What is hate crime?

Hate crime is any offence committed against a person or property that is motivated by the offender's hatred of people because of their race, religion, disability, age, sexual orientation or gender. Offences include verbal and physical assault, damage to property and harassment.

Combating hate crime

Devon County Council recognises that prejudice related crimes and incidents cause a great deal of suffering for victims, and for their friends and families as well as undermining community cohesion. We are committed, through the Safer Devon Partnership, to tackling this problem across the whole county.

Devon County Council and the police take all prejudice related crimes and incidents very seriously. Offences that are motivated by racism, homophobia or some other prejudice can carry more severe punishments.

Why should hate crime be reported?

If you, or anyone you know, has been a victim of a hate crime then please report it.

We all have a right to live our lives in peace and with dignity at home, at work or in the street. Too many hate crimes go unreported, leaving the offenders free to commit similar crimes again, whether against you or other members of our community. We understand that you might feel nervous about reporting it, but your information is vital to help us eliminate hate crimes.

Even if you don’t want it to go to court – please report it.

Even if you don’t want to give your name – please report it. You can remain anonymous if you want and give as much or as little information as you wish. What you tell us will help to provide a true picture of what is happening within our community.

How to report hate crime to the police

The police are there to help and can respond immediately.

If you need immediate support, contact the police.

• Report in person at any police station
• If it’s an emergency or if you believe that you or anyone else is in danger, phone 999.
• Phone 08452 777444 (If you would prefer to talk to a police officer with specialist knowledge and understanding of Hate Crime, you should ask to speak to your local Diversity Officer).

Other ways of reporting

If you don’t feel comfortable contacting the police or you feel that the incident wasn’t severe enough to go to the police, there are other ways of reporting what happened and, if you want, getting support.

• Complete our short, simple and accessible web form, which is sent in confidence to the Hate Crime Prevention Coordinator (not the police) at County Hall. This form can be completed anonymously if you do not wish to provide your details. There is a space where you can say what kind of support you need and what action, if any, you would like to be taken. If you have asked for a response we will undertake to contact you within 5 working days.
• Email us at hate.crime@devon.gov.uk.

Other options

• Contact Victim Support on their national helpline 0845 30 30 900
• To report racist incidents you can contact Devon Racial Equality Council (DREC: Tel: 01392 422566 Website: www.devonrec.org.uk) or The Rural Racism Project
  PO Box 507, Torquay, TQ1 9FP. Tel: 0777990893
  Email: input@ruralracismproject.org
• To report phobic incidents you can contact The Intercom trust (Website: www.intercomtrust.org.uk/portal.htm Phone: 0845 60 20 818 )

Help us to overcome Hate Crime, report it.

Remember,

• You will be taken seriously
• You don’t have to give your name
• You don’t have to go to court
• You will be helping to prevent the same thing happening to other people