North Wales Police is committed to the promotion of Equality and Diversity within the Force and within the communities it serves.

Everyone within our communities, regardless of their status, has the right to expect the highest standard of Police service.

No individual should be treated less favourably on grounds of colour, race, nationality, disability, gender, sexual orientation, proposed or actual gender re-assignment, religion or any other status.

The aim of the Diversity Unit is to educate against prejudice and hate crime, to advise on force policy regarding issues of Diversity and Equality and to liaise with members of the diverse communities in North Wales.

North Wales Police has a specialist Diversity Unit, which emphasises the value and importance of Equality and Diversity and advises on force policy within these areas, with the aim of providing a high standard of policing to all individuals and ensuring staff understand the value of diversity and respect uniqueness amongst their colleagues and the communities they serve. As such, our services will respond to the diversity of our local communities and cultures, for only by effectively engaging with our diverse communities will we be able to police effectively.

What is Diversity?

Diversity is a term used broadly to refer to differences among people in areas including, but not limited to age, race, ethnicity, gender, disability, sexual orientation, national or geographic origin, and religion.

Distinction between a Hate Incident and a Hate Crime:

A Hate Incident is defined as:

Any incident, which may or may not constitute a criminal offence, which is perceived by the victim or any other person, as being motivated by prejudice or hate.

A Hate Crime is defined as:

Any hate incident, which constitutes a criminal offence, perceived by the victim or any other person, as being motivated by prejudice or hate.

It is important to note that all hate crimes are hate incidents, however, some hate incidents may not constitute a criminal offence and therefore will not be recorded as a hate crime.

All reported Hate Crimes are investigated, in order to reduce the risk of further incidents and to identify criminal offences and bring offenders to justice.

The perception of the victim or any other person is the determining factor in what is defined as a hate incident and what is not - if an incident is perceived to be motivated by prejudice then it will be classed as a hate incident. A victim of a hate incident does not have to be member of a minority group or someone who is generally considered to be vulnerable.