“I am sick of fly-tipping and other aspects of anti-social behaviour in Walsall, and this investment proves we are not prepared to put up with it any longer. It is my priority to ensure our residents here in Walsall feel safe in the place we call home. Safe and attractive streets are vital for residents, businesses and investment. This is about making Walsall a place where people are proud to live, work and spend time.” So said the veteran Mike Bird, Conservative leader of Walsall Council, proposing a £250,000 spend on further CCTV coverage and recruiting five Community Protection Enforcement Officers. A report by the community protection department noted that the largest single type of ‘workload complaint’ is about litter and fly-tipping, which Mike Hird (like many others in local government) has described as a ‘scourge’. As for investigations into ‘environmental crime’, the report warned that a ‘significant number of false plates on suspect vehicles have hampered progress so far this year’.
Preston City Council is installing 14 more cameras, to fil in gaps in city centre coverage, due to new venues opening since the original CCTV system was fitted. The council says it has reviewed routes used to access transport, particularly looking at low-light areas and places known for crime and anti-social behaviour.
Scottish Borders Council is hailing its new public space CCTV system as a flagship commitment. Council leader Euan Jardine said: “It is about more than crime prevention. This modern system will support our services with real-time data, help us plan and respond more effectively, and provide lasting benefits to communities right across the Borders.” The system, across seven towns from Duns and Eyemouth, pictured, to Melrose and Hawick, has been through initial testing. In recent years we’ve featured some small-town public space systems in Wiltshire. One is in Calne whose town council was last month advertising for a part-time CCTV manager. They asked for someone with a background in the voluntary sector, besides CCTV, because ‘this role involves co-ordinating a team of community volunteers’.
