West Lothian schools have been given the green light to keep cameras that have been installed in school toilets and changing rooms and to install more cameras if needed to keep an eye on unruly students.
Councillors approved the policy of allowing schools to install cameras in the sink areas and changing rooms if staff and parents support the plans.
This reverses an earlier decision to remove the cameras which had been installed at two area schools already. There had been complaints but on reviewing the matter, it was decided that it was an issue for the individual schools to decide.
SNP education chief, councillor Andrew Miller, told the West Lothian Courier: “Head teachers have stressed the value of CCTV in toilet areas to deter vandalism, smoking and other indisciplines. They are also popular with the majority of pupils.”
Anti-CCTV organisation Big Brother Watch were disappointed that the council reversed its decision.
Big Brother Watch has emailed Cllr Miller asking him to explain the decision.
Editor’s comment:
Big Brother Watch claim that they aren’t anti-CCTV per se and yet every time there is a story about CCTV being used as part of wider measures to deal with crime and anti-social behaviour they denounce the decision makers.
They claim to support fair and proportionate use of CCTV and yet they are unwilling to accept, in this and other cases, that a decision has been taken at a very local level that the use of CCTV is necessary.
Why don’t they trust people with local knowledge to make informed decisions about how they choose to tackle their own problems?
