FEWER than one in 10 Worcestershire hate crimes result in charge or court summons, the latest data shows.
Fewer than one in 10 hate crimes recorded in Worcestershire over a five-year period resulted in someone being charged or summonsed, according to figures supplied by West Mercia Police.
A Freedom of Information response shows 4,878 hate crimes were recorded between 2021/22 and 2025/26, but just 425 ended with a charge or summons.
That equates to around 8.7 per cent of the hate crimes recorded during the period.
The most common outcome was that a victim did not support further police action or withdrew their support, which happened in 1,591 cases, around a third of the total.
A further 1,025 investigations were closed because of evidential difficulties despite the victim supporting action, while 883 ended without a suspect being identified.
Another 582 were recorded under an outcome in which the victim declined or was unable to support efforts to identify the offender.
Racial hate crimes accounted for by far the largest proportion of offences.
There were 3,414 racially motivated hate crimes, representing about 70 per cent of the total recorded during the five years.
Of these, 335 resulted in a charge or summons, equivalent to around 9.8 per cent.
More than 1,000 racial hate crime investigations ended after the victim withdrew support, while 736 encountered evidential difficulties despite the victim continuing to support police action.
Police were unable to identify a suspect in 597 cases.
Just 12 charges involving disability hate crime
The figures show particularly low numbers of charges for some other strands of hate crime.
Of 502 disability hate crimes, just 12 resulted in a charge or summons, approximately 2.4 per cent.
Victims withdrew support in 196 cases, while 125 ended because of evidential difficulties despite the victim supporting action and 83 had no suspect identified.
There were also 785 hate crimes motivated by sexual orientation, of which 75 resulted in a charge or summons.
Victims withdrew their support in 265 of those cases, while 142 ended without a suspect being identified and 134 encountered evidential difficulties despite victim support.
Religious and transgender hate crime
The data records 151 religious hate crimes over the five years.
Eight resulted in a charge or summons, while 52 ended without a suspect being identified and 43 because of evidential difficulties despite the victim supporting action.
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There were also 200 transgender hate crimes, with eight resulting in a charge or summons.
In 70 cases the victim withdrew their support, 48 ended without a suspect being identified and 35 encountered evidential difficulties despite victim support.
A further 27 offences were placed in an age and sub-culture hate crime category.
None resulted in a charge.
Overall, the figures show that substantially more hate crime investigations ended because victims withdrew their support than resulted in a charge or summons.
Chief Inspector Daniel Pilkington said: “Hate crime can have a profound impact on victims and communities, and we take all reports seriously, carrying out a thorough investigation into every allegation made to us.
“The figures show that there are a number of reasons why a case may not result in a charge or court proceedings. These include situations where victims decide not to support further police action, where a suspect cannot be identified, or where there is insufficient evidence to meet the threshold required for a prosecution despite an investigation being fully pursued.
“We understand that reporting hate crime can be difficult and we work closely with victims throughout the investigation process, ensuring they receive appropriate support and are kept informed of progress.
“We remain committed to tackling hate crime, supporting those affected and taking robust action against offenders wherever the evidence allows.”
