Annual report from Race Hate Crime Forum

Report: 13
Date: 12 July 2007
By: Chief Executive

Summary

This report provides members with an update from the Chair of the Race Hate Crime Forum.

A. Recommendations

That

1. Members discuss and if appropriate endorse the recommendations made by the Chair of the Race Hate Crime Forum (see Appendix 1).

B. Supporting information

Background

1. Attached at Appendix 1 to this report, is a report from the Chair of the Race Hate Crime Forum (RHCF) outlining the work of the forum over the last 12 months.

2. The MPA has been a consistent and significant supporter of the RHCF since its inception and fully endorses its objectives to help reduce and prevent hate crime, to improve the service receive by victims from the police and to improve the co-ordination of the key agencies responsible for supporting victims of race hate crimes and bring perpetrators to justice.

3. The report makes reference to the concerns’ of the Chair of the future funding of the Forum. As noted in the report, until the end of March 2007 the Forum was funded from two sources – grant funding from GOL and match-funding from the MPA. This has been used to fund the Forum Project Manager and Project Assistant. Additionally, the MPA has provided office accommodation and associated support since 2004.

4. The MPA has continued to fund the RHCF until December 2007 in full, as GOL was unable to renew its funding commitment. Although the MPA had to make some difficult decisions about its 2007/08 budget and some significant reductions in expenditure had to be made, funding for the Forum was not affected.

5. By December 2007, the RCHF will have completed its planned scrutiny of London Boroughs. In anticipation of the completion of this programme, MPA members have asked MPA officers to undertake a review of the Forum, which will inform any future decisions the MPA makes in respect of the Forum. Without wishing to pre-empt the findings of this review, members should note that at this time, the MPA remains committed to supporting the Forum and working with the Chair to identify and secure funding for the future.

C. Race and equality impact

1. The RHCF is an integral part of the MPA’s commitment to ensuring that all London’s diverse communities gain and retain confidence in the policing of London.

D. Financial implications

1. The financial implications are addressed in paragraphs 4 and 5 of this report.

E. Background papers

None

F. Contact details

Report author: Catherine Crawford, Chief Executive, MPA

For more information contact:

MPA general: 020 7202 0202
Media enquiries: 020 7202 0217/18

Appendix 1

Report from London Race Hate Crime Forum

Date: 12 July 2007
By: Chair of the Race Hate Crime Forum

Summary

The purpose of this report is to introduce the London Race Hate Crime Forum (RHCF) Annual Report for 2006 - 07 and to provide members with an update of progress in its third year. The report highlights the importance of the RHCF, its work and how it links with business areas of stakeholders, legislative changes and the Home Office commitment to address hate crime. The report also shares the current crisis situation in respect of the sustainability of the RHCF.

A. Recommendation

That

1. Members note the report
2. Members give feedback to inform the RHCF Annual Report
3. Members consider what support can be afforded to sustain the work of the RHCF.

B. Supporting information

Background

1. The RHCF was established in response to recommendations 15 to 17 of the Stephen Lawrence Inquiry Report and commenced its formal business in May 2004.

2. The aims of the RHCF are to:

• help reduce and prevent race hate crime, improve the confidence and satisfaction of victims in reporting crime and to promote consistency of service delivered across London.
• improve the co-ordination between the key agencies responsible for supporting victims of race hate crime and the effectiveness with which perpetrators of race hate crime are brought to justice.

3. The work of the RHCF makes a significant contribution to the focus work by the MPS and local authority partnerships in addressing hate crime. In doing so, the RHCF acts not only as a body that scrutinises partnership activity, but also facilitates a consultancy relationship in supporting boroughs to meet the expectations of the Equality Standard for Local Government (ESLG) in respect of hate crime. The ESLG has been developed primarily as a tool to enable local authorities to mainstream age, disability, gender, race, religion or belief and sexual orientation into council policy and practice at all levels. It is a voluntary Best Value Performance Indicator (BVPI) with councils reporting what standard they have reached (there are five levels).

4. The RHCF membership consists of the MPA, MPS, statutory organisations and other voluntary agencies in London including:

• Board of British Jews (BBJ)
• Commission for Race Equality (CRE)
• Crown Prosecution Service (CPS)
• Government Office for London (GOL)
• Greater London Authority (GLA)
• Home Office (HO)
• London Councils (LC)
• London Probation Service (LPS)
• Muslim Safety Forum (MSF)
• NACRO
• Race on the Agenda (ROTA)
• Youth Justice Board (YJB)

5. In addition, Independent Advisory Groups (IAGs), Race Equality Councils (RECs) and Victim Support across boroughs are invited to engage with the RHCF to ensure representation from the victim perspective is included as part of the scrutiny process.

MPA key priorities

6. The MPA, through the Equality & Diversity Unit , has a number of major objectives in 2007. Those relating the RHCF include:

• supporting, challenging and enabling improved performance and monitoring in relation to race, faith and homophobic crime.
• working with borough partnerships to explore how the needs of disabled people in relation to hate crime can be addressed.

7. In its third year, the RHCF has held presentation meetings with nine borough partnerships. Where possible, representation from the local community perspective has informed the process.

These nine borough partnerships include:

• Ealing / Enfield – 17 May 2006
• Merton / Waltham Forest – 19 July 2006
• Wandsworth – 20 September 2006
• Bexley / Haringey – 22 November 2006
• Bromley / Richmond – 27 March 2007

Other activities

8. The Annual Report will share the activities of the RHCF outside of its formal presentation and business meetings. This has included:

• The Good Practice Paper, agreed in the previous year (2005 – 2006), which sets out an action plan to assess good practice initiatives in London. This was shared with the London Probation AGIS (Attorney General's Information Service) Reducing Hate Crime in Europe Project. The Probation Service, via AGIS, operates in 5 European areas to address issues of race hate crime. The Good Practice Paper was submitted on the basis of identified criteria that could be used to measure projects or programmes submitted by the London Boroughs. It is hoped that the criteria will eventually be agreed with the London borough partnerships, as a means of assessing successful programmes of work.

Research

9. The RHCF, in partnership with AGIS Reducing Hate Crime in Europe Project, commissioned independent research from Essex University, to examine the RHCF structure with the view of establishing the RHCF structure and method of scrutiny, as a good practice vehicle, which could be adopted in those European countries the Probation Service and AGIS have targeted. The research has been completed and identifies four specific elements as the drivers for the success of the RHCF. These include:

• preparation and audit
• presentation and performance
• challenge and critique
• action and support.

Probation Conference

10. The RHCF took part in the London Probation and Reducing Hate Crime in Europe Project Conference on 21 June 2006. The Project acknowledged the support from the RHCF in making the event a success. Recommendations from the Conference will be included in the Annual Report. The RHCF model is seen as invaluable, with the next step being to take the model into Europe.

Support and Advice

11. Several boroughs have requested additional support from the RHCF following presentations in terms of developing their action plans. The Annual Report is currently being finalised to ensure it reflects fully the work and achievements of the RHCF over the year and will highlight concerns and issues that have emerged as well as areas of good practice.

12. The Annual Report will acknowledge the support of the MPA, MPS, other statutory partners and voluntary agencies in enabling the RHCF to carry out its borough scrutiny.

13. The Annual Report will highlight how the RHCF has worked with other partners and make a number of recommendations in relation to improvements and considerations for partnership working, data collection, the sharing of information, third party reporting and issues for engagement with voluntary groups. Other partners include:

• the GLA Black and Minority Cracking Crime Board
• London Councils Local Authority Race Equality in Education and Ethnic Minority Achievement Network
• the Youth Justice Board
• the MPS in relation to community tension monitoring and hate crime reporting within Kurdish, Pakistani, Turkish and Somali communities.

Future work

14. The Annual Report will consider a number of potential areas of future work which includes:

• the 2012 Olympic Games
• Service Level Agreements (SLAs) to improve communication between local borough partners and service providers in respect of hate crime
• combating hate crime in schools and the impact of government legislation relating to Every Child Matters, Change for Children 2004.

Focus of the RHCF

15. The Annual Report will reflect on discussions and challenges around the current focus of the RHCF’s work. Both the GLA and GOL have expressed a clear desire for the RHCF to maintain its specific focus on race and faith hate crime, but the report acknowledges there is more to be done to address other areas of hate crime and discuss a way forward to facilitate hate crimes that impact across other diversity areas.

16. The Annual Report will highlight improvements made by the CPS in relation to the prosecution of hate crime cases over the past three years and the systems being established to ensure hate crime remains high on its agenda. This includes input on faith hate crime in relation to Antisemitic hate crime and its increase in Europe.

17. The RHCF is keen to share examples of good and emerging practice not only from London but also nationally. As such, the Annual Report will reflect on information reported from boroughs on the process of presenting to the Forum, the lessons learned and provide information on good practice initiatives. In gathering this information, the RHCF has enlisted support from the Hate Crime Co-ordinators Group (HCCG).

C. Race and equality impact

1. Hate Crime and Equality Standards for Local Government (ESLG) is a best value tool for local authorities, which helps them ensure council policy and practice at all levels mainstream across all diversity strands: age, disability, gender, race, religion or belief/non-belief and sexual orientation. Therefore, borough performance is also measured in relation to its effectiveness in dealing with hate crime. Borough partnerships are expected to work within the equality planning process, participate in scrutiny and extend knowledge of the Equality Standard within the community.

2. The work of the Forum makes an essential contribution to this process, as it holds borough partnerships to account, makes recommendations for the development of local action plans and engages feedback from voluntary groups and the views of the wider community.

3. The size of the RHCF project team significantly reduces the range of work possible. The RHCF recognises the need to demonstrate equality of focus across all diversity groups and the requirements of both the MPA and MPS to meet the expectations of new legislation. The work of the RHCF has had a positive impact on borough partnerships in terms of being the catalyst for the focus on hate crime issues and for driving action in relation to boroughs reassessing their community safety action plans. Prior to RHCF involvement, some boroughs reported that they had not conducted research and data analysis of hate crime. The impetus for doing so was their preparation for presenting to the RHCF.

4. The current focus on race and faith hate crime excludes work around disability. In exploring this area of diversity, the Equality and Diversity Unit has held discussions to explore how disability hate crime issues can be included as part of the work of the RHCF. If the RHCF continues, we would include disability hate crime as an additional focus area by making appropriate links with disability advisory groups and organisations who can act as advisors in this area. The Annual Report will also make links with the work being done by the Domestic Violence Board and Stop and Search.

D. Financial implications

1. Members may wish to consider the uncertain future of the RHCF which is having a negative effect on the progress of any future planning. Funding has previously been granted from the GOL Home Office Directors Fund (HODA), with match-funding from the MPA.

2. The MPA has agreed to fund the RHCF until December 2007. The Chair of the Forum has been working extensively with the Forum Project Manager to secure funding from key statutory stakeholders who are current Forum members. In parallel to this, MPA members have requested a review of the Forum to consider their options in supporting this project at which point members will be asked their views as to whether to continue funding the Forum. Financial support provided to the Forum by December 2007 is in the region of £79K (pro-rata). This figure, however, merely covers salaries and does not reflect the additional on-costs, which are currently being met in full by the MPA.

E. Background papers

• Every Child Matters, Children Act 2004
• Disability Discrimination Act 2005
• The London-wide Race Hate Crime Forum: a model of good practice for ‘third-tier’ multi-agency partnerships against race hate crime in Europe, 2006

F. Contact details

Report author: Bennett Obong, Race Hate Crime Forum, Equality & Diversity Unit, MPA

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