Officers commended for making County Durham and Darlington safer.

Police and Crime Commissioner Joy Allen has praised officers for their relentless commitment to making the county safer as new figures revealed significant reductions in neighbourhood crime and serious violence.

In a snapshot performance update covering October to December 2024, the County Durham and Darlington PCC reported sweeping improvements against the priorities local people have told her are important.  

Neighbourhood Crime, which includes robbery, burglary, theft from the person and vehicle crime, fell 22.3% during the final three months of 2024 when compared to the same period in 2023.

Comparisons between April and June 2024 (Q1) and October and December 2024 (Q3), meanwhile, show that the rate of ‘violence against the person' offences has continued to fall at a rate of -13.1%, while violence with injury offences fell -6.1%.

In other progress the percentage of 999 calls answered within 10 seconds has seen an improving trend since the beginning of 2023/24 and now stands at 86.8%. This follows substantial investment in additional control room staff and advanced technology supported by the Commissioner to improve the quality-of-service people receive when they contact the force for help.

The force has recently invested in a new telephony platform which reduces the waiting time between dialing 999/101 and speaking to a call handler, ensuring the public receive a quicker response for both emergency and non-urgent calls.

Twenty-four new call handlers started training/mentoring in the final three months of last year as part of an ongoing uplift in control room staff.

In other improvements during the quarter, the force introduced a new IT platform automatically updating victims of crime via text or email with information about their case and how to access support. Victims can register on the self-service Durham Portal once a crime has been reported to contact the officer handling their case and to track the progress whenever it is convenient to them, significantly increasing their trust and making them feel more supported.

Responding to the progress report, Joy Allen said: "Our neighbourhood officers are working tirelessly to disrupt crimes that cause misery for our communities. They deserve full credit for these reductions and for the robust proactive work they are undertaking with the community and partners to make County Durham and Darlington safer.

"I am delighted with the ongoing improvements in call-handling. Residents should expect to receive an effective and urgent service when they call for help. This is why I made this area of policing a priority when I was first elected in 2021 and have continued to fund and support investment in advanced IT solutions to deliver the service victims of crime and residents deserve.

"It is imperative we strive to offer the very best for victims of crime and our communities - this means providing an outstanding service from the outset when they first reach out for help.

"Call handling will remain an area of intense scrutiny within my office, and I will continue to work closely with the Chief Constable to build on this success in the future."

The Q3 performance report shows the force has continued to step up proactive enforcement to support the PCC's road safety priorities.

More than 8,000 motorists were clocked speeding in Q3, while roads policing officers continued to carry out drink/drug drive checks throughout December as part of the national Operation Limit, undertaking 1,489 voluntary roadside tests which resulted in 14 arrests. Outside of the voluntary checks, there were a total of 130 arrests.

In tackling ASB, more than 4,000 hours of extra hotspot policing patrols were carried out in ‘hotspot' areas between October and December 2024 as part of the national pilot. These resulted in 43 arrests and a variety of other sanctions including fixed penalty notices and information warnings.

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