South Derbyshire District Council

A 'hate incident' is any incident committed against a person where the victim or anyone else believes it is motivated by the offender's hate against people because of who they are.

This may be because of:

Race
Gender
Disability
Religion and belief
Sexuality
Age

What counts as a hate incident?

Hate incidents can occur in a number of ways:

Verbal abuse, threats, insults, nuisance telephone calls, name calling and every other form of verbal harassment.
Physical assaults and physical violence which can vary from pushing to serious attacks.
Attacks against someone's property, for example insulting graffiti, vandalism, breaking windows, theft, damaging cars and even arson.
Publishing and disseminating materials such as leaflets and newspapers that are likely to incite racial hatred is also a criminal offence.

Frequently, such harassment is a combination of the above. This can occur for instance in neighbour disputes when verbal insults and property damage occurs, or bullying at school which consists of name-calling and physical abuse.

How do I report a hate incident?

We are receiving and recording ALL complaints of perceived hate incidents that are brought to our attention and not just complaints against us.

Why is the council recording hate incidents?

Hate incidents can be very harmful to people’s lives, to wider society and can damage community relations. Publicity about attacks on people in one area can frighten people from the same group in another area. We are committed to ensuring good relations between all people within our district and to make sure we play an active and leading role in monitoring and reducing hate incidents.

How to complete the Hate Incidents Reporting Form

You can download the form at the bottom of this page.

Some sections of the form are completed by the victim or complainant and other sections by the member of staff who receives the form.

Section A contains information relating to the incident and details such as the ethnicity, age, gender etc of the victim and offender. This will be used for monitoring the level and types of incidents in South Derbyshire. This section is completed by the victim/complainant.

Sections B, & C contain personal information relating to the details of the victim and offender. These sections are Confidential.

The consent of the victim/complainant is required to record and share information and hold personal details on file. The details of the offender can be recorded without the consent of the accused.

Consent to share (disclose) information: It will be necessary to report all incidents to the Police. This would not include the victim's personal details if they do not wish this information to be passed on.

Section B3 is completed by the victim or complainant.

Section B4, & B5 are all completed by the receiving officer in Customer Services.

Section C is completed by the victim or witness. Please note that it would be useful for a telephone number or other means of contact to be provided so that the receiving officer can contact them if the reported incident is serious or information has been missed out.

As soon as the Hate Incident Report is complete it is Confidential and we have a duty under the Data Protection Act 1998 to protect the data.

When you have completed the form:

1. Print off the form (if downloaded electronically
2. Make sure that the correct signature is on the form (See Part C)
3. Return the Form by hand or post in a sealed envelope (marked "Private & Confidential – Addressee only") to:

Complaints Officer
South Derbyshire District Council
Civic Offices
Civic Way
Swadlincote
Derbyshire DE11 0AH

A copy of the form will be kept by Customer Services for monitoring purposes.

What happens next?

Your complaint will be handled in two stages:

Stage 1

The Customer Services department will co-ordinate the investigation into your complaint and try to put it right. They will write to you within five working days, telling you who is dealing with your complaint and when you can expect to receive a reply. In most cases we hope to give you a full reply within ten working days but if it is going to take longer, we will get in touch with you to let you know what is happening.

Stage 2

We hope that you will be satisfied at this stage. If you still feel dissatisfied after receiving a reply you can ask for your complaint to be reviewed by the Chief Executive.

The Customer Services department will then pass the details of your complaint to the Chief Executive, who will write to you within a week to acknowledge your request for a review. We hope to send you a full reply within two weeks but if it is going to take longer, we will then keep you informed of progress until a decision has been made.

What else can you do?

You then have the right to ask the Local Government Ombudsman to investigate your complaint if you feel you have been unfairly treated due to maladministration by the Council.

“Maladministration” refers to the way a case has been handled or our failure to do something, not the actual decision.

The Local Government Ombudsman is an independent arbitrator whose decision is final. You can either complain directly to the Ombudsman or ask your local councillor to take up the case for you.

Find Your Councillor

You can get a leaflet on the Ombudsman service from the main reception desk or by contacting :

The Local Government Ombudsman
Beverley House
17 Shipton Road
York
YO30 5FZ
Tel: 01904 663200
Website: www.lgo.org.uk

Equality and Human Rights Commission Helpline

The Equality and Human Rights Commission helpline gives information and guidance on discrimination and human rights issues. The helpline staff have been specially trained to provide this service.

Equality and Human Rights Commission Freepost RRLL-GHUX-CTRX Arndale House Arndale Centre Manchester M4 3EQ
(Telephone 0845 604 6610)
Mon, Tue, Thu, Fri 9:00 am-5:00 pm;
Wed 9:00 am-8:00 pm (last call taken at 7:45pm)

Contact details

Derbyshire Police

The Police have a Community Safety Officer in each of the four police divisions within Derbyshire. The Community Safety Officer deals with racist and cultural issues and can provide advice, discuss what has happened to you or put you in touch with other agencies that may be able to provide you with other forms of support

Derby and South Derbyshire 01332 613073

Amber Valley / Erewash 01773 571757

High Peak / Derbyshire Dales 01298 762067

Chesterfield 01246 522368

Force Hate Crime Officer 01773 572233

Derby Race Equality Council

31 Normanton Road
Derby
DE1 2GJ

01332 372428