03/29/2024

Wales News Online

Local & National News for Wales

SCORES of CCTV cameras in Swansea will need to be replaced because the current system is reaching the end of its working life.

Deputy council leader Clive Lloyd told a meeting that Honeywell – the company responsible for the cameras – was no longer investing in fixes for the council-operated devices.

Referring to the current CCTV system throughout the city, Cllr Lloyd said: “We are confident that it will get us through the next 12 to 18 months.”

He said Honeywell would continue to maintain the camera system during this time but that no upgrades would be carried out.

Cllr Lloyd, who was speaking at a council scrutiny meeting, said it was likely that the replacement system would work off 5G and wi-fi, which is being rolled out across the city centre.

The cameras were installed in 1994. Just over 60 of them cover the city centre and other busy areas, including Woodfield Street in Morriston.

Footage is recorded 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and monitored from a control centre.

In addition, a further 30 housing department cameras monitor estates in Townhill, Penlan, Blaenymaes and Sketty Park, among others, while more cameras cover the Civic Centre, Guildhall and other council-run buildings.

CCTV coverage of the top half of High Street is being reviewed following a multi-agency meeting last week, attended by council leader Rob Stewart among others.

Cllr Lloyd told the scrutiny committee that High Street had better infrastructure than it did five years ago, but there were still issues that needed resolving.

“It has a good story to tell in terms of business and capital investment,” he said.

“There is a lot of work still to do.”

Referring to its nomination this week for a best British high street award, which prompted a few chuckles from the committee, Cllr Lloyd said: “Hopefully it will win the best high street award in the future.”

The deputy leader also referred to young people’s workshop in Swansea about safety priorities, which brought up concerns about bullying, substance misuse, homophobia and online safety.

The report before the committee said: “These were significantly different to traditional safety areas of anti-social behaviour and arson.”

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