CCTV screenshot
This week marks two years since the launch of the council’s expanded CCTV network following a much needed £2.3million investment in significantly upgrading Barnet’s safety infrastructure and increasing its reach. And it’s been proving its worth, with more than 7,200 incidents logged by the CCTV Control Room during 2024/25.
Since the new system went live, there have been an incredible 13,649 incidents logged, helping tackle a range of different forms of crime and anti-social behaviour. Partnership working with the Police has increased significantly over the past two years, with the control room having the ability to make images available to Police in real-time to allow quick and effective responses to ongoing incidents. The images provided by the cameras have also been invaluable in being able to carry out successful prosecutions, as evidence provided is of extremely high quality.
Just this year, the control room has worked with Community Safety Team (CST) colleagues to issue more than 120 fixed penalty notices for offences ranging from environmental crime (like fly tipping) to anti-social behaviour. And it’s not just crime - another important benefit of the cameras has been to flag welfare concerns to the emergency services, where someone is spotted having a medical emergency.
Following extra images coming on stream this year, there are now over 900 ‘images’ (or camera views) available to the control room, as well as 33 mobile deployable cameras, that are able to be put in anti-social behaviour hotspots or be used to tackle other community safety issues that arise throughout the year. The council is hoping to introduce further functionality to allow better detection of crime over the coming months.
Councillor Sara Conway, Cabinet Member for Community Safety, said: “The improvement and expansion of the borough’s CCTV network has been a major tenet of our work to keep Barnet safer over the last two years. As well as everything it does to help the Police and community safety colleagues, knowing that there is an expansive network that works well and is being constantly monitored 24/7 is a big reassurance for many residents.
“I look forward to improving the network further over the next year as we increase our armoury of tools to deal with those intent on committing crime and anti-social behaviour in Barnet.”
Paul Condren, Chief Inspector of Neighbourhood Policing for Barnet, added: “We are regularly grateful for the expanded CCTV network provided by Barnet Council. Whether it be supporting our efforts to reduce and detect crime, or even locating wanted offenders who had previously evaded capture - the ability to work effectively alongside this long-term valued partner and make use of this first-class service has been a huge asset in our local fight against criminality and anti-social behaviour.”
Notes to editors
Watch: Two years since launch of Barnet's CCTV network - YouTube
The clip shows a white vehicle tracked by CCTV after it was involved in a hit and run and failure to stop. Taken earlier this year, it shows how a vehicle involved in a hit-and-run was identified and tracked in real time by council and Police operatives. The Police intercepted the vehicle. The driver attempted to leave but collided with a member of the public’s vehicle and was promptly arrested. The driver was charged with driving without due care and attention, failing to provide a specimen of breath for analysis at the roadside and failing to stop for Police and at the scene of an accident.