No benefit of costly CCTV

Letters

No benefit of costly CCTV

Friday, 31 October 2008

RE: “Concierge cuts ‘will fuel crime’”, South London Press, October 24).

Lambeth council, by cutting our budgets, is fuelling crime.

Our estate has had CCTV installed for a number of years (although only turned on last November, I believe).

My service charge this year went up from £200 to nearly £600. Although the CCTV is recording, it is not staffed. So where is my £400 going?

I believe it’s into the ever-increasing failures of the housing department.

Our TMO budget has been slashed again and again, resulting in having to make four staff redundant.

From April 1, 2008, when residents of the Ethelred [Kennington] started to pay our extra service charge for CCTV recording (and this does not include the added extra charges for the door entry systems or video/audio links), 27 crimes were documented up to last month.

They were reported to Lambeth police and possibly recorded by our CCTV.

However, although our safer neighbourhood team has access to the CCTV room, they cannot staff it 24 hours a day – and why should they? – so these recorded crimes are not being dealt with.

I was told that the extra service charge was an estimate.

We are still waiting to receive our estate accounts for 2007/08, due in September 2008. (the previous year accounts were a shocking 18 months late) and yet they are guessing an amount for CCTV which in effect is useless as it’s not staffed.

I am £400 poorer each year and services are cut on my estate so I just ask one question to Lambeth council on behalf of my friends and neighbours: Where is our money going?”

John Roberts

Resident on Ethelred Tenants Management Organisation

Kennington