THE way 999 and 101 calls are assessed in Scotland is set to change with a new system being put in place by the police.
Police Scotland says it is moving away from a “one size fits all” approach. Frontline staff and police officers are undergoing specialist training to enable them to make an enhanced assessment of threat, risk, harm and vulnerability to and of callers.
Broader response options will include officers scheduling appointments at a convenient time with the caller or even issues being resolved over the phone.
Designed to fit “the changing nature of policing”, the revised approach also comes after recommendations made by various public bodies in 2015 following the deaths of John Yuill and Lamara Bell. They died after lying in a crashed car at the side of the M9 three days after the incident was first reported to police.
Assistant Chief Constable John Hawkins said: “We receive 2.5 million calls a year, less than 20% result in a crime being recorded and, increasingly, people contact us around matters relating to vulnerability.
“That assessment of vulnerability and recommendations around improving vulnerability have featured in a number of reports
from the Police Investigation and Review Commissioner (Pirc) so our changes are very much in line with those recommendations but it also reflects the changing nature of policing today.
“Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary conducted a review and came up with 30 recommendations after the M9 incident in particular.
“We accepted them all, they’ve been discharged and working through that period of time has allowed us to really develop and improve infrastructure.
“We have a resilient national call-handling infrastructure and significant investment in ICT and staffing levels.
“Now we’re ready to introduce the second wave of change which is a greater focus on how we interpret and respond to the information that comes from the public.”
The approach will start in the Lanarkshire and Dumfries and Galloway divisions, and depending on the results, a decision will be made about a rollout across the country. Future phases could also see the introduction of digital ways for members of the public contacting police.
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