Message from Sutton Safeguarding Adults Board

Message from the SSAB Independent Chair

Later this month the Sutton Safeguarding Partnership, across Adult and Children’s Social Care teams, and Sutton Council will be hosting an event centred around hate crime. Those reading this newsletter, which focuses on the safeguarding of adults, may be wondering how does hate crime link to the safeguarding of adults? To answer this question, I want to remind people about two of the core principles that underpin the Care Act 2014.

The first is Prevention, which refers to the prevention of neglect, harm, and abuse, and is a core function of safeguarding. This applies to adults with care or support needs, carers, and people who don’t have any current needs for care and support. This makes prevention one of the most important elements of not just safeguarding but of the overall Care Act duties of the Council. We all know that it is better to take steps to prevent issues from occurring rather than dealing with the situation after it has happened. Recognising and identifying a situation where an individual may be exposed to hate crime and preventing its occurrence or reoccurrence is an important role for everyone, including practitioners and clinicians supporting individuals with care needs.

The second is Protection, which refers to the act of giving people in vulnerable situations, support on a timely basis and in a way that respects their own wishes and maintains their independence.

Protection may involve a range of different services and interventions, and requires practitioners and clinicians to recognise that sometimes the people in need of protection and safeguarding are those who are unable to protect themselves or seek out the appropriate protection. 

Protection sometimes requires the involvement of the police and the prosecution of the perpetrator, which is where hate crime comes in.

Hate crime is any crime that is perceived by the victim, or any other person, to be racist, homophobic, transphobic, or due to a person’s religion, belief, gender identity, or disability. It is also a form of exploitation which occurs when a person is harmed or taken advantage of by someone who they thought was their friend. Hate crimes can include: attacks on a person or their property, threat of attack, and verbal abuse or insults either in person or, for example, via social media.

The Care Act lists 10 different categories of abuse, however there is no separate category called “hate crime” because hate crime can occur in any or all types of abuse. This is why it important for those working in the field of safeguarding to be attuned to what hate crime is and confident in recognising it and calling it out.

Deborah Cohen
Independent Chair of the SSAB

For further information and training go to the SSAB web page; https://www.suttonsab.org.uk/news.php

Hate Crime Awareness Training event

Join this event to discover more about hate crime and how to protect and safeguard people who have care and support needs. The event will be delivered by Mike Ainsworth, Chair of the National Independent Advisory Group on Hate Crime for Policing and Criminal Justice.

Details: Tuesday 24 September 2024, 9.30am to 12.30pm, Holy Trinity Church, Wallington, SM6 8BL. 

Find out more information and register to attend.

Reporting Hate Crime 

A hate crime is any crime or incident where the victim, or any other person, believes it was carried out because of the victim’s identity. Visit our website for more information and to find out how to report it.