North Lanarkshire Council has reduced crime and anti-social behaviour using an internet protocol-based (IP) CCTV system.

The £1.3m project, developed and installed by ntl:Telewest Business , is one of the largest of its kind in Europe and the council has the backing of the police, fire and health services, as well as the local Scottish Enterprise organisation.

Maureen McConachie, head of regeneration and director of North Lanarkshire CCTV Limited, says the council wanted to create a safe environment for citizens to live and work, where businesses can operate without running the risk of vandalism and crime.

‘As a result of this development the crime rate has fallen as we continue to strive to make central Scotland one of the safest places in the UK,’ she said.

The system enables the viewing, management and recording of multiple CCTV schemes throughout the North Lanarkshire region.

Cameras have been installed across town centres, housing estates and schools as well as at business locations and many other sites.

Delivered over ntl:Telewest Business Metro Ethernet VPN, the system links all police stations back to a central, purpose-built location, and is managed 24 hours a day by locally-based ntl:Telewest Business engineers.

The council was one of the first in the UK to deploy CCTV. As well as being at the heart of operations for monitoring activity, the new system houses a police storm room that doubles as an emergency planning centre in the event of a disaster.

It ensures resilience with critical sites offered diverse connections onto the network, while a 2GB-fibre ring enables the transmission of high quality video streams and voice and data traffic.