STAPLEHURST PARISH COUNCIL
VISIT TO MAIDSTONE BOROUGH COUNCIL CCTV OPERATIONS CENTRE - 27th OF JULY 2010
Councillor Buller and I visited the MBC CCTV Centre. We not only saw the system in operation but were able to compare the results from the Staplehurst camera at the Parade with those from the cameras based in Maidstone itself.
Not surprisingly the cameras tend to be concentrated in the high crime areas. During the daytime the main crimes tend to be shop lifting and other forms of casual crime such as theft from cars. At night the scene changes with the emphasis shifting to more violent crime; although drug related crime seems to be a continual problem; and indeed we were able to witness on the camera of what looked like drug dealing taking place.
There is very close liaison with both the Police, local businesses and other operations and this enables a very quick reaction to incidents. The CCTV Centre is manned on a continuous basis with some staff working 12 hour shifts.
As stated above most of the cameras are concentrated in the central area and in this respect Staplehurst is one of the privileged rural areas. However, there is one significant difference between the system used at Staplehurst and that employed in the town. The data from the town cameras is transmitted using fibre optics whereas the Staplehurst system uses broadband. A popular misconception is that the problem resides with the camera technology whereas it is the method of transmission that makes the difference. The result of this was quite noticeable. The data from the town cameras was more detailed and moving objects were much clearer. This is not to say that the Staplehurst camera was of no use; this was far from the case. In fact movements in the parade were still very visible, especially as it had a360 degree coverage and could include both the entrance to the library and the parade toilets; although inevitably, overall surveillance was curtailed at night. It was noted that to change over to a fibre optic system could be hugely expensive with figures quoted between £30k and £100k quoted which from a cost benefit perspective probably makes this a non starter. Installing a second camera was also unlikely in the current financial climate. Use can be made of temporary cameras and Staplehurst has benefited from this facility. There are some 25 cameras currently available but there is a prioritisation process in place so their installation cannot be guaranteed.
We also mentioned that that we had installed cameras at Surenden and Jubilee Fields. It was emphasised that it was essential that these cameras had a clear audit trail. This includes, inter alia, control of tape storage, process in place for reviewing tapes and ensuring pictures recorded show the correct date and time.
In conclusion, the visit proved extremely worthwhile and emphasised the importance of these cameras in controlling crime and anti social behaviour. The Staplehurst camera provides valuable information on what is happening at the Parade area and we must ensure that this camera and the service supporting it is retained. Our thanks go to Chris Stewart and his team for taking time out from their busy schedule to demonstrate the system.
John Perry July 2010