CCTV and out-of-hours service changes
- Period: 18 July 2024 - 04 September 2024
- Status: Open
- Audiences: Everyone
- Topics: Budgets, Community and living
- Type: Public
Introduction
We're inviting members of the public and our stakeholders to have their say on proposed changes to the way Shropshire Council delivers CCTV monitoring for Shrewsbury.
We currently provide 24-hour, seven-days-a-week CCTV monitoring for Shrewsbury. Operating costs are fully met by us. We also work closely with key partners including Shrewsbury Town Council, Shrewsbury Business Improvement District (BID) and West Mercia Police. Despite the strong local partnership working in place, our financial situation means that it's difficult to continue to offer this service, particularly when other towns in the county aren't supported in the same way.
We made savings of over £41.3m in 2023/24. As a result of increasing demand for services, rising costs and inflation, we expect to need to cut our spend by another £62m this year. To protect statutory service provision (services we're required to deliver such as social care), our medium-term financial strategy identifies a savings target of £334,000 for the CCTV and out-of-hours service. This is a significant reduction in service budget, and it will mean a new model of operation for CCTV, and out-of-hours call triage will need to be designed. For CCTV to continue operating effectively in Shrewsbury there's a requirement for ongoing investment in maintenance of the camera network and system. We've met these costs for the last three years, but the financial position now means that we have no budget to continue this non-statutory function beyond 31 July 2024.
This consultation aims to explore options for the new model of service, and gather feedback from members of the public and stakeholders to inform future decision making.
The current service offer includes:
- A CCTV network of cameras in Shrewsbury town centre and a 24-hour CCTV monitoring service 365 days a year
- CCTV searches
- Radio support for the Safer Shrewsbury Scheme (including Pub and Shop Watch, Town Rangers and town centre policing)
In 2023, there were 3,144 occasions where the CCTV team took control of a camera to actively monitor a situation, or were asked to retrieve footage. This includes both real time and reactive incidents, where evidence has been requested after an incident.
The CCTV service links to the out-of-hours calls service. There are no plans to reduce this element of service provision - it's a separate, statutory function, and as a result it will remain protected.
Proposed service reduction includes:
Changes to CCTV provision in Shrewsbury. This includes the options set out below. As part of this we're keen to understand whether partner organisations or other providers have suggestions for working differently in future, either taking over the service or working in partnership with us. The options being consulted on are as follows:
Option 1
Cameras record 24 hours a day, 365 days a year but with no active monitoring. The police will still be able to request footage to be reviewed and downloaded.
A 'best endeavours' approach, where there are substantial grounds to believe that an individual or the public is in danger - the team could do its best to provide live monitoring, dependent on available resource.
Partner agencies will be asked to contribute towards the cost of maintenance, replacement of cameras and hardware, and room hire.
Option 2
As option 1 but enhanced with some volunteer-led active monitoring. The police will still be able to request footage to be reviewed and downloaded.
A 'best endeavours' approach, where there are substantial grounds to believe that an individual or the public is in danger - the team could do its best to provide live monitoring, dependent on available resource.
Partner agencies will be asked to contribute towards the cost of maintenance, replacement of cameras and hardware, and room hire.
Option 3
Cease CCTV monitoring and recording altogether.
Option 4
As option 1 with additional resource of two FTE staff, to provide some active monitoring (approximately 75% of the time as rotas allow). This additional resource would require partner funding for the extra active monitoring resource.
A passive monitored CCTV system.
Partner agencies will be asked to contribute towards the cost of maintenance, replacement of cameras and hardware, and room hire, and towards the cost of staffing to allow the additional monitoring.
For transparency, our current preferred option is option 1. However, it's important to consult on all possible options and to invite public and partner views before any final decisions can be taken.
Partner organisations are encouraged to contribute responses to the consultation, including police and other public sector organisations operating in Shrewsbury and beyond, local businesses, voluntary and community sector services and many others with an interest in community safety.
The consultation will run for six weeks, opening on 18 July and closing on 4 September 2024. Please take time to look at the draft strategy document and complete the consultation survey, which you can access by clicking on the ‘How to get involved’ tab at the top of the page.
Documents
Share your thoughts with us by completing our survey.
Go to the survey »If you’d like the survey in an alternative format, please use the email below to request a copy, or call our customer services team on 0345 678 9000 and explain any support you need to allow you to respond.
You can also respond with any comments in writing:
- Email: Please title your email ‘CCTV consultation’ and email your comments to TellUs@shropshire.gov.uk
- Post: Feedback and Insight Team, Shropshire Council, Shirehall, Abbey Foregate, Shropshire SY2 6ND