A NUMBER of CCTV cameras in Worcester city centre have been “out of action” for months with fears it could put people’s safety at risk.
Safer Worcester, a group which aims to reduce anti-social behaviour in the city, said they had spotted at least three which were not working.
The group has not made public where they are situated, but speaking at a Worcester City Council meeting last Tuesday (March 31), Coun Lynn Denham said they were in “key locations” in the city centre.
And Coun Denham, who is a member of Safer Worcester, has called on council leaders to put them “back in action” in a bid to keep the city safe.
“At the last Safer Worcester meeting, great concern was expressed by those present, that at least three of our CCTV camera, in key locations, remain out of action after prolonged periods,” she said.
“The collaborative approach to the city centre enforcement assumes that the city council maintains a functional CCTV system, so what is the cabinet member doing to get these cameras back in action?”
In response, Coun David Wilkinson, cabinet member for safer and stronger communities for the city council, said he would look into the problem.
But he insisted if the cameras, which are monitored in Pershore, were faulty it would not leave a “black hole” in the city’s CCTV system which criminals can exploit.
“As you are aware there are 60 cameras in the Pershore control centre relating to Worcester and inevitably there are going to be problems,” he said.
“There is a comprehensive reporting system in place whereby the operators in Pershore report to officers in Worcester who then take up matters with the contractors.
“From time to time, there are problems that are more serious than the contractors can easily deal with.
He added: “I don’t want to identify the particular cameras which are down at the moment. But suffice to say that most parts of the city are covered by more than one camera so the very fact that one or two cameras are not functional does not necessarily create a black hole.”
