Members of the public alongside several community organisations raised serious concerns regarding effective communication with police at a recent PCSP meeting.
The Armagh/Cusher area meeting – which was held in the Palace Stables building in Armagh – on Thursday (September 18) saw the majority of attendees agree there were ongoing problems with the PSNI’s 101 phoneline.
Long wait times and a lack of follow through from call handlers were among the two most discussed topics concerning the non-emergency helpline.
In speaking to Local Neighbourhood Policing Inspector Moffett, one Loughgilly resident said: “Personally, with us, we have had quite a few incidents in our area which we don’t tend to have and whenever I phone 101, I might as well be rubbish on the floor… they don’t care.
“I feel completely deflated at phoning 101. They are not big, big things but I just feel like everything is getting worse and we are getting no help.”
Another resident reinforced the woman’s claims, adding: “I can back up every word this lady has said. I have been to meetings for 20 years and the 101 system is complained about every time and nothing is ever done.”
To reassure the members, Inspector Moffett confirmed that the issue is consistently raised with PSNI superiors. The Inspector was “surprised” to learn that call handlers had been dismissive of the first resident’s concerns but said that they understood the frustrations and would continue to feed the information back internally.
Further to the frustrations with 101, residents then raised concerns at the apparent recent abandonment of the community policing text alert service and lack of patrols.
In recent years, the residents had been receiving text alerts from their representative officers in relation to spates of crime in their areas, allowing neighbours to be extra vigilant and to better report suspicious activity.
The service benefitted both residents and officers alike, with the communications leading to better police intelligence, speedier arrests and safer communities.
However, residents had recently noticed a drop-off in the service, which several found alarming in the wake of Chrissy Burns’ murder in Mountnorris earlier this month.
Prompting the discussion one Mountnorris resident: “I’m getting complaints about police not being seen… mostly around Whitecross and Mountnorris. We had an issue a couple of weeks ago where a man was murdered but that’s the only time we see police is when something has happened.”
Inspector Moffett said in response: “Now that we are more free to get back to our normal duties after a busy summer period we will factor that into our patrols more and more.”
However, another resident linked in the issue with the text alerts, adding: “If there was a burglary in the area I would get a text message and they would warn everyone to keep an eye out. Now, with that murder in Mountnorris there was no information to warn residents or to pass anything on.
“I feel like we are just nobodies and we are not supported. The likes of that murder… he [suspect] went past us on his way.”
Another person from the area interjected: “I drove past him [suspect] but I didn’t know who you [police] were looking for. You were away the opposite direction that I had seen him come from and if I maybe knew…”
Inspector Moffett replied: “It was all very quick and the suspect was detained. It was a very fastball incident.
“In relation to text alert. I believe they can’t do it anymore and that’s part of the issue.”
A member of the policing team explained: “There were some technical issues and I think something with GDPR. There were changes in the technical side but it leaves it that we can’t get in to use it the way we needed to use it.
“We have a planning meeting coming up soon and at that meeting we will put it to the members of PCSP to see if they still want to try and use it or try to use another way of getting messages out but it is looking like it is probably going to stop.”
Inspector Moffett said police are still trying to use social media to disseminate messages but recognises it’s not the most efficient method.
Regarding the issues with 101, a PSNI spokesperson said: “There are three Contact Management centres in Maydown, Armagh and Castlereagh, each staffed by highly trained call handlers who deal with calls via 101 and 999, as well as online reports.
“We constantly monitor our call response times and we acknowledge there can be delays in calls getting through via 101 due to high call volumes, which can outweigh our capacity to respond in a timely fashion.
“The PSNI is undertaking a number of measures to improve our service in this regard and to make ourselves more accessible to the public, with increased contact options, such as: Calling 999 – Where there is a genuine need for an urgent police response, always call 999.
“Calling 101 – When a non-urgent police response is required or for other requests. Callers are advised throughout their time on the call of the likely duration of the wait, and are asked if they would like a link to our online reporting service to be sent to the number they are calling from, if that wait would be too long for them.
“Making online reports – Once submitted by the public they are considered in live time by Call Handlers for the appropriate policing response, in the exact same way as a ‘101’ call.
“There is no waiting in a ‘101’ queue, and people can make a report at a time that suits them, all in a matter of minutes. The reporting person is updated with details including their incident number, and advised if police are attending, or if the report can be dealt with and resolved by phone, and any relevant support information or advice.
“Via the PSNI Portal – A PSNI Portal was launched on 1st September 2025, where a victim can create an account and see the status of their incident report at all times and also directly send messages and requests to their investigating officer.
“The PSNI is currently going through a period of budgetary and resourcing pressure but understands the importance of the public being able to contact us when they need to and in a manner that suits them. To that end there is a significant undertaking in place to increase the numbers of Call Handlers within the three centres over the coming months.”
Responding to the loss of the local text alert service, the PSNI spokesperson said: “Local police always welcome feedback from the community on areas of concern or local issues people may be facing. It allows us to more effectively target resources and when we can, to implement specific operations tailored to the information received.
“The local Neighbourhood Team, as with many teams across the Police Service, is experiencing high demand and diminishing resources. The Chief Constable is on record as stating that sadly, given the financial constraints faced by the Service, our resourcing levels are inadequate.
“Despite this our Neighbourhood officers continue to dedicate themselves to the communities they serve, often going above and beyond and showing unwavering professionalism and resolve.
“Each Text Alert scheme is primarily funded and lead by the local PCSP for the area.”
