Case Studies
Project Background
Birmingham City Council installed our Redeployable CCTV cameras at three fly-tipping hotspots as part of a prevention project after multiple unsuccessful attempts to reduce this long-standing crime through various methods.
The three areas were faced with similar issues of fly-tipping, however, the impact for each differed. Birmingham City Council wanted to help improve the location for those in the surrounding area, to reduce hazards and discourage the financial impact of illegal activity on them.
The aim was to utilise our Redeployable Cameras, a universal security method for fly-tipping, along with signage to deter crime and reduce the number of incidents across the three hotspots.
The Challenge
For one hotspot, fly-tipping had been an issue for over 10 years, facing regular issues of bulky items such as sofas, mattresses and fridges as well as household waste being dumped onto the road outside a primary school and nursery.
Another location based between a mix of residential and commercial property had similar challenges, causing an impact to residents and business owners in the surrounding area due to the hazards that fly-tipping can create.
Overall, all three locations were having impacts on the functionality of the road, residents and visitors who utilised the areas, businesses and Birmingham City Council who were left to pick up the consequences caused from this.
Fly-tipping costs the taxpayer around £58m in clean-up costs as councils including Birmingham City Council must organise for it to be removed using their funding. Therefore, when Birmingham Council received the funding, their aim was to reduce this cost on the council and help recoup some of the financial loss caused by the crime.
The Solution - Redeployable CCTV Cameras
Birmingham City Council invested in our Redeployable CCTV Cameras as part of their prevention project, targeting three of the worst locations for fly-tipping.
The quick instalment, wirelessly connectivity, and high-quality video analytics allowed for potential threats and incidents to be monitored, whilst the PTZ technology and zoom in capabilities were able to capture video evidence to be used in future.
The additional features of audio deterrence appealed further to Birmingham City Council as it allowed them to implement further preventative measures to stop fly-tipping from taking place.
This versatile security solution, the Council could redeploy the cameras elsewhere in future to manage new hotspots or for other crimes faced by local authorities.
The additional benefits provided by WCCTV, specifically the fully-managed service, allow the burden of responsibility to be removed from the City Council and utilised elsewhere.
The Result
Based on the pre-intervention data, as well as from street crew remarks, there was a noticeable difference in the amount of rubbish being cleared off the streets and from the three hotspot locations.
Following the installation of WCCTV’s Redeployable Cameras, in one hotspot there was a dramatic reduction in fly-tipping with an 83% decrease seen post-intervention. Neighbourhood Enforcement Officers feedback mirrored this decrease as well when patrolling the various hotspots.
Along with signage and education completed by the City Council, there were multiple reports on the improved cleanliness of the streets. This displayed the positive impact it had on the residents and visitors in the surrounding areas.
In addition to the original purpose of the cameras, the installment helped identify issues that the Council were not previously aware of. In one hotspot, it was found the black bin bags believed to be fly-tipping were missed refuse collections and this could be resolved quickly for the area whilst reducing costs for Birmingham City Council.
Furthermore, it began to support the instigation of enforcement action for those still committing fly-tipping crime.
Overall, the use of Redeployable Cameras helped push the fly-tipping prevention project to provide a long-term crime deterrence that can rolled out further in future.
