Serious violence

'Serious violence' is used to describe specific types of crime, including:

• homicide
• grievous bodily harm (GBH)
• incidents involving a knife
• criminal activity where serious violence is a risk (for example, county lines drug dealing)

This includes all ages, public, private and domestic incidents. It does not include simple possession of a knife.

West Berkshire continues to be an area with low levels of serious violence.
 

Get help and support

In an emergency

If you are in danger or an emergency, call 999.

If you cannot speak:

Make a silent 999 call:

• using a mobile, press 55, cough or tap on the handset when prompted and they will transfer your call to the police
• using a landline, if the operator can hear background noise, they will transfer your call to the police
   

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or speech-impaired:

Use Relay UK or set up emergency SMS. Text REGISTER to 999. You will get a text which tells you what to do next. Do this when it is safe so you can text when you are in danger.

Support services

• support for domestic abuse
• support for exploitation or modern slavery
• victim and witness support guidance on GOV.UK
• Victim Support Thames Valley
• Ask for Angela - a scheme available in pubs and bars that supports people in asking for help to get out of an uncomfortable or unsafe situation
• alcohol and drug support in West Berkshire
• British Muslim Trust (BMT) helpline - a new helpline service to help tackle increased anti-Muslim hate in the UK - you can phone (from 10am to 3pm), fill in the online form or use email, SMS, Whatsapp or live chat - all calls are handled by Muslim staff to ensure there is a cultural and religious understanding of the context of these incidents

You can also find guidance on personal safety on the Crimestoppers website.

What we do to reduce serious violence

Under the Police, Crime, Sentencing and Courts Act 2022, local authorities have a statutory duty to reduce serious violence, in partnership with the statutory, voluntary and community sector. Statutory means it is required by law.

As well as the types of serious violence described above, we can also analyse crimes that contribute to the threat, likelihood and understanding of those offences. This includes:

• all actual bodily harm (excluding 'other' violence with injury)
• all drug supply / trafficking (excluding possession alone)
• all sexual assault
• all rape offences

Analysing these crimes may lead to them being included in the primary definition above in the future. These are for local partnership monitoring, sharing and review.

Serious Violence Steering Group

West Berkshire's Serious Violence Steering Group meets quarterly (every 3 months). It includes representatives from both statutory, voluntary and community sector partners, with support from the Thames Valley Violence Prevention Partnership. The group has developed the West Berkshire Partnership Serious Violence Reduction Strategy.

West Berkshire Partnership Serious Violence Reduction Strategy

The Serious Violence Reduction Strategy [326KB]  sets out West Berkshire's partnership approach to tackling serious violence. It takes into consideration the following sources of information:

• West Berkshire building communities together needs assessment
• West Berkshire serious violence needs analysis
• Thames Valley Violence Prevention Partnership strategic needs assessment
• Home Office duty guidance

The strategy explains the targets and aims to reduce serious violence and support those experiencing or affected by such violence. The vision is for residents, businesses, and visitors in West Berkshire to live, work and enjoy leisure time free from serious violence.

The strategy will be reviewed every year.