New data has revealed that assaults on emergency workers in Wales have increased. Over 3,000 assaults were committed on Welsh emergency workers in between July 2023 and June 2024 recording an increase of 9% from the previous year.
Emergency workers in Wales faced kicking, slapping, spitting, biting, head-butting and verbal abuse in assaults ranging from common assault to serious premeditated attacks involving grievous bodily harm. Nine incidents of assault involved a weapon.
Of the total number of assaults, most were committed against the police. According to the data, 71% of the victims were police, while 18% were medical staff and 2% were fire and rescue workers. In the first half of the 2024, Merthyr Tydfil saw the highest rates of assaults at 1.43 per 1000 of the population. This was followed by Wrexham (1.42), Blaenau Gwent (1.33), Denbighshire (1.22), Newport (1.22), Torfaen (1.17), Cardiff (1.15), and Caerphilly (1.01) for the six months of the year.
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Chief Constable of South Wales Police Jeremy Vaughan said that emergency workers should not be treated as ‘punching bags’. He said: “Assault is a traumatic offence that would cause great distress to anyone, and it is no different when the victim is an emergency worker. Behind every uniform is a human being and they should not be treated as punchbags.” For the latest Welsh news delivered to your inbox sign up to our newsletter
“The psychological and physical effects of an assault can be long-lasting, and no-one should have to go to work fearing they will be assaulted, especially when they are working hard to keep others safe. This is the season of goodwill and we ask a lot of our people, so please respect and protect our emergency workers,” the chief constable added.
During the first half of 2024, a total of 1,282 assaults had a known outcome, half of which were ‘positive’, meaning that the perpetrator was charged, cautioned, or handed a community order.
The end of the week on Saturday sees the most number of assaults occurring accounting for 10% of the assaults in the first six months of 2024. People aged between 26-35 go on to form the highest proportion of those offending at 34% whereas, 335 (24%) of the incidents being connected with alcohol intoxication.
Jason Killens, chief executive of the Welsh Ambulance Service, said the crews cannot fight for someone’s life while their own is under threat. He said: “Ambulance crews are there to help people, but they can’t fight for someone’s life if they’re fighting for their own. In our control room, meanwhile, the verbal abuse of call handlers could potentially be delaying help for the patient.”
“The run-up to Christmas means more people are out enjoying the revelry, and with alcohol consumption comes an increase in assaults, both physical and verbal. Our ask is simple – emergency workers want to help you, so please treat them with respect and work with us, not against us,” he added.
Mark Hobrough, Temporary Chief Constable at Gwent Police, said: “Nobody should be subjected to any kind of assault, and it is concerning that some people believe this is an appropriate way to act towards another person.”
He added that though officers deal with people in difficult times of their lives, it does not justify abusive behaviour. He added: “Our officers, along with our emergency service colleagues, will often deal with people during difficult times in their lives, but that does not justify the abusive, threatening and violent behaviour they frequently experience. We will support any officer or emergency service worker who has experienced abuse or violence while also taking firm action against those responsible.”
Judith Paget, Welsh Government’s director general for health and social services and the NHS Wales chief executive, added: “The impact of any form of assault, verbal or physical, is incredibly harmful to our NHS emergency workers who work tirelessly to care and treat those in greatest need. The Welsh Government is committed to working in partnership with NHS Wales, the police and the CPS via the NHS Wales Anti-Violence Collaborative to ensure that we are doing everything to prevent incidents occurring, and to support any staff who do experience threats and violence.”
The Joint Emergency Service Group in Wales launched the With Us, Not Against Us campaign in May 2021 in an attempt to reduce the number of assaults on emergency workers.