Minutes:
Councillor Bill Gifford was welcomed to the meeting and invited to put his question to the Police and Crime Commissioner.
Councillor Gifford highlighted the long waiting times experienced by callers contacting 101. He expressed support for the initiative to offset pressure on 101 services by making use of online resources. However, residents accessing Single Online Home had reported delays in obtaining a crime number after making a report to the website.
Councillor Gifford stated that this gave the unfortunate and incorrect impression that the Police were not interested in hearing from the public. This had led some to conclude that it was not worthwhile to report crimes, resulting in underreporting of crime. There was also concern that not all reported crimes were being logged by the system.
Councillor Gifford stated that it was clear that underreporting would lead to less information reaching the Police, and whilst the public may feel that crime is increasing, police figures may show the opposite. He emphasised that he was not seeking to criticise any police officers and expressed confidence in the work of the Leamington North Safer Neighbourhood Team.
Councillor Gifford asked if the Police would consider requesting that streetlights be turned back on in areas where several instances of crime had recently occurred.
The Commissioner thanked Councillor Gifford for his comments and stated that increased demand for the 999 Service had impacted on 101 response times. He stated that there had been a record high demand for 999 services in 2021. Figures for 2022 were on-track to exceed those of the previous year. This was a national issue, influenced by wider factors such as pressure on mental health services.
The Commissioner advised that Warwickshire Police had stepped in to accept 999 calls on behalf of other regional forces that were experiencing exceptionally high call demand or technical difficulties. This had impacted on 101 waiting times. He sought the Panel’s view of what constituted an acceptable waiting time for a 101 call.
The Commissioner advised that, at the last inspection, His Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary and Fire & Rescue Services (HMICFRS) had rated the capability of Warwickshire Police to record crime as ‘good’. He advised that all reports made to Single Online Home were recorded and a target time of 48 hours had been set to acknowledge receipt of reports. It was concerning to learn that, in some instances, this target had not been met. He would raise the matter with the Chief Constable.
The Commissioner advised that the average waiting time for 101 calls was monitored on a weekly basis. Recent weeks had seen an average of between four and eight minutes. He accepted that this was too long; however, it was a consequence of very high demand. He stated that Warwickshire Police was exceeding the performance of most other forces in this area.
In response to the Chair, the Commissioner advised that the call abandonment rate was influenced by ‘pocket calls’, where 999 or 101 had been dialled by mistake, as well as by callers choosing to redial rather than wait during busy periods. Within the Force, there was a strong focus on reducing the number of abandoned calls. Following the meeting, he would provide an update to the Panel on the proportion of 101 calls that had been unanswered.
Polly Reed (Chief Executive, OPCC) advised that it was difficult to analyse the causes of abandoned 101 calls. It was not possible to discern whether calls had been terminated in favour of dialling 999; if a call had been ended due to the matter being resolved (for example, attendance at the incident by police officers); or if calls had been abandoned for other reasons.
In response to Councillor Davison, the Commissioner advised that, nationally, infrastructure for 999 and 101 calls was provided by BT; the potential to introduce measures that offered reassurance to those waiting for a response would depend upon BT’s ability to deliver this service. He acknowledged that technological solutions, such as an automated call-back facility, could help to ease pressure.
The Commissioner stated that he would continue to hold the Force to account for delivery of 101 services. A ‘Gold Group’ scrutiny review was underway to identify how improvements could be made. It was likely that increased resourcing of the Operations Control Centre (OCC) would be required to keep up with rising demand.
In response to Councillor Jarvis, the Commissioner asked that details of callers being kept waiting for an exceptionally long period of time be forwarded to his Office to enable the matter to be raised with the Chief Constable. He stated that a high number of calls were experienced in instances where there was an issue of widespread community concern.
The Commissioner advised that Warwickshire County Council held responsibility for streetlighting. Warwickshire Police was a consultee and occasionally recommended that streetlights be turned on at specific locations. However, this was an operational decision.
In conclusion, the Commissioner stated that 101 call volume and performance data was monitored and scrutinised on a weekly basis; regular visits to the OCC were made to develop an understanding of the challenges affecting service delivery; attendance of meetings of the OCC Public Contact Organisation ensured that residents’ concerns could be acted upon; and the issues affecting 101 performance were regularly reviewed at Governance and Performance Board (GPB) meetings (where it had been treated as a ‘spotlight subject’ in July 2022). He stated that work to progress the Empower Programme would focus on the capacity and capability of the OCC. Additionally, the Gold Group Review would enable improvements to be made. He emphasised that 999 calls were being responded to promptly.