CPS and Middlesbrough FC join forces to tackle hate crime

As part of the this week’s national Hate Crime Awareness Week, staff from the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) have met with staff at Middlesbrough Football Club to look at ways of improving the reporting of football related hate crime offences. 

CPS North East’s Inclusion and Community Engagement Manager, Becky Croser, and District Crown Prosecutor, Ansab Shan, worked with staff from the Riverside Stadium to look at ways of ensuring that hate crime offences are appropriately tackled.

The CPS explained to those attending how it engages with local communities to increase public confidence in the reporting of hate crime offences, talking the group through some recent case studies of hate crime prosecutions and inviting questions.

Staff from both organisations took part in discussions about how best to tackle hate crime in football and the CPS provided additional guidance on how club staff can more effectively secure evidence for potential hate crime prosecutions.

Becky Croser said: “We were really grateful to have been invited along to Middlesbrough FC to talk about how we can work together to improve hate crime prosecutions. While there are relatively few incidents of hate crime around the club, the club are really proactive about ensuring the safety of staff, players and fans alike.”

Helena Bowman, Head of Business Operations and Community for Middlesbrough FC, said: “It was fantastic to have the CPS team at the Riverside Stadium today to educate our staff on Hate Crime and the importance of reporting incidents. As a Club, we aim to be as inclusive as possible and to be welcoming to all. We want to eradicate all forms of discrimination at MFC, whether that is on a match day, non-match day or online.”