What is the difference between dialling 999 and 0114 2 20 20 20?

You should only dial 999 when there is an immediate danger to life or if you see a crime taking place.

Our non-emergency number, 0114 2 20 20 20, should be used to report non-urgent matters such as antisocial behaviour or for any other general enquiry.

Please note, if your call is not urgent it might be dealt with more effectively if you call within office hours (before 4pm), as the evenings are the busiest time for our call centre staff.

When I call the police will an officer be sent immediately?

Before any officers are deployed, call handlers will assess the nature of the call and grade its priority. If the call is an emergency an officer will be sent straight away. If it is not an emergency, an officer will be sent accordingly.

How are calls graded?

An emergency call will result in an immediate emergency police response when:

• a serious offence is being committed or there is danger to life
• a suspect who is violent or likely to escape is nearby
• a serious road traffic collision involving personal or potential injury
• a racially or homophobic motivated incident is in progress
• evidence of a serious incident may be lost without immediate attendance
• the victim is in extreme distress.

By using a national framework for call handlers we are able to deal with other non- urgent calls and so are able to assess if the matter needs to be dealt with by officers within the hour or by a scheduled polices response within 24 hours. On occasion,  the incident can be resolved over the phone by our staff without police being deployed.

Who will handle my call?

South Yorkshire Police receive approximately 1.2 million phone calls every year. Just under 235,000 these are emergency 999 calls which require an immediate police response.

All calls made to South Yorkshire Police are answered by call handlers at our Atlas Court call centre in Sheffield.

All of our call handlers receive over three months training and all have excellent local knowledge. They use state-of-the-art technology to help deal with your call as effectively as possible.

Why is the telephone number for South Yorkshire Police a Sheffield number?

The call centre is in Sheffield but handles calls for all South Yorkshire areas (Rotherham, Barnsley, Sheffield and Doncaster).

What is Crimestoppers?

Crimestoppers is an independent registered charity that helps to solve crime.

It is not part of the police, a television programme or the government.

It allows anyone to call and give information about crime and who is committing it. The caller will remain completely anonymous.

If you call Crimestoppers your call will not be recorded and cannot be traced. You will not be asked your name or address. You will not have to visit a police station or be asked to appear in court.

How do I contact my local police officer?

Visit our neighbourhood policing website and enter your postcode.

You should contact your safer neighbourhood team to report community issues such as antisocial behaviour, fly tipping and nuisance motorcycles.

How long will it be until I get a response?

No matter how small you think your issue is, your local team will get back to you within 72 hours (national guideline).

How are hoax calls dealt with?

Sadly, South Yorkshire Police do receive hoax calls. Not only do these calls put lives at risk but they are also illegal. If you are caught your phone’s SIM card might be disabled and you could be subject to criminal proceedings.