Police In Bury Launch New Hate Crime Reporting Centres

Date published: 24/02/2009

Greater Manchester Police’s Bury division has underlined its commitment to making the borough a safe place to live for its colourful and diverse communities.

Divisional Commander Chief Superintendent Jon Rush officially re-launched 20 Hate Crime Reporting Centres at locations across the borough at a special ceremony at the Jinnah Day Care Centre in Bury on Monday 23 February.

The centres are located in public buildings such as community centres and council offices and are designed to provide an informal place for members of minority communities, who may not want to visit a police station, to report incidents they have experienced or concerns they have.

The division is planning to spend thousands of pounds modernising the computer systems in some of the centres and providing staff with up-to-date training to enable them to deal with the sensitive nature of their role.

The centres cater for a diverse range of groups including disabled people, ethnic minorities and the lesbian, gay, bi-sexual and transgender community.

Bury division has a dedicated Hate Crime Unit which reviews every incident of hate crime reported at the centres.

Chief Superintendent Rush said: “There are some people who may not feel comfortable or able to go into a police station for a variety of reasons. This may be due to cultural issues or, in the cases of asylum seekers, personal experiences in countries where they may have experienced persecution

“Therefore, the ability to go into a building such as a community centre to speak to someone may provide a much more relaxed environment for them to report any incidents or concerns they may have with regards hate crime.”

“The centres are a great example of how the police can work in partnership with the local community and I am sure they will help us achieve our aim of increasing the reporting of hate crime in Bury and assist us with both the prevention and detection of such crime.”