Call for Evidence: House of Lords Public Services Committee inquiry into access to emergency services

1. Introduction

1.1. This is a response to the House of Lords Public Services Committee call for evidence into access to emergency services, which was issued 22nd September 2022 and ends on 26th October 2022.

1.2. For ease of use, this response follows the structure of the Background, Inquiry Focus and Areas of Interest sections of the consultation – with general comments being followed where appropriate by recommendations as requested in the call. The focus of this response is primarily on police services but will also touch on other emergency services.

1.3. The Open University Centre for Policing Research and Learning is a police / academic consortium run by the Open University and comprised of 24 police agencies from across all four nations of the UK. The Centre exists to create and use knowledge through both research and education to improve policing for the public good.