What is hate crime?
“Hate crime
is where the perpetrators prejudice against any identifiable group of
people is a factor in determining who is victimised.”
“Homophobic incident is any
incident which is perceived to be homophobic by the victim or any
other person.”
“Domestic violence is any
incident of threatening behaviour, violence or abuse (psychological,
physical, sexual, financial or emotional) between adults who are
intimate partners (includes same-sex) or family members, regardless of
gender.”
 Third Party Reporting
The Metropolitan Police Service
has set up third party reporting sites for victims of hate crime.
Victims will find it easier to report incidents with this new scheme.
Third party reporting sites have been set up at various locations
including local authority one-stop shops and voluntary organisations
across London.
Their main job is to
provide an initial point of contact for victims of hate crime,
including racial incidents, domestic violence, faith hate incidents
and crimes against lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender communities.
Trained staff are on hand to enable
victims to report crime without having to speak directly to a
police officer or visit a police station. Information taken down
is then passed on within 24 hours to the police and/or other
organisations such as Victim Support and the local
authority housing department with the permission of the victim.
The Police then log the details and investigate accordingly.
However, you can also report a crime anonymously. Officers log the
details for intelligence purposes and will investigate
accordingly. All information is confidential except in certain
cases where a child or life is in need of urgent medical
attention.
Why do we need this
scheme?
It
has been recognised that there can be a number of barriers that
deter people from reporting crime, many of which are hard for the
police alone to tackle. The decision not to report a crime is
often founded on a complex mix of individuals’ emotions,
perceptions and expectations.
Community Safety
Units (CSUs), staffed by specially trained officers, offer
support designed to remove barriers that sometimes make it
difficult for victims to report this type of crime.
GALOP
Galop, London's lesbian,
gay, bisexual and transgender community safety charity now have an
online hate crime reporting form. If you have experienced,
witnessed or know of a hate crime incident and you would like to
report it, you can do so by using the form. Galop can report
information to the Police on your behalf; your details will be
completely confidential and, if you wish, you can remain
anonymous. Please note that Galop can only accept reports
concerning incidents which have taken place within the Greater
London area.
Click here to go to the GALOP website
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