Police response to HMICS report on call handling

Assistant Chief Constable John Hawkins has welcomed the update on the HMICS Independent Assurance Review of Police Scotland’s Call Handling.

ACC John Hawkins said: “HMICS recognition of the good progress which has been made in relation to call handling by Police Scotland is extremely welcome

“We have made clear progress in relation to our programme of change which is already delivering faster, more effective and more resilient 999 and 101 services. We see evidence of this progress daily – for example over the last week we have answered over 97% of 999 calls within 10 seconds and over 97% of 101 calls within 40 seconds every day. This clearly represents a very high level of service.

“There are a number of factors behind these improvements. We have invested in our ICT infrastructure and now have faster and more stable systems. We have increased the number of staff working in our Service Centres and Area Control Rooms and introduced processes to help our staff identify where further improvements can be made.

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“However, perhaps above all else, the improvements highlighted in the report have been achieved through the professionalism and dedication of our staff who deal with over 3 million calls a year and who strive to provide the best service that they can.

“As HMICS has acknowledged it is impossible to eliminate risk completely in relation to police call handling. Our staff deal with emergency situations every hour of every day. Often, they are dealing with people in crisis and distress.

“This report demonstrates that we are better placed than ever to meet these challenges and we will continue to do all that we can to ensure that we provide communities across Scotland with the best services possible.“

The full report can be found on the HMICS website.