GWENT Police has appealed for people to make "appropriate" use of the 999 emergency service after it emerged the force had missed a national response target.

Police forces are expected to answer 90 per cent of 999 calls in less than 10 seconds, but in Gwent the average rate was 80 per cent between last November and this April.

That figure, although below the national target, is well above the average rate of police forces in Wales, England and Northern Ireland, at 71 per cent. Police in Scotland measure 999 responses in a different way.

Avon and Somerset was the only police force across the three nations that managed to meet the 90 per cent target over the six-month period, according to new Home Office figures.

Amanda Blakeman, deputy chief constable at Gwent Police, said it was "imperative" callers are offered a "prompt and responsive" 999 service.

But nearly one in three calls to the force "do not result in an incident or crime report", she revealed. 

She said the force was asking callers to "think about the most appropriate route" when contacting the police, with 999 "reserved for emergency situations where you or another person are in immediate danger, or a crime is in progress".

Non-urgent matters should be directed to the 101 line or via direct messages on social media.

Gwent Police had also experienced a "significant rise in contacts" in the past 18 months, she added. More than 37,000 calls were made to 999 in Gwent between last November and the middle of May this year.

The force also has to deal with hoax calls to 999.

"Prank calls or something that is important but not immediate mean that we can take longer to get to someone who might be in a life-threatening situation" Dep Ch Con Blakeman added.

Other forces in Wales also failed to hit the 90 per cent response target: Dyfed-Powys Police recorded a rate of 81 per cent, followed by North Wales Police (78 per cent) and South Wales Police (71 per cent).

Commenting on the figures for Wales, England and Northern Ireland, assistant chief constable Alan Todd, of the National Police Chiefs' Council, said the figures demonstrated the high level of demand on call handlers.

He called the targets a "significant challenge for policing" but "we aim to further improve upon the good work we’ve done to date" to improve 999 response times.

Figures have been rounded to the nearest percentage point. Additional reporting by Sophie Wingate, Meg Hill and Rebecca Black, PA.