Police call room

Nov 11 2008 by Jenny Wood, Perthshire Advertiser Tuesday

A SUBSTANTIAL shift in police services is on the cards for Perth and Kinross in a drive to make the force more efficient.

The control room at the centre of the county’s police operation will see big changes within the next year as some of the tasks transfer to Dundee.

Calls from members of the public in need will still be answered in the Fair City, but radio communication from officers out and about in the area is due to be directed to police HQ in Dundee.

Superintendent Hamish MacPherson, in charge of Tayside Police’s communications centre, told the PA: “We had to look at ways to change the way calls were handled as we were not performing as well as we should have been.

“Already we have made big improvements and these new changes are aimed at making the service even more efficient,” he explained.

Channelling radio calls through to one central point of contact means officers have instant access to the experienced, senior staff who head up the control hub.

This means call handlers at the Perth base can dedicate more time to dealing with telephone contact from local members of the public.

The shake-up will mean some changes for the staff who have traditionally juggled telephone calls and radio messages. Some will have the opportunity to transfer through to Dundee, while others face new challenges in Perth.

“The new system will mean there are new opportunities within the call centre jobs in Perth, opportunities for a promotional structure which weren’t there before,” explained Supt MacPherson.

And moving to allay any concerns the force was trimming too far should things go wrong, Supt MacPherson said: “There is always a full fall back plan, a contingency plan.”

The number for Perth and Kinross residents to use to contact the police in a non-emergency situation - such as a quest for advice, information, general enquiries or to report a non-urgent incident or crime – is 0845 600 5705.

For emergencies the number is still 999 or 112.