New CCTV police van for Nottingham crime hotspots 'not a good sign'
A new CCTV van launched by police to tackle anti-social behaviour in Nottingham is a "bad sign" of the state of the city, residents near a problem spot say. Last week, Nottinghamshire Police unveiled the vehicle, which has cameras with a 360-degree view and are capable of seeing faces from more than 1,500 feet away.
The force is deploying the van in a bid to tackle anti-social behaviour across certain neighbourhoods in the city. The van, which will be staffed by officers, has six cameras and a telescopic mast which can reach a height of more than three metres.
Police said the vehicle will be sent to areas identified by residents of having a significant or emerging anti-social behaviour problem. This could include areas such as Sherwood, Bulwell town centre and Forest Recreation Ground, where the van was launched on Thursday, February 20.
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Footage collected by the van can also be viewed remotely from the force control room, allowing for real-time information to be passed to officers. Residents in Forest Fields had mixed opinions on the £130,000 project, which is mainly funded by a Home Office grant.
Lex Comber, who lives in Foxhall Road, said the project was a "symbol of how society is becoming". 'We've got cameras at the top of the street and dodgy stuff goes on but nobody does anything about it.
"It's a misdirection of resources. Why don't they put some police on the ground?," said the 59-year-old university lecturer.
'That's the real issue. It's a symbol of how society is becoming, it's a symbol of unwillingness to tackle problems on the ground. Kids aren't bothered about getting nicked so it's a deterrent to what? It's still not a solution.'
Mr Comber added: 'There's far too much CCTV already, you go to Germany and they're amazed at the amount of surveillance we have. It gives an image of security, but doesn't really do much to prevent crime other than something like shoplifting."
Dominic Pote, 48, was more open to the idea but said he would also rather see investment made elsewhere. 'I generally don't think surveillance is good, but the way things are maybe it's sometimes necessary. It's good if it leads to things being resolved and deters people from doing things," he said.
'In some ways, it's not a good sign. I'd rather have a presence of officers on the streets. I think you feel safe if you've got a good sense of community. I'd rather see investments in other places, rather than let's stick a camera there.
'We've had all sorts of things. We've had all sorts of things on this street, we've seen fights and people shouting at each other. We've had someone dump something with unknown objects in it and right on our door."
Rich Glover, a 57-year-old support worker, said it sounded like a good idea. 'If they can deal with the crime in the area then it's another string to their bow. Fly-tipping and stuff like that," he said.
'I'd feel assured. I'm sure if something like that was in the area they would be put at ease.'
Neighbourhood Inspector Paul Ferguson, who is responsible for getting the project off the ground, said: 'Residents want to feel safe in their neighbourhoods and shouldn't have to experience this type of behaviour where they live and work. That's why we are committed to sorting this problem out.
'With this new piece of equipment, there will be no place to hide. This new vehicle will not replace uniformed officers who will continue to patrol these areas. However, it provides us with a full picture of the area, allowing us to zoom in so we can capture a problem, sometimes before it occurs.
'This is also not a van that we will just leave in an area like a mobile CCTV camera. It will be occupied by specially trained officers who will be actively searching for offenders. We couldn't be clearer as a force. We won't tolerate ASB in our neighbourhoods."
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