Hate crimes against transgender people in Kent have more than doubled in four years.

The latest figures show there have been 44 incidences of verbal or physical abuse reported to police in 2016/17.

That is up from 17 in 2014/15 and 25 and 2015/16.

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Detective chief superintendent Tom Richards, head of Kent Police's Public Protection Unit, said: "Hate crimes are degrading and hugely prejudiced offences and we treat all reports with the utmost seriousness.

"While we want to eradicate crimes against transgender people, we do not want them to go underreported as it means victims are not receiving the support they need.

"People are now more confident to report these offences, possibly due to increased media reporting alongside outreach schemes we run with our partners.

"We will continue to look for innovative ways to encourage reporting – just the other week for example we launched specialist hate crime reporting hubs across Medway.

"Offenders should also be aware that offences motivated by hate, such as assaulting a person for being transgender, carry a longer prison sentence and we will do everything in our power to secure this."