Suffolk Police fifth slowest for answering 999 calls in the UK
Research has found the force averaged an answering time of 17 seconds
It's been revealed that Suffolk Police is the fifth slowest force in the UK for responding to an incoming 999 call.
Research by personal injury experts Claims.co.uk found that it takes our county's police force an average of 17 seconds to answer a call.
Across the border, Norfolk Police had the second fastest call response time in the UK at 7.16 seconds.
Every call to 999 must be transferred from BT to the relevant police force, which adds to the delay.
Chief Inspector Shawn Wakeling tells us they've been taking steps to improve their performance: “We know how important it is to answer a call as quickly as possible and, to enhance our performance in responding to the public, we have been undertaking a long-term transformation within our Contact and Control Room (CCR).
“This has been achieved largely by the investment from the council tax precept in 2022/23 which facilitated the recruitment of an additional 27 call takers and four police officers.
“Figures from October 2023 to March 2024 date show that 90% of 999 calls were consistently answered within the national performance target of 10 seconds and we continue to work to improve our performance month on month.
“In addition to our staff uplift, we have also made changes to our internal policies and processes to improve efficiencies to our call handling to both our emergency and non-emergency response, and last month we introduced a digital desk within the CCR to improve our online communication to non-emergency enquiries that are made via our website and social media.
“We know that there are still improvements to make in our performance in how we respond to the public and we are constantly looking at ways in which to improve our service. We also work closely with His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Service (HMICFRS) which evaluates our progress.”
How was the research carried out?
Researchers gathered data on the average time it takes for a call to be transferred to each UK police force from March 2023 to February 2024. They took the total number of calls and multiplied them by the average to find a weighted figure.
The sum of the weight figures was calculated, as well as the sum of the number of calls.
The weights sum was then divided by the calls sum to discover the weighted average for each police force and therefore determine the final ranking.
A spokesperson from Claims.co.uk has commented on the findings: "The time it takes for the police to respond to a 999 call is crucial – the longer the caller waits, the higher the risk of harm and danger to the individual.
"While it's great to see that the average call response time for the top ranking forces is under ten seconds, those that rank at the bottom will likely be concerning to locals.”
"However, the slowest response times should not instigate doubt on the perseverance and effort of police forces throughout the UK, as it instead suggests that the bottom-ranking forces are understaffed; these areas perhaps need more funding so that they can offer as much support as possible to residents of their areas."