Suffolk Police best in country
By Martin Chapman on Wednesday, 16th June 2004.
A report published this week has rated Suffolk Police as one of the country's top performing police forces.
The force, along the other 42 police forces across England and Wales was examined in 16 areas, where they were awarded good or excellent in all but two areas.
The result places the Suffolk force in to the top quarter of all police forces in England and Wales, while neighbouring force Cambridgeshire as placed in the bottom quarter.
The report published by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, reviewed the performance of the country's police forces across the year 2003 and 2004.
The one area where Suffolk was judged as poor was call handling, and Suffolk Police have announced the launch of a new initiative to tackle this, Call First.
The project is aimed at improving the way the force handles calls from the public. Discussing the launch, project leader Superintendent Mick Warden said: "Investing in call handling is vital. Offering a quality service has to start at the first point of contact."
The number of calls police forces receiving has increased drastically over recent years, and now they have to contend with regular multiple reporting of the same incident.
Last year the Suffolk force received over 111,000 emergency 999 calls, which were answered on average within 6 seconds. The level of calls ranged from 746 on a day in March, compared to 189 on a day in October.
The force, has already taken on more staff in the forces control room which Supt Warden says will allow calls to be answered more quickly and also allow more time to be spent with callers, whether they maybe reporting an incident or just seeking reassurance.
Speaking about the announcement of the forces rating as one of the best in the country, Suffolk's Chief Constable Alistair McWhirter said: "This extremely positive report underlines the commitment of both the officers and staff of Suffolk Constabulary to keeping their county safe."
He went on to say thought that the force mustn’t be come complacent and that it highlights areas where improvements can be made.
The force, along the other 42 police forces across England and Wales was examined in 16 areas, where they were awarded good or excellent in all but two areas.
The result places the Suffolk force in to the top quarter of all police forces in England and Wales, while neighbouring force Cambridgeshire as placed in the bottom quarter.
The report published by Her Majesty's Inspectorate of Constabulary, reviewed the performance of the country's police forces across the year 2003 and 2004.
The one area where Suffolk was judged as poor was call handling, and Suffolk Police have announced the launch of a new initiative to tackle this, Call First.
The project is aimed at improving the way the force handles calls from the public. Discussing the launch, project leader Superintendent Mick Warden said: "Investing in call handling is vital. Offering a quality service has to start at the first point of contact."
The number of calls police forces receiving has increased drastically over recent years, and now they have to contend with regular multiple reporting of the same incident.
Last year the Suffolk force received over 111,000 emergency 999 calls, which were answered on average within 6 seconds. The level of calls ranged from 746 on a day in March, compared to 189 on a day in October.
The force, has already taken on more staff in the forces control room which Supt Warden says will allow calls to be answered more quickly and also allow more time to be spent with callers, whether they maybe reporting an incident or just seeking reassurance.
Speaking about the announcement of the forces rating as one of the best in the country, Suffolk's Chief Constable Alistair McWhirter said: "This extremely positive report underlines the commitment of both the officers and staff of Suffolk Constabulary to keeping their county safe."
He went on to say thought that the force mustn’t be come complacent and that it highlights areas where improvements can be made.
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