November 2011
Featured in this insight: Local & regional government, Police, crime & community safety
Survey finds increase in public support for CCTV following August riots: A recent survey commissioned by the British Security Industry Association (BSIA) has demonstrated a positive shift in the public’s perception of CCTV following the August riots.
In total, 76% of those surveyed said that having seen the destructive behaviour that erupted, they now feel safer knowing that CCTV is in operation in public areas. In addition, 62% of respondents say they would actually like to see more CCTV in their local area.
This marks a change in the historical ‘Big Brother’ controversy around the use of CCTV systems to ensure the protection of the general public and infrastructure in town centres. The technology has resulted in over 3,000 arrests during post-riots crackdowns to date.
Simon Adcock, Vice-Chairman of the BSIA’s CCTV Section, commented: “The CCTV operations following the riots in London, Manchester and other parts of the UK have demonstrated how recent developments in surveillance have allowed the technology to become even more accurate when identifying and tracking down culprits."
He further explained: “Moreover, CCTV images enabled officers to locate where items carrying forensic evidence could be found, for example by tracking drinks cans from recordings of the moment and location of disposal.”
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