The securitisation of parenting: The regulation of parenting in the counterterrorism context

Parenting has emerged as a new and important theme within UK counterterrorism. As the reach of the ‘counter-terrorist state’ has expanded from countering terrorist violence to preventing extremist ideologies, children have become national security targets. This is reflected in the categorisation of radicalisation as a safeguarding risk within both counterterrorism and child welfare policies, and the subsequent involvement of the family justice system in counterterrorism through the radicalisation cases in the family courts. These are a cohort of cases that first appeared in the family courts of England and Wales around a decade ago due to concerns regarding children perceived to be at risk of radicalisation. Such recent developments have accorded the parent–child relationship considerable visibility within the national security landscape. Indeed, it could be said that parents, and the institution of parenting itself, have been securitised.