Rotherham mobile CCTV cameras hit by mechanical problems

Rotherham Council spent £60,000 buying and deploying one mobile camera for each ward of Wath, Rotherham West, Rawmarsh, Swinton and Valley to boost existing CCTV.

Officers say buying and deploying the cameras took time - the financial process was lengthy, a contractor had to source and build them and the installation was “challenging” because new Community Action Partnerships were bedding in.

The first cameras were deployed in January 2019 but two currently have faults and are awaiting repair and a third needs an appropriate location.

Sam Barstow, head of community safety, says in a report: “At times units do develop faults and it is understood that repairs can often take time.

“This is often due to the requirement to source replacement parts for the units. The council does not hold a contract or agreement for servicing and repair and therefore targets are not in place for the time taken for repairs.

“Further consideration will be given to ongoing maintenance and repair within a wider full-system review of CCTV which will commence in April.”

The five wards were chosen following complaints from both councillors and residents.

In Rawmarsh there were a number of complaints about serious antisocial behaviour, violence, large groups of around 20 people gathering, drug abuse, drink associated crimes, safeguarding concerns, cars gathering in an evening playing loud music and littering.

Wath has suffered from high levels of anti-social behaviour with gangs of youth congregating and committing criminal damage.

There’s high levels of anti-social behaviour and crime within Rotherham West while in Swinton a number of reports have been made about anti social behaviour, youths gathering, alleged drug dealing and cars parking up.

And Valley has suffered from anti-social behaviour on the park.

The council says CCTV by itself is not a solution and is often accompanied by increased patrols, intelligence gathering, identifying offenders and issuing warnings.

The report adds: “Due to the nature of antisocial behaviour and the fact that the equipment is not hidden, it does not generally identify offences. In many cases, the units have a positive preventative effect.