Online portal saves time for victims of crime
An online community portal rolled out by the NSW Police Force is making it easier for the people of NSW to report crimes.
Issue
Reporting less serious crimes to the police can mean an inconvenient and often long process for members of the community. People can contact the Police Assistance Line (131 444) or attend their local police station, which would often result in lengthy waits on hold or in line at a station.
Triple Zero (000) is not an appropriate channel to report less serious crimes such as graffiti, vandalism, a stolen bicycle or a missing laptop.
What the NSW Government did
In June 2016, the NSW Police Force launched the NSW Police Force Community Portal, an online platform where people can report incidents where there is no emergency or need for an immediate investigation by a police officer.
The community portal is available via smartphone, tablet or computer.
The portal currently supports the logging of reports for lost property, intentional damage or graffiti, theft, and will soon expand to include other report types.
What was achieved
As of January 2019 there were 204,793 registered users with over 43,000 reports of non-emergency crimes.
The portal is freeing up Triple Zero and other channels so police can better respond to genuine emergencies.