A north London council is the latest to have gained the certification from the regulator for its public space CCTV. Pictured left to right are Tom Miller, Brent Council’s Cabinet Member for Stronger Communities, with Tony Porter, the Surveillance Camera Commissioner for England and Wales. The ceremony was at Brent civic centre, beside Wembley Stadium yesterday.
Meanwhile Brent Council’s Cabinet has been asked to back further spending on CCTV in the borough and a new proposal to curb street drinking.
The council’s Cabinet will on Monday evening, March 13 be asked to back a report recommending the spending of around £2m on an overhaul of its 200-camera system in the borough, which notes increasing operational costs of maintaining a 20-year-old system described in the report as ‘archaic’ and requiring ‘an upgrade’.
Instead, it is suggested that the council switch to a wireless system, which would allow for a more cost-efficient and flexible network, and enable the relocation of cameras to crime hotspot areas as required, without the need to hard-wire a camera in. If an upgrade is approved, camera locations will be reviewed.
The report details that line rental costs with BT are £116k per year. Moving to a wireless system would save £100k per year.
Brent’s Cabinet will also on Monday evening consider a proposal to better combat street drinking. Even though the whole of the borough of Brent has been a controlled drinking zone since 2007, anti-social behaviour linked to prohibited street is still an issue in areas including Harlesden, Kilburn, Ealing Road, Neasden, Wembley Park and Sudbury, councillors will hear.
In response, it is proposed that the council introduces Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSOPs) in these areas for six months to tackle the issue – a breach of which will be a criminal offence and carry a fine of up to £1,000.
Tom Miller, Brent Council’s Cabinet Member for Stronger Communities, said: “Our proposals to improve our CCTV and tackle alcohol-related anti-social behaviour follow the recent work we have we been doing in getting more police on our streets, in tackling crime linked to rogue shisha outlets and underlines our commitment in making Brent safer.
“The investment in CCTV would not only replace a dated twentieth century system, but will mean we’ll get a state-of-the-art, more flexible and cost-efficient system that ensures we can maintain a network that helps to keep residents safe.
“We are also considering measures to introduce Public Spaces Protection Orders for street drinking, demonstrating that while we will always help those vulnerable people battling addiction, we will always take a zero tolerance approach towards anti-social behaviour.”
