Biggest BWV pilot launched in London

Metropolitan Police Service (MPS) officers are to be equipped with body-worn video (BWV) cameras as part of a pilot aimed at improving policing in the capital.

The force launched the pilot today (May 8) and hopes the 500 BWV kits will support prosecutions with better evidence and reassure the public that officers are meeting the standards expected of them.

The decision was made following success in small-scale trials in other areas of London.

MPS Commissioner Sir Bernard Hogan-Howe said: “BWV will not only help us fight crime and support victims but help the Met to be more accountable.

“Our experience of using cameras already shows that people are more likely to plead guilty when they know we have captured the incident. That speeds up justice, puts offenders behind bars more quickly and protects potential victims.

“Video captures events in a way that can’t be represented on paper in the same detail and it has been shown the mere presence of this type of video can often defuse potentially violent situations without the need for force to be used.”

The pilot will see cameras distributed to ten London boroughs. The BWVs will also be used by firearms officers during training sessions with a view to later operational deployment.

Two response teams on each borough will wear the cameras, with the findings set to be evaluated by the Mayor’s Office for Policing and Crime and the College of Policing before any decision about a future roll-out is made.

Officers taking part have been issued with strict guidance about when cameras are to be used, which means they will routinely collect evidence in incidents such as domestic abuse and public order, as well as for potentially contentious interactions such as the use of stop and search.

The cameras will not be permanently switched on to ensure the public are not unnecessarily impeded, but they will be informed as soon as practical of any recording.

Hampshire Constabulary Chief Constable Andy Marsh, the National Policing lead for BWV, said: “BWV has the potential to transform policing.

“The trial by the MPS is the first study of its kind in the UK and has the potential to improve the quantity and quality of evidence that officers are able to capture at the scene of a crime, the transparency of their decision-making and the way officers and the public interact.”

BWVs have also been rolled out in other forces including Hampshire Constabulary, Leicestershire Police, Durham Constabulary, Thames Valley Police and Gwent Police. Earlier this year, the Home Secretary approved an additional £1.4 million funding to the forces to increase the use of BWV.

The money was awarded through the Government’s precursor fund of £20 million that was made available to police and crime commissioners ahead of the first full year of operation of its Police Innovation Fund that will be worth up to £50 million a year from 2014/15.