Dartford Borough Council CCTV system became operational in October 1996 with 21 cameras covering the Town Centre. Within the first year of operation, the police reported a 33% reduction in crime.
Following a successful Home Office bid, the system was then extended to include the A226, Temple Hill and Alamein Gardens. Dartford became the first in Kent to move to complete digital recording in the spring of 2006.
The Council have continued to improve and increase coverage which has been extended to include a wider coverage of the town centre and areas listed above.
In 2026, 30 years on from where we began, we are proud to run a professional service that boasts some 200 CCTV cameras that now covers our Sheltered Housing schemes, Copperfields Walk. All these permanent camera locations are linked directly back via to our state-of-the-art Control Room based in Dartford.
The CCTV Control Room operators also have access to mobile CCTV cameras that are deployable and can be placed in various locations throughout the borough with live pictures beamed back via the mobile 5G network.
In 2025 the CCTV control room was upgraded for future expansion and partnership working and had a further upgrade in 2026. All our operators are vetted and SIA qualified licenced officers who work around the clock monitoring the CCTV system.
As part of Dartford Borough Council's Community Safety Unit, we work closely with Kent Police, Metropolitan Police, British Transport Police, the retail security group Dartford Town Against Crime (DTAC) and enforcement teams across the borough. The aim is to reduce crime within the town centre and wider surrounding areas and provide a safer environment for residents, visitors and traders alike.
Codes of practice and data retention
The operating principles of Dartford Borough Council's CCTV system is governed by its Codes Of Practice. Please follow this link if you are wish to view the Code.
Digital footage is retained for at least 31 days (unless part of an ongoing investigation) and can only be requested by the Police, partner organisations or a via a subject access request.
Insurance companies can obtain copies of footage upon request and payment of a fee. The cost of reviewing our footage records and providing a digital copy of relevant footage (if available) is £70.90 If you are an insurance company and would like to request CCTV footage. You will need to pay via a credit/debit card.
Body Worn Cameras:
The Council uses 4K body worn cameras for its enforcement activities and for its staff’s personal safety and welfare. The recordings provide video and audio evidence of interactions between its staff, its contractors and members of the public. All recordings are incident specific. Clear signage is displayed, for example on an individual’s uniform, to show that recording is taking place and whether the recording includes audio.
Our CCTV and body worn cameras are overt methods implemented to promote public reassurance, capture best evidence, modify behaviour, prevent harm and deter people from committing crime and/or engaging in anti-social behaviour. More information on the use of body worn cameras is included within the Body Worn Video Policy.