FOI 25-483 Racist Abuse towards Staff
Freedom of Information Request
- Reference
- FOI 25-483 Racist Abuse towards Staff
- Request Date
- 24 Oct 2025
- Response Date
- 03 Nov 2025
- Information Requested
- The number of reported incidents of racism/racist abuse towards staff by patients in 2022, 2023, 2024, and the first nine months of 2025. Can the data be categorised in calendar years please.
- From the figures given in question 1., can you specify how many of the reported incidents were
- a) verbal and
- b) physical assaults please.
Can the data be split with a) and b) columns and categorised in calendar years please
- Response
I have applied section 17 of the Freedom of Information Scotland Act 2002 as information not held. To help explain the application of this exemption, there’s a distinction between creating new information, and compiling information already held. Where a request can be answered by compiling information from readily available resources held by the public authority, this is not the same as creating new information. However, if collation of the information would require skill and complex judgement, the information is not held.
The information you have requested is not held in a format that specifically identifies incidents of racism or racist abuse. While staff are encouraged to report all hate crimes via our adverse incidents portal, the system does not contain a subcategory that distinguishes between types of verbal or physical assaults, including those with racial elements.
Although the system does record incidents under general categories such as Verbal Assault and Physical Assault, it does not allow for automatic identification of whether these incidents involved racist abuse. Determining which incidents contained racial elements would require a manual review of each report and the application of complex skill and judgement to interpret the context and language used. As such, this information is not held in a readily extractable format.
The Scottish Ambulance Service remains committed to ensuring a safe and respectful environment for all staff and encourage the reporting of all forms of abuse, including hate crimes, through appropriate channels.
