Recommendations & Conclusions
6 items
3
Conclusion
First Report - Violence and abuse towar…
Accepted
Where shopworkers are confronted by hate-motivated abuse in the course of their employment this should be taken seriously by employers and reported to the police. It is vital that the police, in dealing with these incidents, manage them with sensitivity and give them the attention that they deserve. We support …
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Where shopworkers are confronted by hate-motivated abuse in the course of their employment this should be taken seriously by employers and reported to the police. It is vital that the police, in dealing with these incidents, manage them with sensitivity and give them the attention that they deserve. We support calls for future iterations of the Home Office Commercial Victimisation Survey to include questions on incidents of hate related violence and abuse to help build a clearer picture of the prevalence of this form of abuse. We support calls for future iterations of the Home Office Commercial Victimisation Survey to include questions on incidents of hate related violence and abuse to help build a clearer picture of the prevalence of this form of abuse.
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Government response AI summary
The government stated that the 2020/21 Commercial Victimisation Survey, currently underway with results due March 2022, already includes questions on hate-related violence as recommended, and an Expert Reference Group will review its coverage in Spring 2022.
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Home Office
5
Conclusion
First Report - Violence and abuse towar…
Accepted
It is unconscionable that violence and abuse towards retail workers has further increased during the Covid-19 pandemic. These are individuals who have been working on the frontline and have put their lives at risk to ensure that the public could access essential items such as food and medicine. At a …
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It is unconscionable that violence and abuse towards retail workers has further increased during the Covid-19 pandemic. These are individuals who have been working on the frontline and have put their lives at risk to ensure that the public could access essential items such as food and medicine. At a time when they have most deserved our respect and gratitude they have instead faced violence and abuse. (Paragraph 36) 62 Violence and abuse towards retail workers
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Government response AI summary
The government response details existing measures, including interim sentencing guidance for Covid-19 related assaults and revised guidelines with aggravating factors, published safer working guidance, and ongoing collaboration between BEIS/DEFRA and retailers to ensure Covid-19 related safety.
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Home Office
6
Conclusion
First Report - Violence and abuse towar…
Accepted
We welcome the revised guidance from the Sentencing Council which makes the despicable act of deliberate spitting or coughing an aggravating factor for common assault. However, we note that incidents of offenders threatening to spit or cough would not be covered by its terms and regret that the sentencing guidelines …
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We welcome the revised guidance from the Sentencing Council which makes the despicable act of deliberate spitting or coughing an aggravating factor for common assault. However, we note that incidents of offenders threatening to spit or cough would not be covered by its terms and regret that the sentencing guidelines took over a year from the start of the Covid crisis to be introduced.
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Government response AI summary
The government clarifies that the revised common assault guideline includes a new high-culpability factor for 'intention to cause fear of serious harm, including disease transmission', which addresses threats to spit or cough related to Covid-19.
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Home Office
21
Recommendation
First Report - Violence and abuse towar…
Accepted
We welcome the additional money available to local authorities and Police and Crime Commissioners to spend on preventative measures via the Safer Streets Fund. However, we note that none of the funding rounds have placed any emphasis on preventative measures for violence and abuse towards retail workers. We recommend that …
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We welcome the additional money available to local authorities and Police and Crime Commissioners to spend on preventative measures via the Safer Streets Fund. However, we note that none of the funding rounds have placed any emphasis on preventative measures for violence and abuse towards retail workers. We recommend that the Home Office make clear that they welcome bids to the current Safer Streets Fund for measures that will improve the safety of shop workers, and actively encourage local councils, communities and business partnerships to draw up bids which directly tackle violence and abuse in retail settings and on high streets. We also recommend that a future round should set this as a priority. (Paragraph 96) The role of employers
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Government response AI summary
The government stated that it has already made clear the Safer Streets Fund welcomes bids for measures improving shopworker safety, with the second round expanded to include commercial areas, and the third round (Autumn 2021) will have a broader focus on reducing violence.
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Home Office
30
Conclusion
First Report - Violence and abuse towar…
Accepted
The Government has acknowledged that drugs play a significant role in a large number of crimes and with prolific offending in particular. Yet, one year on from the Government’s response to the call for evidence on violence and abuse toward shop staff, work to develop the evidence base regarding the …
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The Government has acknowledged that drugs play a significant role in a large number of crimes and with prolific offending in particular. Yet, one year on from the Government’s response to the call for evidence on violence and abuse toward shop staff, work to develop the evidence base regarding the role of drugs and alcohol in retail crime is only just beginning. We welcome the work the Government is undertaking to address drug addiction via the five ADDER programmes. However, the Minister has admitted that it will be years before these programmes could be rolled-out at a national level. This intervention lacks urgency and fails to address the gravity of the escalating violence and abuse faced by Britain’s retail workers on a daily basis. Retail workers need action now to break the escalating cycle of abuse.
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Government response AI summary
The government details its commitment to tackling drug-driven crime, referencing Dame Carol Black's review and ongoing work including £80m investment in drug treatment and the expansion of Project ADDER to eight additional sites.
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Home Office
38
Conclusion
First Report - Violence and abuse towar…
Accepted
The patchwork of existing offences for prosecuting incidents of violence and abuse against individuals is not effective enough to address the escalating scale and nature of offences committed in the retail setting. Introducing a new statutory offence would bring the following benefits: Violence and abuse towards retail workers 69 • …
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The patchwork of existing offences for prosecuting incidents of violence and abuse against individuals is not effective enough to address the escalating scale and nature of offences committed in the retail setting. Introducing a new statutory offence would bring the following benefits: Violence and abuse towards retail workers 69 • Communicate to the police, retail workers, their employers and the wider public that the Government takes this issue seriously and that violence and abuse towards retail workers is unacceptable and cannot be carried out with impunity. • Improve the police’s ability to collect data on reported incidents, rates of arrest and prosecutions for assaults on shop workers, so that the issue does not get lost among a wider consideration of retail or business crime. • Increase reporting of incidents by retail workers which would in turn ensure the Government has a clearer understanding about the scale of the problem and type of offenders involved.
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Government response AI summary
The government highlights existing measures by the Sentencing Council, including interim guidance on Covid-19 related assaults from April 2020 and revised assault sentencing guidelines from May 2021, which address aggravating factors for common assault.
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Home Office