1.8 Supporting Families Experiencing Hate Incidents, Crimes and Harassment

1. Introduction

The Home Office mandates police forces to report on five nationally monitored strands of hate:

• disability or perceived disability;
• race or perceived race;
• religion or perceived religion;
• sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation;
• transgender or perceived to be transgender.

Sussex Police acknowledges that other groups, such as sex workers and alternative lifestyles like Goths, can also be targets of hate crimes. Any crime or incident motivated by hostility or prejudice against groups outside these five strands will be recorded as ‘Hate Other.’

Individuals may experience multiple forms of discrimination or oppression simultaneously due to the intersection of various social identities, such as race, gender, sexuality, disability, and socio-economic status. In the context of hate incidents/ crimes, intersectionality underscores the importance of understanding how these intersecting identities shape individuals’ experiences of victimisation and access to resources and support.

2. Definitions

The police and Crown Prosecution Service have agreed a common definition for identifying and flagging hate crimes:

‘Any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by hostility or prejudice, based on a person’s disability or perceived disability; race or perceived race; or religion or perceived religion; or sexual orientation or perceived sexual orientation or transgender identity or perceived transgender identity’.

(Hate Crime, CPS)

Hate crime can take many forms including, physical attack, threat of attack, verbal abuse, or harassment and cyber enabled, including all forms of online contact.

Hate crimes / incidents are taken to mean any crime or incident where the perpetrator’s hostility or prejudice against an identifiable group of people is a factor in determining who is victimised.

3. Nature of Hate Crimes

Hate crimes target individuals for their identity or perceived identity, sending a personal message to the victim and reinforcing discrimination against certain communities. These crimes involve hostility or prejudice against an identifiable group of people and can take various forms including physical attacks, threats, verbal abuse, harassment, and cyber-enabled offences.

4. Impact

Children and families from minority groups related to their protected characteristics are likely to experience harassment, discrimination, and institutional bias.

Experience of harassment and hate crime may affect how a child behaves, for example when being assessed by a worker, or being cared for by a carer of a different ethnic origin.

Signs that someone may be experiencing hate crimes or incidents include:

• unexplained absence from school;
• changes in behaviour or appearance;
• depression;
• anxiety;
• aggression;
• self-harm;
• substance misuse.

It is crucial for all agencies to recognise and respond effectively to harassment and hate incidents, including those occurring online, to protect children from significant harm.

5. Recognising Hate Incidents / Crime

There is no legal definition of hostility so the police and CPS use the everyday understanding of the word which includes ill-will, spite, contempt, prejudice, unfriendliness, antagonism, resentment, and dislike.

There are five nationally monitored strands of hate which the Home Office require police forces to report on. These are disability, race, religion, sexual orientation and transgender identity.

Any criminal offence which is perceived by the victim, or any other person, to be motivated by hate is a hate crime.  For hate crimes there does not need to be any evidence to support this perception; it is enough that the victim holds the perception.

6. Recording and Reporting

Following the Court of Appeal Judgment in Miller v College of Policing (2019), the Government issued a Non-Crime Hate Incidents: Code of Practice (Home Office). Hate incidents should be recorded where there is evidence of hate motivation but not where there is no basis for concluding hostility. That said, low-level or repeat incidents should be recorded and reported.

Professionals concerned about a child or family being the victim of a hate crime / incident should contact Sussex Police ASB / Hate Crime Coordinator for advice – Local Contacts.

For details on how to report hate crime please see Hate Crime (Sussex Police).

Victims may choose not to engage with the police directly, and there are charities and organizations, like the Hate Support Service at Victim Support Sussex, that offer free, independent, and confidential support to victims and witnesses of hate-related crimes and incidents. Reporting a crime is not necessary to receive support.

For more information, visit Victim Support website or contact [email protected] or 08 08 16 89 111.