A schoolteacher in England was referred to the United Kingdom’s counter-terrorism framework and accused of a potential “hate crime” after showing students videos involving former U.S. President Donald Trump, according to reporting by The Telegraph. The incident occurred at Henley College, which teaches sixth-form students aged 16 to 18, after concerns were raised about classroom materials used in a U.S. politics lesson.
Henley College reported the unnamed teacher to the Local Authority Designated Officer (LADO), a body responsible for safeguarding concerns. The LADO review concluded that the teacher’s views “could be perceived as radical” and recommended referral to the government’s Prevent programme, a national initiative established to stop individuals, particularly young people, from becoming radicalised and moving toward extremism or terrorism. Prevent has been a central part of the UK’s counter-terrorism strategy for years and is often invoked in cases where authorities believe exposure to certain ideas could pose a safeguarding risk.
According to The Telegraph, the LADO report stated: “There is concern that this behaviour could cause harm to a child, there could be a criminal offence from the views which could constitute a hate crime and it’s possible that his promoting of views could be radicalisation.” The concern centered on classroom content and how political perspectives were presented to students.
Among the materials shown in class were a video of President Trump’s inauguration and the music video “Daddy’s Home” by Canadian rapper Tom MacDonald, which featured American comedian Roseanne Barr and included themes supportive of Trump. The lesson took place shortly after the U.S. election, when Trump had recently won, and was part of a broader discussion of American politics.
In April, the college sent the teacher a formal letter notifying him that he had been accused of misconduct. The letter reportedly stated that he caused “emotional harm… to your students as a result of you sharing inappropriate content (especially videos) with them and having a lack of balance when presenting political views with an emphasis on Right-wing, potentially extremist views.” The letter reiterated the safeguarding concerns, adding: “There is concern that this behaviour could cause harm to a child, there could be a criminal offence from the views which could constitute a hate crime and it’s possible that his promoting of views could be radicalisation.”
Speaking to The Telegraph, the teacher acknowledged that his political views align more closely with Republicans in the United States but denied being an extremist. He said the school had a “complete left-wing bias,” adding that “they don’t tolerate anything about Donald Trump.” Describing the process, he said: “They likened me to a terrorist. It was completely jarring. It’s dystopian, like something from a George Orwell novel.”
The teacher also described the sequence of events leading up to the complaint, saying: “It was just terrifying; just mind-boggling. We were discussing the US election, Trump had just won and I showed a couple of videos from the Trump campaign. Next thing, I was accused of bias. One of the students said they were emotionally disturbed and claimed to have had nightmares.” The school ultimately required the teacher to resign, and he received a £2,000 payoff upon his departure.
The case has drawn attention in the context of broader debates about free expression, academic balance, and safeguarding standards within educational institutions. It also comes amid wider scrutiny of how European governments apply counter-extremism policies in non-violent, political, or educational settings. Earlier this year, Vice President JD Vance addressed these issues during a speech at the Munich Security Conference, where he warned that free speech in Britain and Europe is “in retreat.” In that address, Vance said the greatest threat to Europe was not Communist China or Vladimir Putin’s Russia, but rather from “within,” from those who would seek to undermine the “fundamental values” of Western civilization.
