Lewisham Council has reported a significant 21% rise in incidents across its services, with verbal abuse emerging as the primary concern. The figures, presented at a Health and Safety Committee meeting on Thursday, July 9, 2026, show an increase in reported incidents from 150 in the six months to May 2025 to 182 in the corresponding period in 2026.
The Housing and Place directorates were identified as contributing the most to this increase, with Housing experiencing a 48% rise and Place a 31% surge in reported incidents. Specific measures are being implemented within these directorates to address the rise, including sharing best practices on systems and training. Additionally, risk assessments for lone working are being updated. Despite the overall increase in incidents, the report indicated that indicators of severe injury have remained stable.
Beyond Housing and Place, school incidents also rose by 12%. A small number of schools, including St Saviours RC Primary, Drumbeat School, and Coopers Lane Primary, account for a disproportionate share of this increase, with significant variations at individual school levels. Slips, trips, and falls were highlighted as the fastest-growing category within corporate incidents.
Richard Benjamin, Head of Assurance, presented the Corporate Health and Safety Update, suggesting that the rise in reporting could be partly due to an enhanced focus on recording incidents within the council's B-safe health and safety management system. This system is subject to a continual drive to ensure better recording by services, which may be contributing to the increase in reported figures.
While specific types of verbal abuse are not detailed, the report mentions that in libraries, common issues include verbal or racial abuse directed at staff, often requiring security intervention.
These incidents are frequently linked to antisocial behaviour, misuse of toilets, vandalism, and attempted drug use. Individual services are currently analyzing verbal abuse incidents to pinpoint specific locations and recurring patterns, with a focus on identifying hotspots and potential themes.
The committee has requested further dedicated reporting on verbal abuse, including an analysis of its hotspots, particular themes, and whether specific demographics are being targeted, to inform preventative actions.
Fire safety actions saw a substantial increase of 460%, attributed to improved risk identification and pressure to address these actions. The committee agreed to note the report and requested further detailed reporting on key themes, including verbal abuse and data interpretation, as outlined in the Public reports pack Public reports pack 09th-Jul-2026 18.00 Health and Safety Committee.
