Guardian reported a year ago that a document used to train hundreds of inspectors stated children with autism are “at increased risk of being susceptible to extremism” and “can be drawn into extremism”. The document, titled Inspection Safeguarding Session – Prevent Extract 2024, was first identified by human rights group Rights & Security International.
Details of the old guidance
The old guidance said: “Children and young people with autism are at increased risk of being susceptible to extremism. This is because they are more likely to develop special interests. Due to this and any social communication needs, children with autism are more likely to experience social isolation and so use the internet as a way to find friends. They trust the information they read and the ‘friends’ that they find online and so can be drawn into extremism.”
The National Autistic Society warned the document risked stigmatising autistic traits, while Rights & Security International said it “draw a target on autistic children”. Packham, who has Asperger syndrome, called for the advice to be stopped “before even more young people are discriminated against in school and in society”.
Ofsted’s initial defence and subsequent change
In June 2025, Ofsted defended the document, stating its training provides an understanding of different circumstances in which children might be more susceptible to extremism. However, in a recent parliamentary response, junior education minister Josh MacAlister said an updated manual for inspectors “no longer includes reference to children with autism”. He was responding to a question from a Liberal Democrat MP about the assessment of Ofsted materials linking autism to extremism.
An Ofsted spokesperson said: “Ofsted does not – and has never – labelled children with autism as ‘likely extremists’. It is preposterous to suggest otherwise. An old piece of training for inspectors highlighted that some vulnerable children could be more susceptible to manipulation. We have recently renewed our school inspection framework. This new framework required new training for inspectors, including updated training on the Prevent duty.”
