Dial 101 for the Met

"Having just two phone numbers: 101 for situations that do not require an immediate police response or 999 if it's an emergency, makes calling the Met a lot easier and makes our services more accessible to all.

"The new, easy to remember number is being introduced across the country to make it simpler for people to contact the police when it's not an emergency. It's also expected to reduce the number of inappropriate 999 calls the MPS receives, enabling officers to response to genuine emergencies more effectively."

The introduction of 101 as the national contact number is being led by the Home Office with ACPO co-ordinating the force roll-out. The aims of introducing 101 are to:

- Help communities to keep their neighbourhoods safe by giving them one easy way to contact their local police and to report non-emergency crime and disorder;

- Make the police more accessible to their communities, whilst reducing pressure on the 999 system and helping the police to put their resources where they are needed most.   

- Help the police to cut crime by making it easier for the public to pass on information about crimes in their neighbourhoods and allowing the police to take swift action.

The Home Office have reported that early adopters of 101, including all the police forces in Wales, have been pleased with how it has helped improved access for the public, while at the same time helping to reduce inappropriate 999 calls.

Calls to the Met's existing non emergency number (0300 123 1212) will continue to be received, but it will eventually be phased out as 101 becomes established. As with 999 and 0300, calls to 101 will be received by officers and staff at our Central Communications Command.

To support the introduction of 101, and to help inform the public about when to use it, a series of external and internal communications will be delivered, with all online references to the existing 0300 number updated over the coming weeks to reflect the new 101 number.