CHESHIRE Police will not be one of the forces to cut costs for callers by changing its 0845 non-emergency telephone numbers.

Staffordshire Police last week became the latest force in the UK to announce they will switch to 03 prefix numbers, with more set to change, but Cheshire Police will not be following suit.

This follows revelations that a number of forces receive revenue payments for calls made to their 0845 numbers, most notably West Midlands Police, which generates £24k a year.

Cheshire Police have used 0845 numbers for residents to contact CAT teams and non-emergency reporting of crime since May 2005.

Unlike 0845 numbers, 03 prefix numbers cost no more to call than landline numbers beginning with 01 and 02, as set out by Ofcom.

A spokesman for Cheshire Police said: “The decision for Cheshire is still up in the air. We are investigating the possibility of using the 03 prefix number.

“Early indications show that we would be charged for every call we receive so we have to see whether it is appropriate and affordable.”

Guidance from ACPO (Association of Chief Police Officers for England, Wales and Northern Ireland) published last year, proposed that forces using 0845 numbers might like to consider changing to 03 numbers.

It also advised that 0845 calls should not be described as ‘local rate’, something which has been inaccurate for a number of years.