The Data Behind the Map: Sources, Gaps, and Access
The statistics on this site are drawn from the annual hate crime dataset published each summer by the Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA). This is the only public source that provides geographically detailed data, allowing us to map concentrations at District Electoral Area (DEA) and Ward level and track changes over time.
The PSNI publishes more frequent quarterly hate crime updates, but these are only provided at the broad Local Government District level. When we requested this data at the more precise DEA and Ward level in order to help communities spot emerging trends, the PSNI refused.
Their reason: “Disclosure would impact the apprehension and detection of offender’s [sic] and undermines PSNI’s law enforcement capabilities.”
The data displayed on the map includes both reported hate incidents and hate crimes. These are not the same. For a detailed explanation of the important legal difference, read our blog here.
But how complete is this picture? A major caveat is that these figures only represent hate that is reported to the police. A significant ‘hidden’ number of crimes and incidents go unreported due to fear, distrust of the criminal justice system, or language barriers. The official data, therefore, is always an under-count of the true scale of the problem.
