A Devon and Cornwall Police officer has enlisted the help of Nick Ross, former presenter of Crimewatch, to present a DVD aimed at getting all licensed premises in the UK to maximise their CCTV.
Chris Vercoe came up with the idea for the DVD, titled โWho are you looking at?โ, after noticing how the quality of CCTV images differed greatly from one licensed venue to another.
Mr Vercoeโs aim is to make all pubs and clubsโ CCTV fit for purpose so that, in the event of a crime, the camera images can provide accurate evidence for the police to prosecute offenders.
Mr Vercoe, the Forceโs CCTV Liaison Officer based at Police HQ in Exeter, said: "Ever since CCTV images were used to identify the murderers of two-year-old Jamie Bulger, in 1993, surveillance cameras have been a vital tool in police investigations. However, images from CCTV can only be useful if the camera is set-up and installed in the correct fashion.
"All clubs, and some pubs, can only get a license if they have CCTV. The location and angle of the camera, the number of days that recordings are retained for, playback and formatting are all important issues for the licensee that are covered in this DVD.
"Nick Ross, Graeme Gerrard, the Deputy Chief Constable of Cheshire, and Professor Martin Gill, who recently conducted the Home Office national evaluation of CCTV, all contributed to the DVD. I have had national and even international interest about the DVD so I hope many people will benefit from watching this."
The DVD is on sale for the price of £2 per disc โ with a minimum order needed of 100 discs. The revenue made from the sale of the DVDs will cover the cost of production to the Devon and Cornwall force and fund future initiatives.
And 10 pence from each DVD sold will be donated to the Jill Dando Institute of Crime Science. The inspiration for this Institute, which is a university department in the world devoted to reducing crime, came from Nick Ross.
If interested
Anybody interested in purchasing the DVDs should contact Chris Vercoe by calling 01392 452691 or emailing: christopher.vercoe@devonandcornwall.pnn.police.uk
