Thousand of calls made to new 101 police non-emergency number
Tuesday, 06 December, 2011
More than 15,000 calls have been made to the new non-emergency number for South Yorkshire Police since its introduction one month ago.
Introduced on 4 November, 101 is the new easy to remember number to contact South Yorkshire Police for all non-emergency incidents and general enquiries - when it is less urgent than 999. Since 4 November, the Force has received 15,406 calls via the 101 number. During the same period, 16,700 999 calls were received.
Superintendent Adrian Moran, Head of Communications said: "It is pleasing to see that South Yorkshire residents are using the new 101 number to contact South Yorkshire Police for non-emergency issues. However, what is more important is that during the last month we have seen a reduction in calls to both 999 and our previous non-emergency number, compared to 2010.
"It is important that our communities know how to contact us and the most appropriate way to contact us to resolve their issue. Calls to the 101 number are answered by specially trained staff here in South Yorkshire - residents will not find themselves speaking to someone in another part of the country.
"101 provides the public with an easy to remember number, in addition, every call will cost a flat rate of 15p regardless of whether you are calling from a landline or a mobile phone or how long the call lasts."
Between 4 November and 4 December, 26,815 calls were received on the previous non-emergency number, which is being gradually phased out.
The 101 number should be used for calls that are less urgent than 999. You should only call 999 in an emergency, for example, when a crime is in progress or life is in danger. For all other matters, you should use the non-emergency number, 101.
