999 What's Your (Non) Emergency?

Client: The Met Police

The Met Police's 999 emergency call centres were overwhelmed, with many non-emergency and abandoned calls clogging the system and delaying urgent responses. The challenge was clear: how to educate the public on proper emergency service usage and reduce unnecessary 999 calls.

We embarked on a multi-layered research project to understand the factors driving high 999 demand and to bridge the empathy gap between the Met's operations and public perception. Our approach included live call observations, focus groups, public interviews, and a comprehensive survey. Through this deep dive, we uncovered surprising insights about public behaviour and perceptions. These findings guided our strategic response, focusing on improving awareness and usability of alternative reporting methods, and targeting key groups prone to misusing 999. The result was a significant improvement in call handling efficiency and response times. This project has been recognised as best-in-class and is now serving as a model for a nationwide initiative to enhance emergency service response across the UK.