Dealing with hate crime
Hate crime is an extreme manifestation of prejudice and
discrimination. It can have a devastating effect on victims and on
whole communities. Tower Hamlets Council works closely in
partnership with the police and other agencies to prevent all forms
of hate crime, take action against perpetrators and support and
protect victims.
In partnership, the council encourages anyone who is the victim
of, or witness to, hate crime to report it immediately. This is
vital to ensure that perpetrators are brought to justice. Hate
crime will not be tolerated in Tower Hamlets.
What is a hate crime?
Hate crime is any criminal offence where anyone believes the
victim has been targeted because of their race/ethnicity,
religion/belief, gender/gender identity, disability, age, sexual
orientation or any other actual or perceived difference.
Hate incidents are incidents that do not constitute a criminal
offence but cause alarm, distress or harassment where anyone
believes the victim has been targeted because of their
race/ethnicity, religion/belief, gender/gender identity,
disability, age, sexual orientation or any other actual or
perceived difference.
Hate crimes and incidents can also be directed at whole
communities – for example desecration of graveyards, vandalism of
places of worship, offensive graffiti in public places, or acts of
terrorism.
Hate crime can include verbal abuse, threatening behaviour,
offensive graffiti, harassment, malicious communications, damage to
property and violence. This includes incidents committed on the
grounds of:
- Disability
- Race or ethnic identity
- Religion/ belief
- Gender or gender identity
- Sexual orientation
- Age
- Immigration status or nationality.
Reporting hate crime
Why report a hate crime?
Hate crime is a violation of personal and civil rights.
Effective action against hate incidents requires that these crimes
be reported, to the police, council and all other appropriate
agencies.
Only if hate crime is reported can we, together, take action to
deal with it. No one has the right to harass, threaten or assault
anyone because of who they are.
Who can report hate crime?
Anyone can report hate crime including:
- Residents
- Visitors to the borough
- Private tenants
- Local businesses
- Community and faith groups
- Employees
Any kind of evidence can help the council or
police in the process of investigation. In particular, it can help
an investigation if you are able to provide:
- A description of the perpetrator(s)
- Details of any witnesses to the incident
- A diary record of any ongoing incidents and
previous incidents you have experienced
- Original copies of any hate mail that has
been sent to you
- Evidence of damage to property, graffiti etc.
It is advisable not to clear these up before reporting the incident
if possible.
If you don’t have any evidence, we still
encourage you to report hate crime.
How to report a hate crime
If there is an emergency call the Police on 999 – particularly
if an incident is still happening or has just happened.
Callers have the option of reporting an incident anonymously. We
encourage victims to provide personal details, which will help us
to investigate the incident more thoroughly.
What happens if you report it to the 24 hour hate crime
reporting line?
- The council aims to make contact with you within 48 hours of
the incident being reported. This applies to incident reported via
the internet, customer contact centre or in person.
- You will be sent a letter confirming receipt of the report
within 48 hours of the report. The letter will contain the name and
contact details of your investigation officer.
- If requested the Community Safety Victim & Witness Support
Team will contact you to discuss support options. If you wish they
will be able to organise an appointment to see you to assess your
support needs and give you information about the investigation
process and other agencies that may be able to help you. You can
contact the Victim & Witness Support Team on 020 7364 6318 9am
– 5pm Monday – Friday.
Useful Contacts
- Tower Hamlets Police Community Safety Unit –
020 7275 4757
- 24 hour free phone hate crime reporting line
– 0800 138 0521
- Victim & Witness Support Team – 020 7364
6318 (9am – 5pm Monday to Friday)
- List of addresses for your local third party reporting centres
- Appeals process/complaint process: If
the complainant is not happy with the service provided they can
either
- speak to the Community Safety
Operations Manager on 020 7364 6107
- complain via the council’s
corporate complaints procedure
Useful documents
Related Services