CCTV cameras installed in Hilsea after spate of criminal activity over the summer months

The Portsmouth City Council-funded project as seen two sets of cameras erected along the coastal path: one overlooking Alexandra Park and another closer to Hilsea Lido.

Hilsea ward councillor Scott Payter-Harris said he hoped their presence would help tackle the problem.

‘These cameras have been paid for via capital schemes from the coastal defences team, however we’ve lobbied for them for a long period and put them in our budget amendments for many years, so it’s great to see that hard work does pay off,’ he said.

The cameras were originally due to be installed in June but issues connecting them to a power supply delayed their switch-on until last week.

Each system is made up of three cameras giving a wide coverage area along much of the shoreline from the lido to Alexandra Park in a bid to deter ongoing disorder.

Earlier this year, Hampshire and Isle of Wight Constabulary launched Operation Relief in a bid to curb issues of criminal damage, drug-related activity and public order offences being report, centred mainly around nearby Howard Road.

This was followed in May by its decision to issue a dispersal order covering the area in order to strengthen police powers in tackling the problem. The move gave the force the the ability to move people on from the area and stop them from returning to it within 48 hours.

Fellow Hilsea councillor Russell Simpson welcomed the new cameras but said more needed to be done to tackle the root cause of the problems.

‘There have been problems, going back at least five years, with people riding dirt bikes and scooters around the area and there are issues of graffiti which have been costing the council a lot to clear,’ he said. ‘Council officers have worked really hard to get funding for these cameras and I hope they make a difference.

‘What we also now need is a concerted effort from everyone to help stop these issues of anti-social behaviour. A police operation running for a few months isn’t enough to deal with probably a decade of problems.’