Northumbria Police has welcomed ten new contact handlers this month as the force continues to invest in its public response system.

These new recruits will be the first point of contact for emergencies, answering 999 and 101 calls, ensuring that everyone who contacts the police receives an appropriate response.

Superintendent Neil Armsworth, who helps lead the Force’s Communication Centres, said: “Our dedicated staff in our contact centres do a truly amazing job.

“They never know what situation or who is at the end of the phone when they answer a call and they have to show unwavering levels of professionalism and compassion when responding to people in emergency situations – they are very much on the front-line."

In addition to the ten new recruits, eight individuals who recently completed their initial eight-week training have also started answering calls for the first time.

The force has hired a total of 141 new contact handlers in the past 24 months.

Despite an increasing number of calls, the Northumbria Police has managed to reduce call answer times significantly.

In the first two weeks of August, 999 calls were answered on average within six seconds, compared to 13 seconds during the same period last year.

Supt Armsworth said: “We want to remind people that misguided calls to 999 – calls that are not about emergency situations - might seem harmless, but they create extra demand on the staff working in the contact centres who could otherwise be dealing with genuine emergencies that require urgent police action.

“We want to ensure we can continue to reach those who need us most – so if your call is not an emergency, please do consider how you get in touch.”

Police and Crime Commissioner Kim McGuinness said: “As Police Commissioner I’ve always been clear that the force should have the resources it needs to best serve the public.

“That’s why I agreed an investment plan which saw extra staff put in to call centres. Northumbria Police has seen an increase in the number of 999 and 101 calls and I hope this investment reassures the pubic that when you need your police force, they are there for you.”