Uplift in funding to support victims of hate crime

• Hate crime has been on the rise in London over recent years, with for example a 30% increase in racist incidences when comparing 2019 to 2015. This decision enables a rapid uplift in advocacy support for victims of hate crime via an extension of the existing grant arrangements with CATCH (Community Action to Combat Hate Crime) a VCSE consortia, up until September 2020.

• In addition to an increase in advocacy services, this decision also invests in additional grassroots VCSE capacity to respond more effectively to hate crime and its victims, by increased awareness raising and ensuring links to the Mayor’s wider Countering Violence Extremism (CVE) programme, through a contribution to the CVE Small Grants Fund, which will be launched in 2019 / 2020 (see PCD 631 for further information regarding this fund).

The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime is recommended to agree a budget allocation of £511,249 of which £294,707 will be deployed in 2019/20 and £216,542 will be deployed in 2020/21. This budget is for the following:

• £169,707 in 2019/20 and £191,542 in 2020/21 for the uplift and extension of existing advocacy services for hate crime victims;

• £100,000 contribution in 2019/20 to the Countering Violent Extremism and Hate Crime small grants fund (see PCD 631 for further information regarding this fund); and

• £25,000 in 2019/20 and £25,000 in 2020/21 to deliver National Hate Crime Awareness events across London.

The Deputy Mayor for Policing and Crime is recommended to agree to the delegation of the authority to Director of Criminal Justice and Commissioning to sign any grant agreements or amendments and approve any internal virements that are required to facilitate the disbursement of the above budget.

1. Introduction and background

Existing services to support victims of hate crime

1.1. In the Police and Crime Plan for London, the Mayor committed to extending access to the MOPAC commissioned Hate Crime Victims’ Advocates service to be available pan-London. The Hate Crime Victims’ Advocates service has been delivered since its inception by Community Action To Combat Hate (CATCH), a consortium of VCSE victim support organisations with partners from each of the strands identified as those targeted by hate crime. The scheme is modelled on the Independent Sexual Violence Advisors and Independent Domestic Violence Advocates who support victims in the aftermath of those crimes and through the criminal justice process.

1.2. Following a successful pilot in Hackney and Westminster in 2016/17 the Advocates service was expanded to support victims of hate crime across London. Since then, the CATCH consortium has expanded to include additional partners to ensure that the advocacy service is able to provide specialist support to more communities across London.

1.3. The Mayor’s decision to extend these services meant that more victims have been able to access specialist support. The service provided support to 442 victims of hate crime in 2018/19, up from 249 in 2017/18. Of those supported in 2018/19, 87% reported improved health and wellbeing and 84% reported that they felt supported in navigating the criminal justice system

1.4. In addition, the MOPAC Hate Crime Victims’ Advocates scheme was recognised as an example of good practice in the Government’s Hate Crime Action Plan, “Action Against Hate” (July 2016), and similarly recognised by the European Forum for Urban Security in its manual of good practices for combatting discriminatory violence in Europe. Current funding arrangements for the Hate Crime Victims’ Advocates service is committed until March 2020.

1.5. Alongside the Hate Crime Victims’ Advocates scheme, MOPAC funds specialised hate crime victim support services through small grant agreements with Galop (the pan-London LGBT anti-violence charity and the Community Security Trust (CST) which monitors levels of anti-Semitic hate crime and supports victims from Jewish communities. Both services have performed well in line with the expectations set out in their grant agreements. Along with the CATCH grant, these grants are also all due to conclude in March 2020.

The immediate need to respond to rising levels of hate crime in London

1.6. There is evidence of a continued upward trend in all forms of hate crime in London. As well as year on year increases, we have seen how hate crime can spike in response to national or international events.

• the number of racist offences continues to rise with over 16,000 reported in the year to June 2019, 30% higher than the equivalent period in 2015.

• While the number anti-Muslim offences have fallen from a peak of around 1600 per year in 2017/18, the long-term trend is still on the rise.

• 2015 the number of anti-Semitic incidents varies over the course of the same four years; the general trend is also upwards.

• Homophobic attacks have increased by 48% since 2015.

2. Issues for consideration

2.1 To respond to the continued upward trend in hate crime, this decision is proposing to uplift and extend existing support services for victims of hate crime while also building capacity in local community organisations to support victims of hate crime.

Uplift and extension of existing services

2.2. A circa 100% uplift in funding for the CATCH consortium will pay for 6.6 full time equivalent specialist Hate Crime Advocates, a co-ordinator, and project worker. These additional resources will enable Catch to work with 880 new clients, up from 442 in 2018/19. In addition, the Catch consortium will engage with 10 grass roots community organisations which are currently working with marginalized communities affected by hate crime and build their capacity, knowledge, and understanding of hate crime and how to support their communities to report it and access services. It will provide continuity of service until October 2020.

Small grants funding

2.3. The Mayor’s Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) Unit plans to offer a small grants fund in the current financial year aimed at delivering projects which counter extremism, offer positive alternatives to hateful ideologies and encourage others to stand up to hate and intolerance. There are clear overlaps in the aims and objectives of the CVE work with MOPAC’s hate crime work. MOPAC proposes to contribute to that fund to create a joint CVE/hate crime small grants fund, see PCD 631 for further information regarding this fund.

Annual contribution to National Hate Crime Awareness Week

2.4. National Hate Crime Awareness Week is a key event in the annual Hate Crime programme. This decision seeks continued support for National Hate Crime Awareness Week with a £25,000 grant for the provision a stock of promotional materials for distribution to organisations delivering events across London, this year and next year.

3. Financial Comments

3.1. The maximum budget committed by this decision is £511,249. Of the total budget for this piece of work, £294,707 will be deployed in 2019/20 and the remaining £216,542 will be deployed in 2020/21. In 2019/20, the budget is made up of £20,000 from MOPAC’s core budgets and £274,707 from the £3.5m additional budget provided by the Mayor to MOPAC for victims’ services and crime prevention activity in the 2019/20 budget process.

 

A breakdown of the budget for 2019/20 and 2020/21 is set out in the table below:

Overview of budget and funding arrangements:

This extends provision of services for victims of hate crime until October 2020.

4. Legal Comments

4.2. In line with section 4 of MOPAC’s Scheme of Consent and Delegation, the DMPC has authority for the approval of business cases for revenue expenditure above £500,000 and for the strategy for the award of grants. The proposals set out in this decision form are accordingly to be approved by the DMPC.

5. Commercial Issues

5.2. To extend and uplift the capacity of existing services for victims of hate crime, the existing grant agreements with CATCH, Galop, and CST will be varied and extended to accommodate this additional funding.

5.3. The £100,000 contribution to the Countering Violent Extremism and Hate Crime small grants fund will firstly take the form of internal budget virement and then the Countering Violent Extremism team will undertake a competitive procurement process using the relevant TfL procurement framework to appoint a fund manager.

5.4. New grant agreement arrangements will be put in place to disburse the resources for National Hate Crime Awareness Week and professional, technical and legal advice will be sought to ensure the appropriate process are followed.

6. Public Health Approach

6.1 This decision provides the funding to enable a better informed and more cohesive partnership approach to improving outcomes for victims in London which will much align with and support the VRU’s public health approach to tackling the causes of violent crime in London.

7. GDPR and Data Privacy

7.2. A DPIA will be undertaken as part of mobilising the uplift in services. Specialist advice from data privacy experts will be sought as part of developing these programmes of work to ensure any risks to personal data are identified and adequate safeguards are put in place.

8. Equality Comments

8.1. MOPAC is required to comply with the Public Sector Equality Duty set out in section 149(1) of the Equality Act 2010. This requires MOPAC to have due regard to the need to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity and foster good relations to people with the protected characteristics; age, disability, gender assignment, marriage and civil partnership, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief, sex and sexual orientation.

8.2. The definition of hate crime was set by the Home Office, in agreement with criminal justice system partners, in 2007. It states that “A hate crime is defined as any criminal offence which is perceived, by the victim or any other person, to be motivated by a hostility or prejudice based on a personal characteristic; specifically actual or perceived race, religion/faith, sexual orientation, disability and transgender identity.” As such, certain communities are disproportionately affected by hate crimes on the basis of one or other of those characteristics.

8.3. Hate crime victims have higher levels of depression, stress and anger, and for longer than victims of other crime. Victims report that the simplest elements of daily life can be affected, such as which streets to walk down, how they answer the phone, reactions to strangers and suspicion of co-workers.

8.4. MOPAC’s commissioned hate crime victims’ services provide a cohort of clients disproportionately affected by hate crime additional specialist support to help them cope and recover and navigate the criminal justice services (CJS) if a CJS outcome is their preferred option.

8.5. The CATCH consortium consists of partners who work with and support victims of all strands of hate crime whether it be motivated by race, faith, sexual orientation, disability or transgender status or an intersection of two or more of these personal characteristics.