COMMUNITY leaders have pledged to win the war against political extremists and child sex traffickers.

Seventy-five people, including police, educationalists, councillors, social workers and youth leaders, attended the first Community Cohesion Conference organised by Slough Borough Council on Thursday.

It was held at The Centre, Farnham Road, and will be the first of many, said Ruth Bagley, council chief executive.

Superintendent Simon Bowden, Slough police commander, said that extremist attacks in Britain, not necessarily in London and the major cities, were 'likely,’ while John Nixson, council child safeguarding expert, said child exploiters were at work in Slough 'and everywhere else’.

Supt Bowden confirmed earlier reports that 12 people from Slough had gone to Syria during the military conflict and that some had returned home. Asked if the community in Slough needed to be worried about them he replied: “No.” Supt Bowden told The Observer: “They are not necessarily young people. We know who they are and we are keeping an eye on them.” He admitted the flight of three teenage girls from Tower Hamlets to Syria was a concern for society.

He said the September 11 atrocity in New York in 2001 was a well-planned act of terrorism. But he said vulnerable youngsters are now being radicalised in their bedrooms on the Internet.

Supt Bowden praised the Slough community was standing 'shoulder to shoulder’ with the police in confronting the English Defence League (EDL) in a demonstration march through the town last year.

He said it was thanks to the biggest police operation in Slough’s history, and support from the public, that the borough had not experienced the violent problems faced by other towns and cities when visited by the EDL.

Mrs Bagley said extremism was not confined to the Islamic community, and said extremism came from a variety of groups.

She cautioned against 'dividing the community’ and said people should not be isolated.

Helen Huntley, headteacher of Haybrook College, called on parents to remove their children’s mobile phones before they went to their bedrooms.

She said: “In days gone by we advised taking away their laptops, now they have what they want on their mobile phones. And many children have two phones – one to give to mum and the other to stay with them in their bedroom.” Teenage volunteers at Aik Saath said that the future lay with young people ignoring the 'grooming’ of terrorist extremists.

Rob Deeks, Aik Saath project manager, praised the youth of Slough for joining the fight against extremist indoctrination.

Tan Ikram, a former Slough Grammar School pupil, now a district judge, said it was vital for society to ensure that disadvantaged children have the opportunities to better themselves.

He said this was one way to safeguard them from extremism.

Mr Ikram said: “The people we need to reach out to are not in this room. We need to find out what their grievances are and have a dialogue with them. I was from a typical working class background, but I broke through that glass ceiling.” Cllr Rayman Bains said extremist thugs had been driven out of Langley St Mary’s ward in the 1990s and 'we will beat them again’.

Cllr Diana Coad, who has defected from the Tories to UKIP, said the event was 'stage managed’. She added: “I will lodge an official complaint.”