Question to the Home Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, how many offences of (a) malicious wounding, (b) grievous bodily harm, (c) actual bodily harm and (d) common assault - aggravated were perpetrated against a worker in a retail setting in the West Midlands in each year since 2010.

The Government recognises the damaging impact that violence and abuse toward shop workers can have, not only for victims, but also for businesses, and the wider community. This is why in April of this year the Government launched a call for evidence on violence and abuse toward shop staff to help strengthen our understanding of the scale and extent of the issue. The consultation has now closed, and we will publish our response in due course.

The Commercial Victimisation Survey publishes estimates of assaults and threats against staff in the Wholesale and Retail sector annually going back to 2012. The latest results can be found here: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/829399/crime-against-businesses-2018-hosb1719.pdf

However, due to the sample size, it is not possible to provide estimates at sub-national level.