North Yorkshire Police push for new recruits for 999 call handlers

The Force Control Room (FCR) is the first port of call when people in North Yorkshire need the police. The force has made “Customer Contact” a key priority and the new staff will help deal with the increased demand and ensure that best possible service is provided to members of the public.

Police in the region are calling on "people from all backgrounds" to join the call handling team, who will answer both 999 and 101 calls - and said they are looking for good communicators and listeners.

Andy Nunns, Chief Inspector for Customer Contact at North Yorkshire Police, who oversees operations in the FCR, said: "I think the fear of the unknown puts people off coming into the job, a lot of people just go off what they see on TV.

"We want people to join us, everyone has something to give."

The Force Control Room for North Yorkshire Police (Image: Newsquest)

Andy said the biggest challenge facing new call handler recruits is the resilience of the role - as calls can go from a blocked road to something more tragic.

"Call handlers take a big variety of calls, so staying resilient is very important," he added.

North Yorkshire Police has invested £1.8 million into the Force Control Room, in a bid to cut down the 999 call times to meet the national targets.

Andy said that nationally, police forces aim to answer 999 calls in 10 seconds - and any that aren't answered within two minutes are transferred to a "buddy" police force.

Jane Larkin, Control Room Manager at North Yorkshire Police, said that the force provides all the correct training to introduce recruits into the call handler role.

Jane Larkin, Control Room Manager at North Yorkshire Police in the Force Control Room (Image: Newsquest)

Jane, who has worked at the force for 22 years, said: "Recruits have four weeks of classroom-based training, before going onto six weeks of answering live calls with a mentor.

"We train people to ask the relevant questions to get all of the right information. We welcome people from all different backgrounds.

"There are varying skills that go into being a call handler - and it can involve pressured situations.

"The job can be a constant challenge, but we have excellent support available for new recruits and call handlers, including a brilliant welfare department."

All of the tutors who train new call handler recruits are former call handlers themselves, who pass their experience on through demonstrations.

Once a call handler has passed their initial training, they may wish to complete further training so they can become a dispatcher or an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) operator.

For more information, or to look into applying to become a call handler, visit the North Yorkshire Police website.