How Huntingdon has used a mobile CCTV vehicle.
Needing to address a variety of issues, Frank Cannon, CCTV Manager and Community Safety Officer with Huntingdonshire District Council, turned his attention to viable solutions that would help to extend the operational effectiveness of surveillance monitoring, beyond the fixed CCTV systems’ boundaries currently deployed within Huntingdon and three surrounding towns of St Neots, St Ives, and Ramsey.
Examining the feasibility of a mobile CCTV vehicle and the role it could play within situational and social crime reduction, Cannon researched the on-board equipment specifications and practical deployment of other mobile CCTV vehicle operators, to assess and analyse their experience. Detailing how such a vehicle could be used to create opportunities to tackle a variety of issues, external to the fixed town centre systems and including outlying villages, he drew-up a comprehensive report that would help to support town and parish councils to promote the security message, and importantly, reduce the fear of crime.
After presentation of the report to the council a positive decision was made for the council to purchase a vehicle, and fund the capital cost and revenue for its ongoing maintenance was granted.
Councillor Derek Holley, leader of the council, said: "There has been clear evidence of a need for CCTV from many communities within our district to help alleviate fear of crime and make people feel safer in their own environment. The investment in this vehicle represents part of our major programme of providing public services that maintain, and where possible enhance the quality of life for all our residents."
Procurement process
With the operational requirements for the mobile CCTV vehicle ironed out, Pete Lummis, Acting CCTV Manager approached consultant, Barrie Loftus of CCTV Security Services, who had previously specified the Huntingdon town centre CCTV system and provided Newark, Great Yarmouth and Harrow with their mobile CCTV vehicles, to assist him with turning Huntingdonshire’s operational requirements into a practical CCTV vehicle specification.
Focusing on how the mobile CCTV vehicle would be effectively deployed to address crime and antisocial behaviour, to improve the quality of life in neighbourhoods, the final specification was based around a Mercedes 311 Sprinter van. This was to be fitted out with a comprehensive surveillance system, including a two-man control desk, one 6 and one 3 metre telescopic mast for an infrared supported camera and an Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) camera, SWIFT rapid deployment radio linked cameras, analogue and digital recording equipment and integrated control provide via a Synectics X250 matrix system.
With the final specification confirmed, six companies were invited to tender for the conversion and fitting out of the council supplied vehicle. Based on their reputation for project management, quality of installation work and prior experience in the field of specialist mobile CCTV vehicles, Quadrant Video Systems Plc was awarded the cutting-edge £150,000 contract.
Mobile partnership
Recognising the role the council would play as owners of the vehicle and that of Cambridgeshire Constabulary as its operators, Lummis and his line manager Sonia Hansen, forged a working partnership with the police, which led to the formation of a dedicated mobile vehicle CCTV police team. As part of the initiative, the council appointed a mobile CCTV vehicle operator, Brian Clark to manage and co-ordinate the vehicle’s maintenance and proper operation.
"Huntingdonshire District Council is now operating one of the most advanced mobile CCTV vehicles available, " commented Lummis. " Our partnership with the police enables both parties to maximise the mobile CCTV vehicle’s usage. The council having used it at various open days and community safety road shows to clearly demonstrate that the authority is serious about reducing crime."
Effective deployment
Responsible for its onboard ANPR system, Cambridgeshire Constabulary’s Sgt Stuart Morgan explained the vehicle’s typical deployment. " Depending on the requirement, we have the option to use the van in either an overt, or covert mode, to date we have only used it overtly.
Tackling the phenomenon of crime displacement, or ‘fallout’ as it is often referred to, the vehicle has been used in areas outside of Huntingdon’s fixed CCTV system coverage, where no camera coverage exists. Its substantial visual deterrent factor has been harnessed as part of the Huntingdon Against Retail Crime initiative, where we have used the vehicle in areas of known criminal activity, to monitor retail premises on trading parks on the town’s outskirts. "
He continued, " The flexible nature of the CCTV vehicle allows rapid response and deployment within crime hot spots. For example, its use at a local park where in excess of 200 youths had regularly gathered to race cars, has been effective in dissuading them from this anti-social behaviour, with the additional benefit that local residents are assured that the police are taking action to do something about it. On a regular basis, the vehicle is deployed targeting other hot spot locations, improving a situation by effectively removing, or displacing trouble.
Equipped with ANPR, the deployment of this sophisticated technology provides a highly effective tool for the detection of car related crime. Linked to a local, or Police National Computer (PNC) databases, we have the ability to spot vehicles with no tax, that are reported as stolen, or those known to belong to drug dealers, etc. Quite often, a legitimate reason for stopping a vehicle will lead to other things being found, on which we can then take appropriate action. All in all, ANPR permits the effective use of police time, allowing very focused and selective policing. In the event of a major incident, the vehicle could also be used as a forward communications centre, relaying valuable information back to the central communications control centre. "
Concluding his assessment of the mobile CCTV vehicle’s usage to date, Lummis, said, " The council / police partnership has been successfully devoted to an objective, problem solving approach to implementing a mobile surveillance solution. We are still developing its application and role within tactical policing but already officers are convinced of its added
value. Being readily available to other departments, such as street wardens, for deployment to capture evidential video footage of illegal fly tippers underlines its flexibility of operation – whether that be as a substantial anti-crime deterrent, or for its detection."
