After a bid by their Community Safety Unit and Enfield Police, Enfield Council have been awarded £300,000 capital funding from the Home Office to expand their fledgling Automatic Number Plate Recognition (ANPR) System in Enfield.
This will see extra CCTV cameras installed at a number of strategic locations within the borough linked to a computer. When a stolen car, or a car without insurance passes a camera, an automatic alert will sound in the Public Safety Centre and the Police Control Room. The police will then be able to respond appropriately.
These specialist cameras have been proven in solving serious crime, general vehicle crime and of course anti-terrorism as they are linked directly to the police to enable intercept if required or intelligence information on the movement of criminals within Enfield, and perhaps into central London.
Cllr Ertan Hurer, Cabinet Member for Community Safety and the Voluntary Sector said “We were the only London borough to receive this extra money, so this is a very exciting initiative.
"As well as their general use to alert us to stolen cars and those without insurance, which are a menace on our roads, the use of ANPR cameras are also very successful in central London, and are an integral part of the ring of steel for the City, and Enfield’s vision is to do the same by using the latest technology, connected back to our state of the art CCTV control room, to combat crime and terrorism.
“With the issue of security being of prime importance for the upcoming Olympics in London, a strategic rollout of ANPR and other CCTV and security measures will be required in and around London, and Enfield Council as usual is leading the way in preparing for this major event leading to the provision of funding for these cameras.”
Borough Commander Adrian Hanstock said "These cameras will be a welcome addition to our crime reduction toolkit, and further demonstrate the commitment of the police and Enfield Council to make Enfield an even safer borough."
