Plans for security cameras to record damage to a North Shore school are on hold, angering police and the principal. Valerie Schuler reports
Following countless attacks of vandalism at her school, Birkdale North principal Helen Varney was looking forward to installing temporary surveillance cameras. But lack of money has delayed the
job. Since December last year, people have been gathering at the school for late night drinking sessions. Mrs Varney says the playgrounds have had to be closed some mornings because of broken glass while graffiti is a continuing problem. She hoped cameras would deter people from trashing the school grounds. "I'm surprised and very disappointed. We were really keen on the idea of a monitoring system," she says. "Do people not care about damage being done to schools?" Last month, Birkenhead community coordinator Jill Nerheny and police constable Grant Kenny asked the local community board to fund two portable closed circuit television surveillance (CCTV) cameras. The plan was to put the cameras, worth about $3000 each, in hotspots for limited periods, to catch criminals in the act. "There's so many uses for these cameras," says Mr Kenny. "We need solid evidence to make arrests." He says the cameras would help catch taggers and vandals in the act. They could also observe a suspected drug house. But Birkenhead-Northcote Community Board turned the request down. "They were happy to put $25,000 into the Northcote camera scheme, but not ours," says Mr Kenny. "It's a bit disappointing." Community board chairwoman Jennifer Yorke says the cameras may not comply with North Shore City Council's new CCTV policy. The policy, still in draft format, applies to systems and cameras owned or operated by or on behalf of the council. If the council funded the Birkenhead cameras, they would have to comply with the new policy, says councillor and community board member Grant Gillon. "There has to be a balance between people's privacy, public safety and crime resolution," says Mr Gillon. "{If there's to be covert filming, people have to be warned there's filming being carried out. "It could be that the policy has to be amended." But Mr Kenny and Mrs Nerheny are not giving up. They plan to ask the Lion Foundation and Birkenhead Licensing Trust for funding. "It's not a dead duck as far as we're concerned," says the community constable. "We will persevere to keep this community safe."
