(Derbyshire, England) Hate crimes against disabled people have soared to shocking levels in Derbyshire, but only a handful of suspects have been charged. Between April 2021 and March 2022, 279 disability-based hate crimes were recorded in Derbyshire, up 32.9% from 210 reports in the previous year.

Furthermore, just under half – 49.8% – of disability hate crimes reported in our area last year involved violence, but that was down slightly from 51.4% the previous year. But figures also show that only six were prosecuted for such offences in that time, which means only 2.2% of perpetrators faced justice.

The picture in Derbyshire is still better than stats from across England and Wales, with only 1.1% of cases resulting in the offender being charged nationwide, down from 1.9% from 2020-21. Overall, at least 11,723 disability hate crimes were reported to police across the whole UK in 2021-22, a 25.5% increase from the previous year and the highest on record.