DORSET Police has introduced a new telephone service in a bid to reduce waiting times for its non-emergency 101 number.

The Voice Activated Switchboard, which will be available to callers phoning 101 from tomorrow, aims to give the public the opportunity to connect directly to, or leave a voicemail message for an officer, department or member of staff.

The force hopes the new system, which has been trialled internally for the past 12 months, will reduce the need to go via triage and the Force Command Centre.

Superintendent Caroline Naughton, Dorset Police's head of contact management, said: “The implementation of the VAS reduces the possibility of long waiting times in the Force Command Centre.

“When dialling 101, callers will be given the option to verbally express who they would like to speak to. The VAS will recognise the officer or department requested and transfer the caller directly to that person, effectively bypassing the triage and Force Command Centre altogether.

“We anticipate this will reduce demand on the 101 service by approximately 10 per cent and therefore reduce call waiting times in the Force Command Centre”.