Peterborough police are taking part in a Tweet-a-thon today

The live Tweet-a-thon is to mark International Control Room Week and demonstrate the hard work of call takers.

The force siad: “From 8am to 4pm a Tweet will be posted directly from the demand hub to the forces @cambscops twitter account every time an incident comes in.

“It is hoped this will help to demonstrate the hard work and dedication of officers and staff to successfully manage these calls and allocate the most appropriate resource available.”

During the Covid-19 pandemic control room staff across the emergency services have been hard at work behind the scenes in what at times have been very challenging circumstances the force said.

For the six months from April-September this year police in Cambridgeshire have taken 62,438 999 calls, 141,713 to 101 and 14,044 online reports.

As well as the Tweet-a-thon, social media posts will be published throughout the week which describe the experiences of control room staff during the pandemic.

Superintendent Mike Branston said: “I’d like to thank each and every one of our officers and staff in the demand hub who work incredibly hard to provide an excellent service to the public in what can often be very challenging circumstances.

“Control room staff are hidden away from public view, but are an essential part of our response to emergency situations, as well as dealing with calls for service which may not require an immediate response.

“They are that voice on the end of the phone, or the person behind the keyboard, who has to make very difficult decisions about allocating resource and prioritising those most in need. They are often the reassuring voice for the victim and have to be there for people when they face some truly horrific situations.

“We hope this Tweet-a-thon will help to demonstrate the challenges they face and the dedication they show to their role.”