A RECORD number of racially and religiously aggravated offences were recorded by North Yorkshire Police last year, new analysis shows.

Racially-motivated crime was put in the spotlight in 2021 as three of England's footballers faced racist abuse after missing penalties during the European Championship final, resulting in the team being knocked out of the tournament.

New figures suggest this may have contributed to a spike in racially aggravated offences, as dozens of police forces reported record numbers of hate crimes due to race or religion in the same year.

Analysis of Home Office data by the PA news agency shows there were 515 racially or religiously aggravated offences recorded in North Yorkshire in 2021, a rise of 26 per cent from 410 the year before.

It means more of these offences were reported to the force last year than in any year since comparable data began in 2013.

Superintendent Ed Haywood-Noble, of North Yorkshire Police, said he believed the increase in the number of such hate crimes reflected a growth in confidence for people to come forward and report it to the force. 

“We have worked really hard to engage with local communities around this issue because we know this type of crime remains under reported, and we absolutely recognise that it blights communities and can destroy lives," he said. 

“When it is reported to us, we treat it as a priority. Hate crimes are highlighted in daily management meetings for immediate action, and since 2019 there has been a dedicated role within North Yorkshire Police to improve our engagement and response around this type of crime.” 

North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Zoë Metcalfe said:“No one should ever be victimised because of who they are and I know North Yorkshire Police treat every incident of hate crime seriously.

"We want people to have the confidence to come forward and report offences committed against them so, while any increase is obviously a concern, I hope it also reflects the fact that victims are more prepared to tell police what has happened so they can investigate, bring offenders to justice and reduce the risk of others being victims in the future."

Dr Rama Isaiah, chairperson of York Racial Equality Network, said it was aware of increasing incidents of racially and religiously motivated hate crimes related to any local, national or international situations, including Brexit, the pandemic, football and even unemployment and price rises.

"In fact, it takes very little for people with negative racist attitude to find reason for abusing their fellow citizens, if not educated appropriately,"she said.

"Minorities in North Yorkshire feel and are more vulnerable due to their small numbers and particularly where they are in isolated areas," she said.