Somerset hate crime reaches record high as racist offences surge

Summarised from 2 outlets · Updated 26 Oct, 17:02 · Archive

Hate crime in Somerset hit its highest recorded level, with 6,397 offences in 2025/26, up 11.7 per cent year-on-year.

Hate crime recorded by Avon and Somerset Police reached its highest level on record in 2025/26, with 6,397 offences recorded, up from 5,725 the previous year. This represents an increase of 11.7 per cent and is the highest figure in Home Office data stretching back to 2012/13, when 1,211 offences were recorded. The latest total is more than five times the level recorded 13 years earlier.

Race remained by far the most common motivating factor in the Avon and Somerset area, with 4,419 race-related offences in 2025/26, compared with 3,987 the previous year. The steep rise in Somerset compares with a slightly lower rise of around seven per cent nationally, where 146,825 hate crimes were recorded across England and Wales in the year to March 2026.

Community groups expressed deep concern about the figures. Sado Jirde, chief executive of racial justice organisation Black South West Network, said the findings would not surprise the communities they work with. He noted that racism has become more visible and emboldened over the past two years, manifesting on streets, online and in everyday spaces such as public transport and workplaces.

How it is being reported

• 'Racism has become emboldened': Experts react to record-high Somerset hate crimeCommunity organisations have warned of the human impact behind figures showing hate crime has reached its highest recorded level in the county.Bridgwater Mercury · 26 Oct, 12:38
• "Racism has become emboldened": Experts react to record-high Somerset hate crimeCommunity organisations have warned of the human impact behind figures showing hate crime has reached its highest recorded level in the county.Somerset County Gazette · 26 Oct, 12:38

In this story: Avon and Somerset Police · Black South West Network · Sado Jirde · Somerset · England and Wales

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