West Midlands Police has made significant improvements in answering emergency 999 calls, with performance data showing faster response times compared to two years ago. The force's handling of both 999 and non-emergency 101 calls improved in the year ending March 2026.
999 Call Performance
A total of 731,379 emergency calls were received in the last fiscal year, with 99.9% answered. Compliance with the national 10-second answering standard rose to 97% in 2026, up from 92.9% in 2024. The average answer time dropped from five seconds to two seconds, and abandoned calls after 10 seconds fell by 86.3%, from 651 to 89.
101 Call Improvements
Non-emergency 101 calls totaled 838,180 in the year ending March 2026, with 96.8% answered. The three-minute answering target improved from 75.5% in 2024 to 95.7% in 2026. Average answer time reduced from two minutes 14 seconds to just 30 seconds, and abandoned calls after three minutes dropped from 36,091 to 4,424.
At the Accountability and Governance Board meeting, PCC Simon Foster praised the improvements. Acting Chief Constable Scott Green attributed the progress to investment in demand-predicting software, which helps allocate the right number of call handlers. He noted ongoing challenges in recruitment and retention but emphasized the force's commitment to maintaining high standards.
Green added: "We are proud of our achievements, particularly the 101 service with an average answer time under a minute and 90% attendance for immediate incidents within 15 minutes. We remain heavily focused on sustaining these improvements."
