Bristol City Council has welcomed the announcement that their CCTV team have gained a Platinum Level- award for being compliant with the Data Protection Act as it relates to CCTV. They are the first team in England and Wales to receive this award.
“This is very good news as it shows that our team is running a top quality service which is strictly in line with all guidance on safeguarding confidential details and images of the public and adhering to the strict rules concerning how and when CCTV footage can be used as evidence to support the prosecution of potential offenders" said Cllr Gary Hopkins, Cabinet member for Strategic Improvement.
The award has been made by CameraWatch which is an independent, not-for-profit advisory body that supports the understanding of CCTV and compliance with current policy and legislation, to remove risks relating to data protection and other legal non-compliance.
Advised by the UK Information Commissioner’s Office, CameraWatch helps with theimplementation of the CCTV Code of Practice, to support compliance in the use of CCTV systems and, where appropriate, prosecutions using CCTV evidence.
The Bristol CCTV service gained the award after being assessed by the CameraWatch Compliance Team in relation to its legal responsibilities, audit performance and yearly objectives, and fully assessed on its Data Protection Act compliance as well as the capture and management of CCTV images involving members of the public.
Gordon McLanaghan, Manager of Bristol City Council Public Space CCTV, gave praise to his staff. “I am absolutely delighted to receive this award from CameraWatch. This is the result of a lot of hard work from my team and proves the professionalism and diligence they have shown".
Pat Curran, Chair of CameraWatch, supported Gordon McLanaghan’s view. He said: “This was an exceptional effort on the part of both Bristol City Council Public Space CCTV. Having identified the data protection issues, both teams worked very hard to achieve this excellent result of full compliance.
“This is a first for England and Wales and is a challenge to other CCTV operators. Bristol has shown the way.”
This is one of many accolades the team has received recently. Earlier in the summer it was named as national Team of the Year by the National CCTV User Group. The Home Office promotes it as a national example of good practice.
The Bristol CCTV team run a 24-hour service every day of the year monitoring cameras in Bristol and on behalf of South Gloucestershire Council. Between 1 January 2009 and 31 December 2009 staff logged 19,109 incidents and contacted the police on 1,835 occasions. They also run many other helpline and lone worker services for other councils and housing associations which help to fund the team.
They have a highly trained and experienced staff. “Our operators are highly experienced in spotting incidents and alerting the police who can act immediately. The CCTV footage has been of vital use in deterring or helping convict an increasing number criminals," said Cllr Hopkins.
The partnership between the council and the police is the council says particularly effective. There are police staff in the control room at very busy times. The police have access to CCTV images and can download film instantly.
