Council Given £50,000 to Tackle Extremists

Croydon Council has been given £50,000 by the government to tackle Muslim extremism in the borough. Deputy council leader Steve O'Connel is quoted as saying:

The Government clearly recognises that it is local communities who understand their own areas best. We all know that it is just a small minority of individuals who are out to cause trouble.

The aim of this project is to find new ways of working with our local Muslim communities to engage with them in a bid to prevent opportunities for vulnerable individuals to be drawn into extremism.

Let's hope it works.

Just for background purposes, the 2001 census indicates that the Muslim community in Croydon makes just 5.3% of the population of the borough. Croydon has the 41st largest Muslim community in England and Wales and the 22nd (out of 33) in London.