POLICE have seen a surge in 999 and 101 calls since lockdown restrictions ended - and many are hoaxes or non-urgent. Call handlers are often frustrated by time-wasting pranks or reports which should not have been made on the emergency line and give them less time to deal with actual emergencies. Calls to the 999 service are answered first by BT operators and then passed to the emergency service the caller requests. Demand on the service has been increasing in recent months. The average number of calls connected to police this month is 34,000 a day compared to 29,500 in the same period last year. Only around 20-25 per cent of these calls will be deemed to require an immediate emergency response from police.
STAFF at Wiltshire Police s control room will be taking over the force s social media this weekend to share examples of the calls they take. They will be posting advice, stories and facts and figures about call volumes throughout today on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and LinkedIn with the #ClickorCall hashtag. Chief Inspector Doug Downing runs the contact centre. He said: “I think most people would be surprised to see the number of calls we take and, with this being the first weekend post-lockdown, we are expecting it to be a busy one. “My teams are always here when you need us and we will pick up the phone night or day but we need everyone to think before you dial - can I access the services I need online or do I need to call?