What is hate crime?
“Where the perpetrator’s prejudice against any identifiable group of people is a factor in determining who is victimised.”
If you have been abused, harassed, assaulted or anything else happens to you because of your sexual orientation or gender, or perceived sexual orientation or gender, this is a hate crime.
What is a homophobic or transphobic incident?
"A homophobic or transphobic incident is any incident which is perceived to be homophobic or transphobic by the victim or any other person."
What are the police doing about it?
Hampshire Constabulary is committed to reducing the fear of crime and making public places safer and incidents of a homophobic or transphobic nature are unacceptable and will not be tolerated.
We aim to record, investigate and detect all homophobic and transphobic incidents, so if you have been a target of hate crime, because you are, or have been perceived to be, lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender we’d like you to report it.
Why should I report such incidents?
We are encouraging people to report hate crime incidents to the police but know that lots of homophobic or transphobic incidents are not reported to us.
Even if they are, the person reporting them may not tell us that it is a homophobic or transphobic incident because they do not want the police to know that they are lesbian, gay, bisexual or transgender.
You can report information to us about hate without having to disclose your sexual orientation or gender identity.
- By reporting that information you’re helping us to combat homophobia and transphobia because the more we know about it, the more we can do about it:
- Information about hate crime helps the police to build a clearer picture of what’s happening in our communities
- It provides better opportunities for patrolling strategies to catch offenders and to prevent offences taking place in the future
- Left unreported, the attackers are free to repeat similar offences
- Some offenders think they can get away with harassment and other offences because they think they won’t be reported
You can report non-emergency incidents to Hampshire Constabulary on 101. In the case of an emergency, or where an incident is in progress, always dial 999.
What if I don't feel comfortable approaching the police directly?
You don't have to the victim of a hate crime or incident to report it. A friend, or a witness, can report it on your behalf.
You can also approach one of our partner agencies who can refer the issue to us. Or take a look at the link to True Vision below.
What will the police do?
We take all reports of hate incidents seriously and will treat them sensitively and in confidence.
If you’re reporting a crime or providing information, we’ll do everything necessary to protect your identity. If you still wish to remain anonymous, we will respect your request.
We will deal promptly and effectively with all incidents. Anyone reporting an incident to us can expect the highest standards of professionalism from all members of Hampshire Constabulary.
We will support all victims throughout the process, from initial reporting through to the court stage. If for whatever reason you decide you don’t want to progress the case, we’ll still have a record of it which will help us deal with incidents of hate crime as a whole.
Where an incident is capable of further investigation we aim to keep the person reporting the incident updated on how the case is progressing and the result of that enquiry.
True Vision
True Vision is a national website where you can report hate crime on-line. It has a list of personal safety tips, other organisations that can help and hate crime data. More importantly, it provides victims and witnesses of hate crime with another means of reporting incidents in their area.
Lesbian and Gay Liaison Officers
LAGLOs as they are known, are a mix of police officers and police staff members who have special understanding and training on lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender issues.
Meet the LAGLO
PC Joe Finch works as a LAGLO on the Isle of Wight. Find out how he helps LGB&T communities and the work he does in schools to encourage hate crime reporting and to homophobic and transphobic bullying among young people.
Hampshire LGB&T Resource Group
The Resource Group was established to support the force's lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender employees. It's also the driving force behind the work Hampshire Constabulary does to engage with the LGB&T communities across Hampshire and the Isle of Wight.
Hampshire Constabulary at Pride events in the south
We're committed to providing a visible an active presence in the LGB&T communities. Find out how we get involved each year with Pride festivals, including Brighton Pride, the south's biggest LGB&T event.
