VICTIMS of hate crimes are being encouraged to report their abusers to police under a campaign launched in Avon and Somerset this week.

Police want victims and witnesses of verbal, physical and social media hate incident to contact them or other relevant organisations.

A force spokesman said improved recording of such crimes will enable a better understanding and help identify and improve services for victims in communities where hate crimes are evident.

The campaign launch follows the International Day for elimination of racial discrimination last Saturday (March 21) and race hate crime will be the first of five categories focused on over the next 3 weeks.

The five categories are.

•Disability, including physical disabilities, sensory impairments, learning disabilities and mental health issues.

•Race, skin colour, ethnic origin, nationality, including against gypsies and travellers.

•Religion or belief, or lack of religious belief.

•Sexual orientation, including homophobia.

•Gender identity, including resentment of transgender people, transsexuals and transvestites.

Julian Moss, temporary assistant chief constable, said: “Victims of hate crimes are being targeted because of their disability, race, religion, sexual orientation or gender identity.

“It is our responsibility to ensure these crimes are dealt with and that we work closely with other organisations to support victims.

“It is often difficult to identify a hate crime and we hope this campaign will not only encourage victims to report it but for local communities to identify what a hate crime is and help eradicate them from our community.”

Anyone with information about a hate incident should report it by calling 999 in an emergency or 101 in a non-emergency or in person at a police station.