Gwent Police officers are to be equipped with body-worn cameras as part of a UK-wide trial funded by the Home Office.
The force is one of six to trial the cameras and has been awarded £155,000 to equip 360 of its officers with the technology.
The trial will test the equipment that uploads, secures and distributes the footage. They will also assess public reaction to the concept of camera-equipped Police Officers.
The money for the pilot scheme has come from the new £50 million Police Innovation Fund. The £1.4 million for trialling the cameras across the six Forces was approved last week by Theresa May, the Home Secretary, who has been an advocate of the technology.
The use of a small number of cameras was successfully trialled by Gwent Police in December as part of the ‘Townsafe’ initiative for night time economy crime in Caerphilly. This was funded by the Caerphilly Community Safety Partnership
Police and Crime Commissioner for Gwent Ian Johnston said: “I’m delighted that the force has been awarded this funding and I’m confident that the benefit of using these cameras and the associated technology will be realised in terms of criminal justice savings and in terms of Police Officer integrity and safety.
“Body-worn camera evidence is irrefutable and the principles of securing and preserving evidence are enhanced by them. They will strengthen cases going to the criminal courts.
“Scientific research also supports the evidence that body worn cameras can assist in de-escalating an incident when the offenders are made aware of its presence. In some cases, they could also provide evidence that will help those who feel aggrieved over the way they have been treated by the police and also to help protect police officers themselves from wrongful accusations.”
He added: “The wide-spread introduction of this technology also complements my police and crime plan for Gwent which aims to put victims of crime at the heart of everything we do and ensures that people here are less affected by crime and anti-social behaviour and are protected from serious harm. It also ensures that we can continue in our aim to provide the people of Gwent with a Police service that is value for money.”
Temporary Deputy Chief Constable for Gwent Police Force, Lorraine Bottomley, who heads up operational policing, said: “This is very welcome news. The technology offers benefits in terms of transparency, building trust with the public as well as allowing officers to have an accurate and verifiable digital record of incidents.
“Evidence from other force areas which have used this technology indicates that its can increase the number of early guilty pleas and successful prosecutions in relation to incidents investigated by the Police.
“This will provide more positive outcomes for victims of crime as well as generating considerable cost savings for the taxpayer in way of less protracted court hearings. Other Forces have also seen a decline in the number of vexatious or spurious complaints against officers which can and does waste a lot of precious police time and resources.”