Newark and Sherwood District Council increases and improves CCTV in Newark town centre to help tackle anti-social behaviour
As part of continued efforts to tackle anti-social behaviour the CCTV network has been upgraded.
Newark and Sherwood District Council have committed to installing an additional three CCTV cameras in Newark and replacing four existing cameras as part of a scheme to review and replace cameras.
There are currently over 70 cameras in the council's CCTV network, which aid in officials in fighting anti-social behaviour and crime by providing evidence following incidents, and helping to identify and deter offenders.
Previous cameras have been replaced in order to greatly improve picture quality and hotspot areas have been identified for the new cameras to be installed.
The new upgrades have been made possible by funding from the Nottinghamshire Police and Crime Commissioner’s Safer Streets project.
The council has been taking a partnership approach to tackling the issue of anti-social behaviour, achieved by working with the commissioner and Nottinghamshire Police
Several re-deployable, high-definition CCTV cameras were also funded during previous Safer Streets projects and were installed in hotspot areas to provide increased coverage of locations affected by crime.
Paul Taylor, portfolio holder for public protection and community relations, said: “Our 24-hour CCTV network is a fantastic tool to ensure community safety, and improving and increasing the cameras allows our officers, and our partners, to detect and deter perpetrators of crime and anti-social behaviour.
“I am committed to ensuring that our CCTV network grows and improves and through our successful partnership with Nottinghamshire Police and the Police and Crime Commissioner — I am confident that we are doing all we can in our effort to reduce anti-social behaviour and crime.
“We are seeing a reduction of anti-social behaviour in certain hotspot areas such as our town centre wards of Castle, Beacon and Devon, as stated in the recent Bassetlaw, Newark and Sherwood Community Safety Partnership (BNSCSP) report.
“I know this reduction is down to the programme of measures we have been implementing, including partnership working, increasing officer visibility, and improvements to security measures such as gating and CCTV.
“I am looking forward to seeing what we can achieve as we continue with our already proven successful partnership working approach.”
The council’s anti-social behaviour working group has previously considered the CCTV system currently operating and recommended a full review take place.
In December this review, including the replacement scheme, will be presented to the council’s cabinet for consideration.
The location of CCTV cameras is reviewed on an annual basis to ensure they continue to meet legal requirements, and the data collected is also used to identify the need for targeted and increased patrols, the timings of these patrols and particular locations and individuals of concern.
In addition to this, through a shared service agreement, Ashfield District Council and Broxtowe Borough Council CCTV cameras are also monitored, maintained and managed by the partnership control room, outside of Newark and Sherwood.
