Hate crime reports in Sussex up by a third

Officers welcomed the news as they felt the more people reporting such incidents rather than keeping things to themselves would enable police to tackle the issue.

Sergeant Peter Allan, force hate crime sergeant said: “I am pleased to see that we have recorded more hate crimes and incidents over the last year, especially in the area of disability, which is a particular challenge for all the criminal justice agencies.

“To enable us to tackle this most personal of crimes and support victims, we need people to come forward to report incidents to us. I would urge them to do so.”

Between April 2014 to March 2015, the total number of recorded crimes rose from 1,009 (in 2013/14) to 1,352 (in 2014/15), an increase of 34 per cent.

The number of non-crime hate incidents also rose during the same period, from 299 to 447, an increase of 49.5 per cent.

Chief Superintendent Wayne Jones, force lead for hate crime, said: “We know that hate crimes and incidents in Sussex have been under reported - our goal remains to build confidence in victims to come forward and speak to us which is why I welcome these increases.

“These also follow a large increase last year (28%). We have worked very hard, both internally and externally to raise awareness of what constitutes hate crime and how people can report it to us.

“I am confident that the positive work we have done is a significant factor in the increased levels of recorded hate crime.

“I do acknowledge however, that events that occur outside Sussex, and sometimes outside the country can have an impact on the incidence of hate crime within the county.

“Our Neighbourhood Policing Teams are firmly embedded in local communities and work with them to offer reassurance and support.