Southend-on-Sea City Council has a new CCTV van. Pictured are Essex Police Insp David Gardiner, with members of the Community Safety Team standing at the open side door of the white Renault van. It’s owned by the council, operated by the CCTV Control Room, and was funded by a central Government grant secured by Essex Police on behalf of the council.
The van has four external Avigilon digital cameras plus one dome camera on top. The van will also be a part of the Townlink radio network and offer the same service as the CCTV control room’s 200-plus cameras. Like other seaside towns, it’s getting ready for a busy summer that can bring with it crime and disorder; hence the Essex Police Operation Union – more on this link.
Simon Ford, head of community safety at Southend Council, said: “Keeping Southend residents and businesses safe is a key priority for the council. Our new CCTV van, which hasn’t cost the council anything, is making its debut in the City on Bank Holiday Monday and will work in conjunction with our CCTV Control Room and Townlink radio system.
“The addition of the van will provide a more visible presence and ensure we can proactively monitor key areas across the City to help keep everyone safe, and be prepared for any incidents that may arise. It also shows how seriously the council is taking the safety and security of residents, businesses and visitors.”
Insp David Gardiner added: “This new CCTV van is a fantastic tool and will help prevent crime and antisocial behaviour across the City. It is a piece of equipment that many other local authorities do not have and shows the continued commitment of Essex Police and Southend-on-Sea City Council to keeping Southend safe. The vehicle will be proactively deployed across the city and will be a visible and reassuring presence.”
Southend’s CCTV has seen a £2.2m upgrade in 2021. An extra 41 digital cameras were placed in new, mainly outlying, areas alongside the 165 cameras across the city. The council CCTV Control Room is staffed 24-7.
Barry Davis, surveillance operations manager, who oversees the control room, added: “The £2.2m CCTV upgrade and growth of the Townlink radio system, the fastest growing radio service in England, means our CCTV van will be part of huge well established network consisting of multiple partners and agencies.
“We have 176 active users on our Townlink radio system consisting of police, BID [Southend business improvement district] rangers, community safety officers and businesses. This provides quicker responses and resolutions and is a great example of partnership working. Our CCTV operatives feed off intel and the more we are given the more proactive we can be, highlighting how much stronger and safer we are when we all work together to keep everyone safe.
“We will also look to share the CCTV van with the police and other local authorities across our region, especially when there are big events taking place such festivals and large gatherings, that would benefit from the support of a mobile CCTV unit.”
Background
For more about the Southend preparations for the influx of summer and holiday visitors, see the council’s website. The June 2022 print edition of Professional Security Magazine featured Bournemouth Council’s CCTV and CSAS (community safety accreditation scheme) officers doing similar work.
After this month’s local government elections, Southend council has gone from a ‘rainbow coalition’ to a minority Conservative administration.
More in the July print edition.
