South Wales Police Named As Finalist In Welsh Contact Centre Awards 2010
Call handling is a vital part of policing, and the establishment of local Contact Management Centres in South Wales has been recognised with a short listing for a national award.
South Wales Police have been putting into practice more efficient and effective ways of managing calls, under a project called Darwin, and this has been named as a finalist in the Welsh Contact Centre Awards 2010, under the category of ‘customer service’.
Project Darwin is all about improving customer experience, whilst at the same time helping break demand on officers. The project has already made a positive impact, with Contact Management Centre staff dealing with issues at first point of contact to South Wales Police.
Chief Inspector Phil Ashby, the project lead, said “We have carried out a number of consultation events to find out exactly what our communities want from us when making telephone contact, and have gradually made improvements to our processes. Our Contact Management Centres have been set up to deliver an improved service to both our front line officers, and our communities.”
Chief Inspector Phil continues “It’s brilliant to be named as a finalist in the Welsh Contact Centre Awards, and this show’s that our call handling processes are right up there with some of the biggest commercial organisations in Wales. This recognises the dedication of our staff in making the changes happen, and is something that touches all of our communities across South Wales.”
South Wales Police is up against some of the countries biggest organisations / businesses for the ‘customer service’ award, including ING Direct, Dwr Cymru, Barclays Bank, British Gas, and the DVLA, with the Welsh Contact Centre Awards taking place on Thursday 17th February 2011, at City Hall, Cardiff.
Background information:
The awards, in association with International Business Wales (IBW) / Welsh Assembly Government celebrate the excellence of individuals, teams and companies working within the Welsh contact centre industry.
Despite the recession, the industry still employs 30,000 people and pumps £400m a year into the Welsh economy. The sector continues to thrive and is one of the success stories of an evolving modern day Wales.
Sandra Busby, managing director of the Welsh Contact Centre Forum, said “Competition for these awards has been fierce this year with companies and individuals striving for higher standards during these tough economic times. Therefore to gain a place in the finals is highly prestigious and people should feel very proud of themselves.”
