Summary
The Home Office, in partnership with the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister, is establishing a nationwide non-emergency service allowing the public to report or enquire about non-emergency issues relating to police, crime and anti-social behaviour. This service will be rolled out in a staged process, achieving national coverage by 2008. The underlying policy behind the service has been consulted on and decided by the Home Office as part of its wider police reform proposals.
Ofcom, as the National Regulatory Authority responsible for the administration of the UK’s numbering resource, was asked by the Home Office to make available a memorable 3-digit telephone number, preferably “101”, for the delivery of this non-emergency service. To designate a 3-digit number for use by all Communications Providers, this number needs to be added to the list of such numbers annexed to General Condition 17 of the General Conditions of Entitlement, which covers the allocation, adoption and use of telephone numbers.
This statement sets out Ofcom’s decision to designate “101” as the UK’s Single Non-Emergency Number or “SNEN”. This designation will allow communications providers to adopt this number to provide access to this new non-emergency service.
During the consultation period Ofcom received 26 responses. Ofcom has considered those responses in coming to the conclusion set out in the statement
The responses received on both the eligibility of the SNEN service for a 3-digit code and the specific use of “101” were overwhelmingly positive, particularly when taken in conjunction with responses received to previous Home Office consultations on this issue.
Other issues, including the appropriate tariff for calling this service and the possible mandating of network access, were discussed in the original Ofcom consultation document. These issues remain subject to detailed implementation discussions between the Home Office and Communications Providers. Ofcom has not been asked to intervene at this time. If necessary, further consultation on the specific issues and proposals would be carried out.
The full document is available below