Swindon CCTV monitoring could be reduced and lights dimmed in cuts

The council is proposing to dim some street lights by 20% and might turn off others completely in order to save money

Money-saving plans to dim street lights and leave CCTV cameras unmonitored in real-time have raised safety concerns.

Swindon Borough Council estimated its draft budget could save up to £195,000 on CCTV next year and up to £600,000 by dimming street lights by 20%.

But Labour councillor Marina Strinkovsky said victims of crime often felt reassured simply knowing CCTV was being monitored in real-time.

Cabinet member Kevin Parry assured police could still review the footage.

He also told the Local Democracy Reporting Service there would be no cut to the number of cameras covering the borough.

'Shouldn't impact safety'

"There's a difference between crime detection, and crime prevention," Ms Strinkovsky said.

"Without anyone watching live, the CCTV will only be useful if a crime takes place, and if it is reported, and if the police are inclined to look at the CCTV and if it captures anything.

"The people who are often victimised by the sort of crimes CCTV can prevent often say they feel safer if they know that someone is watching and can summon the police if something happens."

With regards to street lighting, Mr Parry said the council was looking at "tweaking the lights down by 20% in some areas - and that won't be noticed much at all".

"There have been some complaints the lights are too bright, so turning them down a notch shouldn't have an impact on safety," he added.

During a scrutiny meeting, he was pressed by councillor Jim Grant on whether any street lights would be switched off.

Mr Parry said that was still being assessed.

The draft budget will be put before councillors next week.