The Safer and Stronger Communities Overview and Scrutiny Committee of Durham County Council met on Monday 7 September 2026 to discuss hate crime and community cohesion, the work of the Safe Durham Partnership, and the committee's work programme. The meeting also included a review of performance data from the fourth quarter of the 2025/26 financial year.

Hate Crime and Community Cohesion

The committee was scheduled to receive an updated presentation from Durham Constabulary regarding hate crime and community cohesion. The report highlighted that hate crime is a policing priority due to the additional harm it causes, impacting victims' identities, creating repeat vulnerability, and potentially causing wider community tensions and fear. The law recognises five types of hate crime: race, religion, disability, sexual orientation, and transgender identity.

Locally, approximately 120 hate crimes were reported per month, showing a 24% increase over three years. Race was identified as the largest recorded aggravating factor, with spikes linked to wider national tensions, geopolitical events, immigration debates, online misinformation, and the cost-of-living pressures. The report emphasised that community cohesion is crucial for national resilience, acting as a preventative measure against division and information disorder caused by hostile actors. The police and partners were undertaking a range of actions, including hate crime reviews, accurate recording practices, focusing on resolved rates, seeking evidence-led prosecutions, multi-agency collaboration, preventative policing, and community engagement.

Safe Durham Partnership

The committee was also scheduled to receive an overview of the Safe Durham Partnership (SDP), a Community Safety Partnership established under the Crime and Disorder Act 1998. The SDP comprises five responsible authorities: Durham County Council, Durham Constabulary, County Durham and Darlington Fire and Rescue Service, the Probation Service, and the North East and North Cumbria Integrated Care Board. The partnership's ambition, as outlined in its 2024-2029 strategy, is for Durham to be a county where everyone can feel and be safe.

The strategy's three priority areas are:

• Anti-social behaviour and crime which disrupts communities
• Hate crime and building community cohesion
• Sexual violence and other violent crime

The partnership's responsibilities include providing strategic leadership, coordinating assessments, delivering the strategy, overseeing performance, ensuring information sharing, consulting the community, and commissioning reviews. The presentation was to be delivered by Assistant Chief Constable Richie Allen, Chair of the SDP.

Quarter Four, 2025/26 Performance Management Report

An update on progress towards achieving the strategic ambitions and objectives set out in the 2025-30 Council Plan was scheduled for discussion. This included data for the fourth quarter of the 2025/26 financial year (January to March). Over the previous twelve months, there had been 26,000 reports of Anti-Social Behaviour (ASB), with figures generally decreasing across most categories, except for abandoned shopping trolleys and flyposting. Heat maps indicated that 27% of ASB was reported in specific areas including Bishop Auckland and Horden.

The number of road traffic collisions had also decreased, with 170 reported compared to 193 the previous year, and a reduction in fatalities and serious injuries. The report noted an increase in Selective Licensing, with 72% of properties either fully licensed, having licences in progress, being exempt, or facing legal proceedings. Six individuals were prosecuted for housing criminal offences, and 163 civil penalties were issued. The private rental sector had seen a decrease over the past six to seven years.

Safer and Stronger Communities Work Programme 2026/27

The committee was due to review and consider its draft work programme for 2026/27. This programme reflects the objectives and priorities of the Council Plan and the Safer Durham Partnership Strategy. The work programme is designed to be flexible to accommodate emerging issues and is reviewed regularly. Items previously discussed in the 2025/26 work programme that were identified as requiring further scrutiny and monitoring were expected to be carried forward. The draft programme included scheduled meetings, informal information sessions, briefing reports, and visits.