Are public authorities doing enough to tackle disability hate crime? 

The Commission is to ask Hinckley and Bosworth Council to provide evidence it is compliant with its legal duty to eliminate disability-related harassment, following the Coroner’s Inquest into the deaths of Fiona Pilkington and her daughter Francecca. [For the background to this story see: www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2009/oct/01/pilkington-bullying-accused-family]

The Commission will also be contacting the Independent Police Complaints Commission to find out the scope of its inquiry before deciding whether to take any further action.

Following research into hate crimes we published earlier this year, the Commission has already set in train a wider review into how public authorities are meeting their legal duty to eliminate harassment of the kind suffered by the Pilkingtons. The report found that those with learning disabilities and mental health conditions were particularly at risk and suffered higher levels of victimisation, as well as a prevalence of ongoing low level incidents which can escalate into more serious violence.

The Commission has statutory powers to ensure that public authorities comply with the Disability Equality Duty, which specifically lists elimination of harassment due to disability. In December this year many public authorities will be required to publish revised Disability Equality Schemes. The Commission will expect clear evidence of how they propose to address harassment and hate crimes.

Trevor Phillips, Chair of the Commission said: ‘It is clear that serious failings in a number of public bodies led directly to the tragic deaths of Fiona Pilkington and her daughter Francecca. The Commission’s role is to look at how Hinckley and Bosworth Council was using the Disability Equality Duty to provide the right support and services for families like the Pilkingtons. The Commission is also taking a wider look at how local authorities address hate crimes and harassment. Our research shows that while these deaths stand out because of the desperate course of action Fiona Pilkington took, hate crime is all too common an experience for disabled people.’

Find out more about safety and security for disabled people.
Find out more about the Disability Equality Duty.

Formal Inquiry into disability-related harassment

The Commission has announced that it intends to conduct a Formal Inquiry into disability-related harassment in Britain and how public authorities are protecting disabled people’s human rights to live free from violence and abuse.

Evidence already gathered by the Commission indicates that targeted violence or hostility towards disabled people is widespread in Britain. People with learning disabilities or mental health conditions in particular experience high levels of victimisation.

A report on the safety and security of disabled people published by the Commission earlier this year found that disabled people are four times more likely to be the victim of a crime than other people and are twice as likely to be the victim of a violent attack.

At the end of the Inquiry, public authorities found not to be doing enough to tackle the problem and to protect the human rights of disabled people could face legal action to force them to comply with their legal obligations.

The Commission has produced guidance to help public authorities understand what its duties and responsibilities are and how these duties should be implemented.

Read more about what the Commission did to mark the International Day of People with Disabilities and to promote the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

Formal Inquiry into disability-related harassment
The inquiry will also look at how public authorities are protecting disabled people’s human rights to live free from violence and abuse.