Harlow Council investing in CCTV across town in attempt to protect communities
Crime / Sun 13th Jul 2025 at 08:18am
HARLOW Council is installing a raft of new CCTV across the town as it delivers on its mission to protect our communities claims Harlow Council.
This year, as part of building Harlow’s future, the council will be expanding and upgrading its CCTV network. It is installing more high-definition cameras in identified crime hotspots and public spaces. By modernising systems and adopting smarter, integrated technology into its CCTV network, the council can more effectively play its part in tackling crime and antisocial behaviour by enabling real-time monitoring and rapid response, in partnership with the police.
At present the council operates over 200 cameras which cover areas such as residential flat blocks, shopping centres and hatches, the skatepark and Pets’ Corner. The council works closely with the police to provide evidence from the CCTV to bring those to justice.
New CCTV systems and supporting equipment are being installed at:
- Staple Tye housing developments
- Staple Tye Splash Park to cover the pumphouse
- The Stow car park at Mardyke/Minchen Road
- Amherst Lodge cycle track
- Old Harlow High Street
- Bush Fair Shopping Centre
And there will be more new kit installed in the future to further strengthen capability.
This is all part of Building Harlow’s Future, as the council works to prevent crime and antisocial behaviour, hand-in-glove with police, schools, charities and local leaders. It’s a part of building resilient communities that can feel safe, day and night, in every corner of Harlow.
JB
2025-07-13 09:36:31
Big brother is coming to town
Guy Flegman
2025-07-13 09:55:20
No thanks! What next, put up a fence around town to keep us all in. The UK has more surveillance cameras on its population than any other country in the world.
Ted
2025-07-13 12:25:21
Great idea , if you have nothing to hide you have no problems. Another good idea Labour did not have.
Resident
2025-07-13 13:08:59
what's the point when there's barely any police to enforce things or arrest anyone. and if anyone does get arrested it's a slap on the wrist at best. That said, what a sad state this town is in when the addition of more CCTVs is a thing to be lauded :(
Colleen Morrison
2025-07-13 14:58:22
IN 2007, when Blair was UK's Labour Prime Minister, Privacy International (PI) classified the UK "an Endemic Surveillance Society", in the same category as Russia, Singapore, China and the US. UK was so classified due to having the most surveillance cameras in the world, the government's ID card plans and UK's lack of government accountability. The PI report on this concluded that that the 2007 rankings "show an increasing trend among governments to archive data on the geographic, communications and financial records of all their citizens and residents. This trend leads to the conclusion that all citizens, regardless of legal status, are under suspicion.
John
2025-07-13 15:10:09
I've never committed any crime, I have nothing to hide. I still don't want to be watched and have surveillance following me. "I have nothing to hide" argument doesn't fit for me or many others.
Colleen Morrison
2025-07-13 15:14:26
Fast forward to 2025, and the very deceitful French President, Macron, is demanding that UK must have an ID card system. This year too, Privacy International has had to write to Starmer's Labour government demanding transparency on Technical Capability Notices. PI states that "the UK government has used its surveillance to issue a Technical Capability notice to Apple to hand over encrypted iCloud data, threatening the privacy and security of users all over the world. We are demanding transparency. Technical Capability Notices represent a disproportionate and intrusive surveillance power available to the government under the current UK surveillance regime. Technical Capability Notices are extremely secretive, and it is an offence for Apple to talk publicly about this or tell anyone about the existence or contents of the order. We are demanding transparency as widespread international media reporting and Apple’s own actions have rendered continued secrecy regarding the existence of the Technical Capability Notice moot." 2025 and UK citizens are still being treated as under suspicion. Disgraceful.
Tracy mahoney
2025-07-13 18:36:30
What load of bull. My 80 year old mother had her scooter stolen from outside her home. The police have footage from cctv and ring door bell but been told that if SHE doesn't attend court then they will drop the case!!!!
Paul
2025-07-13 19:02:44
Thwart facial recognition CCTV by wearing false beards or moustaches.
Raymond Adams
2025-07-13 20:06:17
Not enough cameras, such a lackluster announcement.
Pete
2025-07-13 22:22:24
Good stuff, those of you who are objecting, what would you propose to combat crime?
Pete
2025-07-13 22:27:17
Tracey, your point is concerning. A friend's car was broken into, the culprit was seen on camera and held his hands up to around 40 crimes. Why did your mother have to go to court?
Mickaic
2025-07-14 00:05:36
What a load of malarkey, we more cameras than china and they are scaling back
Ted
2025-07-14 07:34:24
John , if you have nothing to hide , then that's good , but for the many others you talk about , how do you know? Do you know all these many others personally. It makes me laugh when someone speaks for the many others.
Paul
2025-07-14 09:52:31
It's just another way for the government to spy on the British public as there is no trust whatsoever guess what this works both ways point is we have never trusted you especially this lacklustre Labour government!!
Andrew Harris
2025-07-14 10:15:30
We have money for CCTV and Facial Recognition but no money for a front counter police station where people might actually be able to talk to a person who can advise them and take notice of their situation. We are becoming more distant and remote as a society and our personal rights are seen as an inconvenience that can be ignored. Get more police on the streets walking and making themselves available to the public they should be serving.
Sarah Wilson
2025-07-14 11:06:27
Great idea!! Maybe this will deter criminals from antisocial behaviour if there's a higher chance of them being brought to justice. We ALL have a right to feel safer in our neighborhood - as Tesco quotes..."every little helps"
Steve
2025-07-14 11:11:06
Has anyone seen London lately? Youths on scooters/bikes wearing balaclavas and nicking anything they want. CCTV footage is uploaded to social media and merely used for entertainment purposes.
Ted
2025-07-14 11:58:17
Well said Peter and Sarah. If any of the people on this site who are complaining, I wonder how they would feel if they had an item stolen from them. My bet they would complain where is the cctv recordings. Cctv may not always find the criminals , but it's better than having nothing at all
Simon
2025-07-14 12:24:30
Not sure this really works, we ALSO need more police on the beat. There is no substitute. CCTV images are always very poor and people can hardly ever be identified as a result. Criminals also wear coverings to further prevent identification. Coordination with the police is a solution.
Christophe Uhlin
2025-07-14 20:51:14
A few years ago, I was confronted with youngsters who tried to steal my newly expensive acquired bicycle, in the Square market. A kind shop owner offered me refuge in his shop but the thugs followed me in and kicked me black and blue. Despite CCTV cameras ,NO one got prosecuted. Harlow is nothing but a jungle for thugs. Please prove me otherwise.
Seamus
2025-07-15 01:03:55
Perhaps they could release the video of the paving crew in the town centre? You could get David Attenborough to narrate it . "And here we see the very rare paving laying sloth. Their ability to cover the ground with movement is not possible to see with the naked human eye so we've used time lapse camera's"
Adam
2025-07-15 02:26:45
Ted etc al has everyone forgotten how the petty tyrants in the council closed down the UK a few years ago for no reason but panic. The same people are still sadly in the council one is the chair. We do not need these petty tyrants having the ability to spy on us remotely. It is not for our safety it is for thier control. Want safer communities target those who cause the issues but that would solve the issue which is the last thing those in power ever want.
TonyB
2026-01-01 01:25:35
Once I attended a local police meeting at the STOW, with the Police Crime Commissioner as chair, there I asked if C.C.T.V. was operating within the town and was it being monitored 24 hours a day. The meeting was full of Conservative Councilours, I faced a whole room of nodding people. Later after talking to Police I learned that it only operated within the town centre, so you could be raped, murdered or robbed anywhere else in Harlow by anyone from miles away and the Police would either spend many hours looking for someone or give up looking for who raped or killed you.
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