Forces to begin £1m rollout of BWV

The Warwickshire and West Mercia strategic policing alliance is to begin a £1 million rollout of body-worn video (BWV) cameras in the New Year.

Firearms and Taser-trained officers at Warwickshire Police and West Mercia Police will be among the first to receive the equipment, followed by patrol officers, with all frontline operational officers – including those in safer neighbourhood teams – being equipped with BWV during the remainder of 2017.

Warwickshire police and crime commissioner (PCC) Philip Seccombe said “this significant investment in new technology” was great news, both for frontline police officers and also for the public.

“Body-worn cameras will help officers to achieve better outcomes and capture important evidence to bring cases to court,” he added.

“Speaking to officers, I know this is something that they welcome. BWV can also help to enhance their safety when they deal with challenging situations, as people often modify their behaviour and become less aggressive when they know they are being recorded on camera and that evidence can be used in court.

“Having a clear and irrefutable picture of what has happened in any incident is valuable, not only from an evidential perspective, but also because it provides the public with a record of how the police have acted. This greater openness and transparency will be very beneficial, for example when dealing with complaints against officers, where I believe it will help to reduce the numbers of illegitimate allegations being made, while at the same time allowing the thorough investigation of legitimate complaints to be carried out in a much more efficient and timely way.”

He said introducing the technology will “require a phased rollout”, but by the end of 2017 they will be in a position to see “frontline officers in all parts of the force fully equipped”.

The rollout of BWV is part of the PCC’s commitment in his new police and crime plan to invest in a “major programme of technology modernisation across Warwickshire Police”, which includes upgrades in mobile technology and improved IT and telephony systems.

Mr Seccombe said the introduction of BWV cameras will also play an important role in helping to boost public confidence in policing. He said the video and audio evidence captured can be used to support criminal prosecutions and the devices are designed to make it very clear to the public when they are being recorded.

West Mercia PCC John Campion said the technology has been shown to have a significant impact in other forces, where they have reduced complaints against police officers, helped prevent crimes occurring and provided clear evidence of incidents when required.

“By making sure our police have the tools they need to do their difficult jobs to the best of their abilities, it will make much better use of their time and resources all round,” he added.

“This technology is also about reassuring our communities and giving them confidence. The cameras provide clarity and evidence about what has happened at incidents involving the police, which I know will also be beneficial for officers.”