A new £100,000-plus CCTV system is now up and running – several months later than planned – and helping in the fight against crime.
The state-of-the-art cameras in Spalding are now being monitored 24/7 from a central control room and several arrests have already been made as a result.
Cameras were due to “go live” in June, but the switch on was delayed while some changes were made to street furniture to maximise the efficiency of the cameras.
Work is still ongoing to fine-tune the system to ensure they are in the best possible location for picture quality and signal strength.
Further cameras are also installed and recording in Holbeach and Crowland, while councillors in Sutton Bridge and Long Sutton are assessing the early successes of the cameras before making a decision whether or not to join.
South Holland district councillor Gary Taylor, whose portfolio includes CCTV, is confident they will be impressed and encouraged to sign up.
He also hopes the scheme could spread to smaller South Holland villages, including Whaplode and Moulton, in the future.
He said: “There is still work to be done to fine-tune the system and make it 100 per cent, but it is up and running and in good order.
“We are now looking at whether the cameras are in the best place and refining it – then we can turn our attention to other towns and villages.
“Hopefully Long Sutton and Sutton Bridge will join as I want the system to benefit the whole district.
“Even smaller villages such as Moulton and Whaplode could be covered eventually with just a small increase in parish precepts to cover the cost.
“It’s not expensive and can be a really useful deterrent to all sorts of crime, including environmental crimes such as littering and fly-tipping, as well as providing valuable evidence when a crime is committed.
“The new system is monitored 24 hours a day, seven days a week from the control room in Boston, which is obviously something we didn’t have before and is a big improvement.
“Previously the CCTV was monitored by volunteers, who all worked really hard but there wasn’t always someone available – we don’t have that concern anymore.
“I have been told the cameras in Spalding have already led to at least one arrest, and there have probably been more, so it is doing what it is supposed to.”
The new cameras provide high definition images will make for much better identification.
Using the cameras’ 36x zoom function, it’s possible to identify a piece of detail such as a vehicle registration from 200 yards away.
Funding for the upgraded scheme has been assisted by grants from the office of the Lincolnshire Police and Crime Commissioner (£56,000) and Lincolnshire County Council (£18,000).
Monitoring costs for the current number of cameras will be a maximum of £32,000 per year.
