Cheshire East Council looks set to consult residents on cost-cutting proposals for its CCTV provision which could see the service reduced or even axed completely, writes Belinda Ryan.
The council’s service currently operates on a 24/7 basis, 365 days of the year, including numerous cameras in around Nantwich town centre.
During the 17-month period between April 2023 and October 2024, the CCTV service dealt with more than 20,000 incidents, 50% of which were as a result of direct observation by a CCTV operator.
But now the council is looking at ways to slash its costs.
Currently, CCTV has a gross budget of £684,185 which includes staffing costs of £519,730.
Town and parish councils like Nantwich Town Council help to contribute £232,000, leaving a net cost of £452,000 a year.
This pays for 165 fixed cameras and 25 mobile/deployable cameras which are used in hot spot areas to target incidents like anti-social behaviour and fly-tipping.
The CCTV control room also monitors 138 additional cameras in car parks, retail parks and some council facilities.
A report to next week’s meeting of the environment and communities says: “Studies indicate that CCTV cameras act as a deterrent as well as a means of detection, preventing crime from occurring in the first instance.
“Studies conclude that actively monitored cameras are more effective not just in detecting and catching criminals, but increasing the perception of the risk of getting caught.
“The service provides and supports a wide range of functions and services on a 24/7/365 basis.
“Activities are not just crime prevention, camera observation and evidence provision but an extension of other council services including highways, housing, regulatory services etc.
“In these circumstances the CCTV service acts as an out-of-hours contact point reducing the need for separately funded arrangements.”
Options which could be consulted on – but will be discussed at committee – range from maintaining the service as it is, to reducing the number of staff monitoring hours to ceasing all CCTV operations.
The report adds the most significant demand for work through the CCTV service is Cheshire Police.
“This is through surveillance work and the demand for evidence packages to support formal action,” it states.
“An approach has therefore been made to the police and crime commissioner to discuss whether there is the opportunity for more sustainable ongoing funding to the Cheshire East CCTV service, considering the level of usage by the police force in discharging its own duties.”
The matter will be discussed at Thursday’s (January 30) meeting of the environment and communities committee which takes place at 10am at Macclesfield Town Hall.
Just an other example of how much respect this council has for it’s residents, they are totally inept, the list of bad management and decisions which have been made seems endless, we all need to wake up and realise services will get worse and your tax will keep going up.
Remember this when you get the chance to vote, this is a Labour led council and has been for a long time,not a good advert for our current government.
So they may stop CCTV to save but can pay somebody thousands of pounds a week to sort their finances out and now they want to increase council tax by y 9% I think they need to take a massive pay cut first and for most.
Hello Kate Thomas.
You are absolutely spot on in your comments.
Keep up the good work.
How about NOT feeling safe in the community. Wouldn’t want to visit Nantwich in the evening if CCTV is scrapped. CEC priorities are up their arse, as just read article, they continuing to pay pregnant women to stop smoking whilst pregnant, yet will do away with CCTV??????
A troop of monkeys could do better job than CEC councillors. Are they all on substances.
PRIORITIES.
Where are the sensible priorities of this hideous council anymore…?? Nantwich nowadays has a known presence of drug running youths, machetes being found, suspicious deaths in lakes…need i go on!!! No police station, no police presence on the streets and now proposal of no cctv!!! It appears CEC are determined to absolutely run Nantwich and Crewe down to the ground in every way! All because of their incredibly bad financial management, the locals have to suffer it!!
This service is essential to the towns and I know from personal experience the expertise of the camera operators and the overall deterrent effect that the cameras can have. With cutbacks to the number of police patrolling our towns this service has become even more necessary. We regard the excellent team at camera control as our allies.
I have been informed may not correctly, that the CCTV is not working. I have no evidence either way perhaps the Town Council or Cheshire East Council can clarify?
Security cameras are essential in Nantwich Town Centre to support effective policing. It will save money in long run, this is a sensible project to support. Last year I reported an individual riding a derestricted electric bike in Nantwich Town Centre. at excessive speed. It could have resulted in a serious incident. The call was not made by 999, however the Police were able to review the CCTV Naturally I was not informed of the outcome. It is sad to say it is part of essential and effective policing ensuring those individuals who break the law are held accountable.
I see very few Police Officers walking through the town, good old fashioned Policing has disappeared, so the right technology is the only way forward.
There are many ways that Cheshire East and the Town Council can save money, this is not one of them.
@Bob: Nantwich a cesspit? You really can’t be serious.
CCTV never deters crime as seen by the cesspit Nantwich has become
A quick analysis of the costs says to me that the staffing costs for 365/ 24 hour monitoring is not excessive. Indeed, I consider they are very good and are being managed effectively. I feel sure that CEC could find a less soft target. I have experience of CCTV monitoring on a smaller scale and running a central control unit on a larger operation.
Use the money you were going to give the people giving up smoking to keep the CCTV running. Cutting crime should take preference over molly coddling people who haven’t got the willpower to give up the cigarettes.
Get your priorities right councillor’s.
If you haven’t got the common sense to make these decisions, put it to the council tax payers vote !!
Absolutely they should be retained. Vital for some sort of security & resolution
Personally, I don’t have a problem with security cameras, but there are enough layers of uncertainty to make you wonder at their effectiveness.
– Does the camera capture the event at all?
– Are they monitored well enough to initiate action?
– Are the pictures of a usable quality?
– Will the police/council act?
– If so, will charges be brought?
– Will the crime ever be brought to court?
– Will the defendent be acquitted?
– Will any sentence be appropriate?
Our news and media report unspeakable crimes every day (and such news would have been unimaginable in my youth) and surely nobody would object to effective security measures, but I’m not sure the deterrent effect alone is sufficient justification for the expense
Are Nantwich’s cameras effective? Maybe not, but they should either be retained or brought to a condition where they produce clear and useful evidence.
If we can’t/won’t do that, then we have to question their use.
Awesome…..so people can steal cigarettes without fear of being caught on CCTV……and get paid for having done so.
Paying 30k business rates for a shop. Still not enough for a council to keep the high street safe.