POLICE and crime commissioner Tony Hogg has pledged £250,000 for immediate improvements to the controversial 101 non-emergency phone line after a report stated waiting times had increased even further since complaints from a year ago.

The cash is being ring-fenced as phase two of his office’s ongoing review into the phone service, which has come in for widespread criticism.

It follows a report assessing the force’s progress against initial findings from a year ago. The main findings are:

a The average call waiting time for non-urgent matters has almost doubled to more than eight minutes.

b The percentage of callers waiting for more than ten minutes for a call resolution has more than doubled from 13 per cent to 32 per cent.

c There have been delays of more than 12 months in the introduction of new technology and technology improvements cannot be made for a further six months.

d  Police management and understanding of performance is poor, suggesting a lack of focus on public call handling.

Mr Hogg said: ‘The report demonstrates a poor state of affairs.

‘Performance appears to have worsened rather than improved in this important area. At a time when we have been reducing some face to face contact through the closure of public enquiry offices, it is vital that our phone contact system is fit for purpose – it is not.

‘There is a lack of management focus on this area and that needs to change.

‘The inability to implement important technology upgrades remains a barrier to performance improvements and is immensely frustrating.’

However, Mr Hogg praised the staff working in the control room. He said: ‘Our control room staff work really hard and provide a good service when they get to deal with members of the public.

‘However, they work under very high pressure, using poor technology and there are not enough of them.

‘Over 12 months ago, I committed to a marked improvement in public call handling. This has not happened and it is unacceptable.

‘I am therefore making £250,000 available to the chief constable to put in place immediate improvements.’

Mr Hogg said: ‘I expect to see a significant drop in the number of callers having to wait more than ten minutes over the next few months.

‘I intend to review this figure before I leave office in May this year.’