Action has been promised to “urgently” bring down 101 waiting times in the North East, with less than half of calls being answered promptly.
Northumbria Police and Crime Commissioner Kim McGuinness vowed on Monday that she would be putting pressure on force bosses to improve responses on the non-emergency number. Latest figures reveal how Northumbria Police’s performance in answering 101 calls has plummeted over recent months.
From a highpoint of 91% of 101 calls being answered within the force’s 60 second standard in January 2021, that figure dropped as low as just 15% last October – albeit increasing steadily since then to 24% in November, 31% in December, and 44% in January. Ms McGuinness told members of the region’s police and crime panel on Monday that the increasing demands on officers and rising call volumes since the lifting of lockdown had impacted on 101 response times.
