THE Home Office has confirmed that Cheshire Police has one of the country's best track records for answering 999 calls.

New data released shows that in the latest month, the county's police service was one of the best in England for the speed of answering emergency phone calls.

The figures - taken from April 2023 - highlight that an overwhelming percentage of calls handled by Cheshire Police were answered in under 10 seconds.

Northwich Guardian: Cheshire Constabulary has one of the fastest pick-up times for 999 callsCheshire Constabulary has one of the fastest pick-up times for 999 calls (Image: Cheshire Police)

All of the call-handling data from police forces across the country have been released in an effort to improve transparency within the country's police, and to see which forces need to improve their call handling.

Cheshire Police boasts that an impressive 87.6 per cent of 999 calls are answered in 10 seconds or less.

This means that of the 13,208 emergency calls made to the service in April - roughly 440 per day - 11,573 were answered in under 10 seconds.

According to the data, the average time for Cheshire Police to answer the phone for a 999 call is 8.61 seconds.

The police force with the best track record of answering calls in April 2023 was Greater Manchester Police, where 88.9 per cent of all 999 calls were answered in 10 seconds or less.

At the other end of the scale is Bedfordshire Police, which saw only 55.7 per cent of calls answered in under 10 seconds.

Northwich Guardian: More than 85 per cent of 999 calls were answered within 10 secondsMore than 85 per cent of 999 calls were answered within 10 seconds (Image: Cheshire Police)

When asked by the Guardian about the figures, Supt Alex McMillan, head of Cheshire’s Force Control Centre, said: “For the past 18 months we have seen a steady increase in the speed in which we can answer 999 calls received in our control room and we are now operating at a consistently high level in this area of business.

“This in part has been due to a successful recruitment drive, investment in training and a dedicated 999 hub, stabilising a good service to the people of Cheshire who call us for help at some of the worst moments of their life. 

"When they do call us, it is important their calls are answered promptly and that we provide the best service and response possible.

“Alongside the investment in resources, we are constantly working with BT to improve our connection times.

“These calls and our response times are monitored daily, and this remains a priority for us – when someone is desperate for help, we know that every second can count.”