Warwickshire Pride Says Police Have Failed LGBTQ+ Victims for Years

Warwickshire Pride has made a formal complaint to Warwickshire Police, the force that covers Stratford-upon-Avon, saying it has repeatedly failed LGBTQ+ people who reported hate crimes. The complaint was received on Thursday 12 November and brings together about 50 cases the charity says it gathered from members of the LGBTQ+ community, first reported by the Stratford Herald and BBC Coventry & Warwickshire.

Warwickshire Police has confirmed it received the complaint and says it will be considered “through the appropriate process”, so it won’t comment on the details while that happens.

What Warwickshire Pride says

According to the Herald and the BBC, the cases cover incidents from 2013 to 2026 and include homophobic and transphobic abuse, threats to kill, sexual harassment, criminal damage, online abuse and sustained harassment. The charity’s chair, Daniel Browne, told the BBC that some reports weren’t properly investigated and that victims and witnesses weren’t listened to. Warwickshire Pride says some people have told it they would never report an incident to the force again.

Two of the cases the BBC describes happened in Leamington and Warwick. Neither report mentions a Stratford case, and the full complaint hasn’t been published. The charity wants the force to acknowledge what it calls a pattern of failures, apologise, and review how victims are treated. Mr Browne said it remains open to talking with the police.

What the police say

Superintendent Steve Flavell, who leads the force’s communities and prevention work, said it was important to listen to concerns and consider them thoroughly. “We want to reassure all communities across Warwickshire, that hate crime and discrimination have no place in our county,” he said.

How to report a hate crime in Stratford

• In an emergency, call 999. Otherwise call 101 or report online to Warwickshire Police.
• The force’s hate crime page explains what counts as a hate crime or incident and the support available.
• If you’d rather not go to the police directly, you can report anonymously to the independent charity Crimestoppers on 0800 555 111.

We’ll update this story when the force says how the complaint will be handled. Warwickshire Police is also without a permanent chief constable after this year’s recruitment ended with no appointment.

Alex Harrington

Alex Harrington grew up in Stratford-upon-Avon and runs What's up, Stratford? as an independent guide to the town.