Derbyshire fire service introduce bodycams to help keep crew members safe
£90,000 has been spent on the bodycams which are launching across the service from today (May 1)
Last updated 15th Jun 2024
Derbyshire Fire and Rescue Service are introducing bodycams - with £90,000 worth of equipment to help protect crews and provide evidence when it's needed.
The force say they are introducing the body worn video cameras after firefighters in England and Scotland saw over 3,800 attacks against them between 2015 and 2020, so in a bid to protect the mental and physical health of crews, they are now implementing the tech across the force.
From today (1 May 2023), body worn video cameras will be worn by Operational Firefighters, Community Safety Officers and Fire Safety Teams to capture both audio and video recording.
They say it's also a great opportunity to learn from challenging incidents, as well as celebrate and share good practice, and record evidence for investigation following fires and other duties.
Group Manager David Diggins said: ‘’The benefits body worn video camera footage will bring to the Service can really transform the how we do things.
"Allowing our crews to continually improve through debriefing and learning will increase the effectiveness of service delivery to our communities.
"We also believe our communities will support these measures as an effective means to protect our firefighters when they are trying to protect them, their homes, and their businesses.”
The use of body worn video cameras by Derbyshire Fire & Rescue Service will be line with Home Office Principles and will be overt, meaning camera wearers will declare when recording is taking place.
All footage obtained will be managed appropriately and be compliant with general data protection regulations.