Four and a half hours to report a crime
Local woman Jackie Summers was forced to spend over four hours at Ealing police station reporting an incident of criminal damage at her home.
She said, “As a victim of crime I think a good place to start would be to be able to report it. I went to Law for All and was told I had to report the trashing of my garden and extension to Ealing Police Station to get a crime number so I went down to Ealing police station straight away.
"I had to wait in a very small area in front of the interview locked doors area for over four and half hours to be seen. There is no way other than wait your turn and there is no way of checking who is next other than the good will of the people in attendance. Toilets, a drinks machine (especially With the present weather), a booking-in or ticket numbering system would be a good idea. It has got a disabled ramp but alas the door button did not work and to get back out there was a rubbish bin in front of the button to exit the station. I will be very reluctant to go there again with the present setup. Because of this, the reported crime figures will fall (and so will crime statistics)."
She was unaware of any toilet facilities and if you left the police station to use the facilities at the Town Hall you would be at the back of the queue again when you returned. When she tried phoning the police to report these issues to them she was told she must come to the station in person and report them in person.
Chris Mullaly, spokesman for Ealing Police said:
“We are aware of blockages in the way we are able to deal with the public at Ealing Police Station reception area, especially when it comes to reporting of crime, as the process itself is time consuming.
It is regrettable that this has occurred and we are attempting to introduce new processes such as the use of volunteers, improved technology and additional sources of information to divert non-urgent matters away from our station reception facilities to reduce waiting times.
Ealing Police Station, Acton Police Station and Southall Police Stations all provide a 24 hour station reception facility.
Ealing Borough Police also operate the Telephone Reporting System to divert non-urgent crime reports away from station offices so as to improve this process. This service can be contacted by using the Non-Emergency Telephone Number 020-8810-1212 to report crime.
An example of when to use this would be if you get up in the morning and realised that your shed has been broken into. Phone the Non–Emergency Number and a Police Officer or a Forensic Officer may attend the scene to take a report or alternatively your information will be taken and passed to the Telephone Reporting Unit. This unit will phone you back at a convenient time and complete a full crime report. You will then be issued with a crime reference number for future reference.”
For advice from the police of the best ways to report different crimes, please see the related links section.
July 7, 2006