Londoners are at an increased risk of harm because two hospitals are not sharing information with a scheme aimed at tackling hidden violence on the street, it was claimed today.
The project, which has been shown to reduce attacks by up to 40 per cent, sees 27 of 29 A&E departments in London give anonymised information to police, to help identify violence hotspots.
However, St George’s A&E, one of the busiest in the capital, is no longer giving information to the scheme because of concerns over data protection, prompting fears others may follow.
It has also emerged that Chelsea and Westminster hospital trust has never joined the so-called Cardiff model.
27 of 29
emergency departments are sharing data aimed at tackling violence
In Hackney, the scheme has been used by the police gangs unit to identify problem areas since victims of gang violence rarely go to police but do go to hospital for treatment.
The decision by the two hospitals not to participate was described as “truly horrific” by a London Assembly politician.
Liberal Democrat police and crime committee member Caroline Pidgeon said data sharing was “highly effective”, adding: “For a hospital, especially in London, to opt out of the scheme is truly horrific. As the scheme does not involve any breach of personal data there really is no excuse.”
Jonathan Shepherd, architect of the original Cardiff scheme launched 20 years ago, said: “Evaluations show that the use of this unique information cuts serious violence by over 40 per cent.”
A St George’s spokesman said: “We chose not to renew the agreement because the guidance didn’t meet new data protection legislation. This decision does not restrict our ability to provide police with information to help them investigate specific incidents.”
A spokesman for Chelsea and Westminster Hospital NHS Foundation Trust, said: “We are committed to supporting and working closely with The Mayor’s Office for Policing And Crime ... we will ensure we share the required data around violent incidences.”
A spokesman for the Mayor said information sharing guidance “is being updated to meet new data protection laws”.
