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Teenagers from secondary schools across Hertfordshire are gathering to mark Hate Crime Awareness Week (HCAW) at a special educational event next week.
Hertfordshire’s Hate Crime Partnership Board is hosting a workshop at the Fielder Centre in Hatfield on Tuesday (15 October) to increase young people’s understanding of hate crime and why it’s important to report it.
National Hate Crime Awareness Week, which runs from 12 to 19 October, is a week of action to raise awareness of hate crime and to encourage councils, key partners, including schools and communities to tackle hate crime.
The event, supported by Hertfordshire Constabulary, the Crown Prosecution Service, Hertfordshire County Council and the University of Hertfordshire’s law department, will be opened by new Police and Crime Commissioner for Hertfordshire, Jonathan Ash-Edwards. He said: “I am committed to making Hertfordshire a safe place for all residents. Hate crime can have a huge impact on its victims and it has no place in our county. I welcome this event which will raise awareness amongst young people of the impact hate crime has and give them the confidence to report offences to the police.”
Workshops will explore what a hate crime is, young people will create a social media post to promote reporting and watch a film of a hate crime case study from when it was first reported all the way through to trial, playing the role of the judge and giving their verdict.
Chief Inspector Tony Fontenelle, the constabulary’s lead for hate crime, said: “Everyone living and working in Hertfordshire has the right to feel safe, and we all have the responsibility to stand against hatred and discrimination. We can all do our part by having conversations, encouraging reporting, improving the response to hate crime, and preventing further incidents from taking place.
“We have seen an increase in hate crime reports in Hertfordshire, and nationally this year. But we still believe many hate crimes go unreported and we want to increase the number of victims reporting offences against them so we can do something about it, to better understand the scale of the problem, and ensure victims receive support.”
In Hertfordshire, there has been a rise in the number of hate crimes reported to police in 2024. This year saw an increase of almost 50 per cent in the number of hate crimes reported in the three months from August to September in 2024 in comparison to 2023, rising from 355 in quarter three in 2023 to 539 during the same period in 2024.
Throughout the week, our Neighbourhood Policing Teams will be out and about raising awareness of hate crime and how to report it, including sessions for NHS staff at the Lister Hospital in Stevenage and Watford General Hospital.
Hate crimes include assaults, threats or acts of vandalism, or any other crime committed against someone because of their:
Hate crime is not tolerated in Hertfordshire. Hertfordshire Constabulary has specialist hate crime officers to tackle and challenge these incidents, educate people and support those who have been affected. Don’t ignore it, report it.
You can report hate crime online on our website.
Speak to an operator in our Force Communications Room via our online web chat.
Call the non-emergency number 101. In an emergency dial 999.