SOUTH Yorkshire Police have been left red-faced this week after they were forced into delaying the relaunch of its under-fire 101 phone reporting system - for a second time.
Having revealed in May that a ‘significant’ package of improvements to refresh outdated software were in place and were being tested to iron out glitches before going live, the latest setback has now been announced.
The £16m ’Smart Contact’ system’s supplier, IT firm Sopra Steria, confirmed this week it is is not up to the required standard.
A police spokesman said: “The decision has been made to extend the postponement of South Yorkshire Police’s new telephone and incident handling system, Smart Contact.
“This difficult decision has been reached following discussions with the system’s supplier, Sopra Steria, who has confirmed that aspects of the system’s functionality are not working correctly.
“We appreciate this is frustrating and disappointing to the communities of South Yorkshire, as it is for us, however the safety of the public and our colleagues is our paramount priority.
“Customers can continue to report their crime to us on 101, or on 999 if your matter is urgent or relates to a threat to life. “Alternatively, customers can report a non-emergency incident online through our online services.”
Atlas Court in Sheffield, which was set up in 2010 to deal with all of the force’s 999 and 101 reports, received under 300,000 callers in its first year - a figure that’s now trebled according to a police source.
The new system was due to be launched in the spring but a launch date is still unknown.
Average waiting times, according to police statistics, currently stand at one minute and 56 seconds - although some Barnsley residents claim they have endured regular 20-minute waits - and approximately 1,500 calls per day are made to it.
Dr Alan Billings, South Yorkshire Police and Crime Commissioner, told the Chronicle it was important that every glitch is ironed out before it goes live.
“It is extremely disappointing that the launch date of Smart Contact and the new 101 system has once again been delayed,” he said.
“I speak with members of the public regularly who tell me the current system is not good enough and they are kept waiting too long.
“However, in introducing a new and hugely complex IT system the force has to be certain that they get it right first time and do not compromise the safety of members of the public reporting incidents.
“It simply has to be right before it goes live to the public. Hopefully this will happen sooner rather than later, as there would be nothing worse if it crashed.
“Clearly the old system couldn’t go on and I hope callers note big improvements when the new system, which is much more sophisticated, is launched.
“I will be keeping the matter under constant review with the Chief Constable, Stephen Watson, and seeking further clarification on the current situation in the coming weeks.”
