This code assists police officers and staff in making decisions
about the recording of non-crime hate incidents and relevant
personal data.
From:
Home Office
Published
3 June 2023
Applies to England and Wales
Documents
Non-Crime Hate Incidents:
Code of Practice on the Recording and Retention of Personal Data
(accessible)
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Details
This page covers the Non-Crime Hate Incidents Code of Practice on
the Recording and Retention of Personal Data, as provided for in
the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022.
The code of practice came into force at 00:01 on 3 June 2023.
The draft code of
practice was laid before Parliament in March 2023.
The code provides guidance to the police in England and Wales
relating to non-crime hate incident (NCHI) recording. It sets out the
common-sense and proportionate approach that should be adopted by
the police.
The code:
-
includes guidance relating to whether and how the personal
data of an individual who is the subject of
an NCHI report should be
processed as part of an NCHI record
-
provides detailed information on the right to freedom of
expression, and clear case studies to illustrate how this
right should be taken into account in the context
of NCHI recording
-
clarifies that debate, humour, satire and personally-held
views which are lawfully expressed are not, by themselves,
grounds for the recording of an NCHI
-
sets out that an NCHI should not be
recorded if the report is deemed by the police to be trivial,
irrational, malicious, or if there is no basis to conclude
that it was motivated by intentional hostility
The code also introduces the additional threshold test, which
clarifies that personal data should only be included in
an NCHI record if the event
presents a real risk:
-
of significant harm to individuals or groups with a
particular characteristic or characteristics
-
that a future criminal offence may be committed against
individuals or groups with a particular characteristic or
characteristics
For the purposes of the code, a ‘particular characteristic’ means
race, religion, sexual orientation, disability or transgender
identity, as defined in hate crime legislation. This test will
enable the police to intervene where necessary to safeguard
vulnerable individuals and communities.
The College of Policing publish non-statutory Authorised
Professional Practice (APP) guidance on NCHI recording. On 3 June
2023, the College of Policing published an updated version of
this guidance that aligns with the content of this code.
