Two teenagers have been arrested in connection with a homophobic hate incident in Hitchin.

The victims - girls aged 17 and 19 - were verbally abused, kicked, punched and had their phones and purses taken in Market Place on the evening of Friday, August 13. Herts police called the assault an "unprovoked homophobic attack".

The victims required hospital treatment as a result of the ordeal.

Two boys, aged 14 and 15 and both from Hitchin, were arrested this morning (Thursday, August 26) on suspicion of robbery.

They are currently in police custody.

The Herts force is determined to ensure that LGBT+ communities feels comfortable to approach the force should they ever need to and build confidence within them that they will be taken seriously and treated with sensitivity.

As part of this, the constabulary has LGBT+ Liaison Officers who are based all over the county and have been specially trained to support people from LGBT+ communities.

Hertfordshire Constabulary will always handle reports of hate crimes sensitively and victims can access support through the force’s specially trained hate crime officers or via the Hertfordshire Victim Care Centre Beacon.

Victims do not have to contact police directly to report a crime. They can report at a number of third-party reporting centres in Hertfordshire or online at report-it.org.uk. More information about hate crime and third-party reporting centres can be found at hertsagainsthate.org.