From barbecue permission requests to throwing away out-of-date food, Suffolk police have shared some of the more obscure examples of inappropriate 999 calls.

While recording the county's emergency calls across a 36-day period earlier this year, 999 call handlers noted a number which bordered on the ridiculous, including:

  • Calling to find out whether the British Heart Foundation is operating
  • Asking whether they can have a barbecue in Christchurch Park
  • Complaining that social services had thrown away out-of-date food
  • Requesting a taxi
  • Stuck in traffic and wanting to know whether there had been an accident to cause the delays
  • Unsure how to use a new phone
  • Trying the police for "good luck" after waiting to speak with Norfolk and Norwich University Hospital's A&E department

During this survey, recorded in two parts during March, April and May this year, a total of 299 inappropriate calls were made.

These calls took up 1,488 minutes of Suffolk Constabulary's call handlers' time - the equivalent of more than 24 hours.

READ MORE: Everything we learned from Suffolk police's rare insight into their control room

Now standing at 128,952 calls made from April 2022 to March 2023, there has been a 37% increase in the number of 999 calls since 2020/21.

Suffolk police said the consequence of both an increase in demand and inappropriate 999 calls is being seen in the length of time it takes for the calls to be answered.

READ MORE: 'Improvements need to be made' - 999 answer call speeds figures revealed

They added that a small portion of Suffolk 999 calls were being redirected to other forces to answer.

This impact also spills over into 101 calls, as it reduces the availability of call takers to deal with 101 queues which then sees an increase in wait time and abandoned calls.