The London Borough of Islington has installed a Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP)-enabled CCTV help point kiosk to tackle a crime hotspot.
The kiosk in Holloway, supplied by iPlus, is fitted with a 24-hour help button allowing the user to speak to staff in the council's 24-hour CCTV control room using VoIP.
Staff can then focus the cameras on the kiosk and talk to the user over VoIP to establish a course of action.
‘The kiosk offers help on a level not available anywhere else in London - the potential for future development is great,’ said councillor Marisha Ray, Islington Council's executive member for community safety.
‘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,’ said Ray.
Islington Council last year saw the expansion of the ‘Technology Mile’, taking it from The Angel down to Highbury Corner and along Holloway Road, making it the largest municipal wireless broadband network in London. The network provides residents with free internet access as well as access to information about council services.
Islington was also an early pioneer of iPlus Points, a network of eight kiosks in the borough offering residents information on local council services using touch screen navigation.
The kiosks allow users to access to internet based services, send and receive emails, find out about council services and look at and print off street maps. Residents and visitors in Islington can use the kiosks and the wireless network free of charge, 24x7.
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