Hate Crime Strategic Partnership Group minutes: November 2022

Attendees and apologies

• Christina McKelvie MSP, Minister for Equalities and Older People (Chair)
• Age Scotland
• Equality Network
• BEMIS
• CEMVO
• Interfaith Scotland
• Police Scotland
• Education Scotland
• Respectme
• Youthlink Scotland
• Glasgow Disability Alliance        
• Scottish Human Rights Commission
• COSLA
• Equality Network    

Scottish Government officials 

• Hate Crime Team, Connected Communities Division

• Justice Analytical Services

 Apologies

• COPFS

• Equality and Human Rights Commission

Items and actions

Welcome and introductions

The Minister welcomed members to the meeting of Hate Crime Strategic Partnership Group, including Community Wellbeing Spokesperson for COSLA who attended for the first time.

Minutes of the previous meeting

Members agreed minutes of June and September meetings.

Lived experience engagement

The Minister thanked members for the wide ranging lived experience engagement they were supporting in order to inform the strategy, including the events held during the Hate Crime National Week of Action and invited members to share their findings.

Members reflections included:

• hate crime happening in a range of settings, including in neighbourhoods, public places and on public transport (especially buses). Hate crime experienced online was also discussed, with some groups feeling like this type of abuse has increased in recent years

• for some, experiencing hatred and prejudice was a frequent occurrence and not always knowing whether something experienced was a crime

• some people feared as escalation of the abuse if they reported it

• some groups not comfortable reporting to Police Scotland for a range of reasons, including historic mistrust and fear that they would not be taken seriously

• role of geopolitical events and media portrayal

• most felt the curriculum had an important role to play in preventing hate crime

• groups talked about experiences of hatred and prejudice in schools – between pupils but also pupils as perpetrators outside of school

• the need for appropriate, consistent and trauma-informed support following a report of hate crime

• lack of awareness of different reporting mechanisms, including third-party

Actions:

• hate crime officials to feedback relevant findings from lived experience engagement to policy teams across Scottish Government, including to transport Scotland
• COSLA to follow up comments about bus travel

Hate Crime Strategy commitments

The Minister thanked members for the bi-lateral discussions that had helped inform the development of the draft commitments in the paper shared. The Minister noted the intention to publish the strategy in early 2023 with a delivery plan, setting out immediate and medium term activities in support of the commitments, to follow.

Police Scotland provided a short update on work considering improvements to third-party reporting, noting the inclusion of a specific commitment to review the infrastructure in the paper.

The group were broadly content with the approach and commitments, providing specific comments around:

• ensuring accountability of commitments, and detail on how progress will be monitored
• ensuring lived experience engagement continues to inform plans for delivery
• importance of taking an intersectional approach to tackling hatred and prejudice
• making use of existing resources, need for consistent public messaging and value of events such as Hate Crime Awareness Week
• emphasising the need to take a multi-agency approach in tackling hate crime, and that the onus does not fall to communities affected by hate crime to tackle alone

Action: SPG members to share any further comments on the draft commitments with hate crime officials.

Data deep dive

Justice Analytical Services (JAS) presented key findings from the Police Recorded Hate Crime in Scotland 2020-21 Deep Dive, due to be published in January 2023.

Action: JAS officials to share slides from discussion and the publication with SPG.

Next steps

Officials will share a draft strategy with the SPG for comments. The group will meet again in February.

Action: Hate Crime officials to send the draft strategy to the SPG for comment.