iPlus kiosk fights crime in London

Islington Council and Cityspace have installed a new generation iPlus ‘Help Point’ information kiosk in Holloway.

The first of its kind in London and the South East, the kiosk is fitted with a help button, which allows the user to speak to staff in the council`s 24-hour CCTV control room using VoIP (Voice over Internet Protocol).

When the button is pressed, CCTV staff are alerted to focus the cameras on the kiosk. They can immediately see what’s happening and can talk to users via the Internet to get more details before deciding the right course of action. The help point demonstrates how the council is harnessing cutting edge technology to help fight crime in Islington.

Cllr Marisha Ray, Islington Council`s executive member for community safety, said: “We are excited by this kiosk, which offers help on a level not available anywhere else in London. The potential for future development is great. Our staff will do everything possible to assist anyone who uses the help point – this may include notifying the police or transferring images to the police monitor so they can quickly view the scene.

“Crime in Islington is falling and we remain committed to doing everything necessary to help it to continue to fall. We hope that the help point will be a reassuring presence to help people feel safer, especially vulnerable people, whilst acting as a deterrent for criminals.”