North Yorkshire Police 999 calls hit new record high

Assistant Chief Constable Mark Pannone said the force was receiving more calls each day than on New Year's Eve

North Yorkshire Police says it received more 999 calls every day in June than it did on New Year's Eve.

Assistant Chief Constable Mark Pannone said the force handled a record 8,423 emergency calls in June so far - almost double the number in June 2020.

That was about 300 a day compared to 293 calls last New Years' Eve, normally one of the busiest nights of the year.

The rise in emergency calls is thought to be due to more incidents as lockdown restrictions were eased.

The force said eight new staff had been employed to help cope with demand and it planned to create six further full-time roles in its control room.

Mr Pannone said: "Typically we are getting about 300 calls to 999 a day in June.

"To be consistently getting above what we get on New Year's Eve on a daily basis shows the level of calls we are getting."

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The force answered 8,423 calls to 999 between 1 June and 29 June, he told a North Yorkshire Police Fire and Crime Commissioner meeting on Tuesday.

That was higher than the previous record of 8,203 calls in May 2021. In June 2020, the force received 4,295 calls.

The increase means the force is not reaching its aim of answering 90% of 999 calls within 10 seconds.

The volume of calls to the non-emergency 101 number has also risen, with police receiving an average of 100 more calls a day.

Mr Pannone said there were plans to increase the online reporting systems, roll out a quick chat mechanism, alter shift patterns to ensure more staff were working at busy times and create a new team to deal with initial inquiries from the public.

North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Commissioner Philip Allott said he was looking at how more money could be invested in the control room.

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