High Demand in Control Room
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Yesterday, Monday 6th February, demand in Control Room at Cleveland Police was very high with call handlers receiving nearly 1,200 calls in a 24-hour period.
Force Control Room Superintendent Paul Richardson said: “A quantity of the calls were 999 calls, and we have been rated the top performing Force for speedily answering emergency calls, however some of the calls were via 101 and were not a policing matter. We take the public’s safety extremely seriously, but it’s calls of this nature which are a drain on our important resources, and they tie up our phone lines and operator time.
“Whilst Force Contact Officers are answering non police related matters, they could be answering a call to a victim whose life may be in danger.
“Monday morning seems to be a particularly busy time for people to call up with queries in relation to an ongoing investigation or to speak to an officer.
“Many people don’t realise that crimes and queries can be reported on our website on the link the below, which is a quick and easy way to contact the Force. Using this method to contact us in a non-emergency is not time effective for the victim but it also reduces the high demand on our call takers.
“Emergencies will always be prioritised, but we will deal with all reported incidents which are not classed as an emergency queries as quickly as we can.
“We would like to thank everyone for their patience, and we hope everyone has a safe week.”
Report a crime on the Force website here.
Members of the public can also repot crime via the COPA app, which was created by Cleveland’s Police and Crime Commissioner Steve Turner. The app is designed to be easy and accessible and adds another way for people to get in touch with the Force.
Download now ...