ACTION has been promised to improve waiting times on the police 101 non-emergency number amid fears people may be put off giving vital information if their calls go unanswered.

John Summerscales, who served as a special constable in Bradford for more than 17 years in the 1960s and 70s, said he tried seven or eight times to pass on information on a missing person's appeal and a road traffic collision but never once got through.

After waiting on hold for periods of up to 15 minutes, he said he was forced to dial 999 to pass on the details, but was then told ringing 101 would have been more appropriate.

"You are told the call will be answered in two or three minutes, but you can never get through," said Mr Summerscales, 70, of Eccleshill.

"You always get the same message about a high volume of calls, and it is putting people off trying to help, as they think it's not worth ringing.

"I want to help the police, but people will stop reporting things if they are always on-hold for 10 or 15 minutes plus, that line should be answered straightaway.

"It needs more operators, or it just needs to be scrapped."

Councillor Michael Walls (Cons, Queensbury), who sits on the West Yorkshire Police and Crime Panel, said he would be bringing up the issue the next time the group meets.

"The 101 number is very important, as it's often the first link between police and the public," he said.

"If you're ringing and there's no answer, it doesn't give a very good impression, it's not on.

"Police need to ensure they are in the business of speaking to the public, or they risk being isolated and missing out on information."

Councillor Imran Hussain, deputy leader of Bradford Council and a fellow Police and Crime Panel member, said: "I am aware that the 101 service is widely-used, and it is unfortunate that in this instance the caller was unable to get through.

"I would hope that the service is regularly reviewed to try and find ways to improve it, and that people aren't put off from reporting information to police, as that is vitally important."

Mark Burns-Williamson, the Police and Crime Commissioner for West Yorkshire, said he had been made aware of issues with call waiting times for the 101 number which had "not been acceptable", adding the situation was being "closely monitored" with more staff now recruited to answer calls.

“I can understand the frustration of people trying to help the police being delayed on the phone, and would never want them to be deterred from helping officers and tackling crime," he said.

“New staff have now been recruited and trained and more will come on line soon.

"I have been assured that the answering times will improve over the next few weeks as the new staff and extra resources make an impact."

West Yorkshire Police said of the 2,500 calls made on average to the 101 number each day, many related to matters which were not police business, but still had to be dealt with "professionally and appropriately."

Customer contact centre manager Tom Donohoe, said: "We regularly receive a high number of calls to the 101 non-emergency number, and each call needs to be properly assessed before it can be responded to, so it can sometimes take longer to speak to a call handler.

"We would ask people to think carefully before using the 101 number and consider if it is something that is a matter for the police."