¾«¶«Ó°Òµ

Date reviewed by Health, Safety and Security Sub-Committee: 5 October 2023  
Date reviewed by Works and Accommodation Committee: 12 November 2023  
Date reviewed by College Council: 17 January 2024 

 

1. Introduction

1.1 The purpose of this Policy is to regulate the management, operation and use of the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) system at ¾«¶«Ó°Òµ Cameras are used to monitor activities within College buildings, on its sites, its car parks and other public areas to identify criminal activity actually occurring, anticipated, or perceived, and for the purpose of securing the safety and well-being of the College, together with its Fellows, staff, students and visitors. 

1.2 CCTV monitoring and recording systems will only be installed in or on College property when this has been reviewed and approved by the College Security Sub Committee. 

1.3 The system comprises a number of fixed and fully functional (Pan/Tilt/Zoom) cameras located in buildings and externally around the College’s courts and associated satellite sites at Harvey Court, the Boathouse, Sportsground and student residences. These are monitored by appropriate personnel. 

1.4 The CCTV policy will be registered with the Information Commissioner under the terms of the Data Protection Act 2018. The College’s use of CCTV complies with the requirements of the Data Protection Act. 

1.5 This policy document will be subject to review bi-annually to include consultation as appropriate with interested parties. 

1.6 The CCTV system is owned by the College. 

1.7 Independently installed and operated CCTV systems by staff/students are not permitted on any College property and where found actions will be taken to close these systems down. 

2. Objectives 

2.1 The objectives for the use of CCTV on College premises are as follows. 

(a) Protect College property. 

(b) Ensure a safer environment within the College. 

(c) Support the Police in a bid to deter and detect crime, by providing evidence in support of an enquiry or prosecution. 

(d) Assisting in providing evidence to authorised officers of ¾«¶«Ó°Òµ College and/or to a Fellow, member of staff or student against whom disciplinary or other action is, or is likely to be, taken due to an allegation of a breach of College statutes, regulations or staff handbook. 

3. Operation of the CCTV system

3.1 Management of the system 

3.1.1 The CCTV operating system is administered and managed by the Head Porter in accordance with the principles and objectives expressed in this College policy document. 

3.1.2 The day-to-day management is the responsibility of both the Department Management Team (DMT) during the working week and the ‘on call’ duty Porter outside normal hours and at weekends. 

3.1.3 All cameras are monitored on the respective site where they operate, but can be monitored by authorised personal on computers within the Porters' Department by use of the ‘CCTV Window’ programmes and by the College IT Department. 

3.1.4 The CCTV system is operational 24 hours a day, 365 days of the year. 

3.1.5 If out-of-hours emergency maintenance is required, the duty Porter must contact a member of the DMT in order for a call out to be authorised. 

3.1.6 Emergency procedures will be used when it becomes necessary to call the Emergency Services. 

3.1.7 Warning signs, as required by the Code of Practice of the Information Commissioner, are placed at all access routes to areas covered by the College’s CCTV cameras. 

3.1.8 Liaison meetings may be held with all bodies involved in the support of the system. 

3.2. System control - Monitoring procedures 

3.2.1 On a daily basis a member of the DMT, in liaison with the College IT Department, checks and confirms the efficiency of the system, ensuring that: 

• the cameras are functional 

• the equipment is properly recording 

3.2.2 Access to the CCTV System is strictly limited to the DMT, the Duty Porters and specific authorised persons. Unauthorised persons are not permitted to view live or pre-recorded footage. 

3.2.3 The Porters’ Lodges are only staffed by Departmental staff who are trained in the system’s use and familiar with the policy. 

3.2.4 There must always be at least one member of the DMT or a Duty Porter present to actively monitor the system or the Porters’ Lodge must be locked. 

3.2.5 Unless an immediate response to events is required, Porters must not re-direct cameras at an individual, their property or a specific group of individuals, without an authorisation being obtained from Head Porter, Deputy Head Porter or Senior Porter for Directed Surveillance to take place, and filming must be compliant with Article 8 right to respect for private and family life as detailed in Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR). 

Materials or knowledge secured as a result of CCTV will not be used for any commercial purpose. 

Recording is carried out on digital data apparatus. These are located within the Stephen Hawking Building IT room, the Old Courts Porters Lodge, the Boathouse, Sportsground and at student residences. 

Recorded data will not be released to the media for use in the investigation of a specific crime by the College although following a written request we would supply footage to the Police who could then use this recorded data as is appropriate to their investigation. 

3.3 Exemptions 

3.3.1 The CCTV system is designed to ensure maximum effectiveness and efficiency but it is not possible to guarantee that the system will cover or detect every single incident taking place in the areas of coverage. 

3.4 Retention and disposal of data 

Memory sticks containing data are disposed of by a secure method. 

Footage is stored on data recorder hard drives for up to 30 days. 

Footage will only be stored on memory sticks if footage is requested by external agencies in the process of detecting crime and in the prosecution of offenders. 

4. Digital recording procedures

4.1 Rules for storage of data 

4.1.1 In order to maintain and preserve the integrity of the Digital Video Recorder (DVR), hard disks used to record events from the CCTV cameras and the facility to use them in any future proceedings, the following procedures for their use and retention of data must be strictly adhered to. 

4.1.2 Each DVR must be identified by a unique mark or serial number. This is maintained by the Head Porter. 

4.1.3 Each DVR must be kept in a secure location with access restricted to authorised staff. 

4.1.4 The DMT or on-duty Porter, in liaison with the IT department, shall check daily to ensure the system is operational. 

4.1.5 If requested by the police CCTV will be downloaded onto a memory stick provided by the Officer requesting it. All requests will come through the CCTV data request form which will be supplied to the officer making the request. Memory sticks will be held at the Lodge to be collected in person by the officer who will be handed the stick on production of suitable identification. 

4.2 Dealing with official requests: use of CCTV in relation to criminal or internal investigations 

4.2.1 CCTV recorded images may be viewed by the Police for the prevention, investigation and detection of crime. 

4.2.2 CCTV recorded images may be viewed by authorised officers of ¾«¶«Ó°Òµ College for supervisory purposes, discipline reasons or other actions due to allegation of a breach of College statutes, regulations or staff handbook following consultation with the Head Porter and Human Resources Manager to ensure the proportionality of the request. 

5. Breaches of the policy (including breaches of security) 

5.1 Any breach of the Policy by the DMT, Porters or other authorised staff will be initially investigated by the Head Porter or his nominated deputy, in order for him/her to initiate the appropriate disciplinary action. 

5.2 Any serious breach of the policy will be immediately investigated and an independent investigation carried out to make recommendations on how to remedy the breach. 

6. Assessment of the scheme

6.1 Performance monitoring, including random operating checks, may be carried out by the Head Porter or his/her nominated deputy. 

7. Complaints 

7.1 Any complaints about the College’s CCTV system should be addressed to the Head Porter, ¾«¶«Ó°Òµ College, Trinity Street, Cambridge CB2 1TA. 

7.2 Complaints will be investigated in accordance with Section 5 of this policy. 

8. Subject access request

8.1 The Data Protection Act provides Data Subjects (individuals to whom "personal data" relate) with a right to access data held about themselves, including that obtained by CCTV. 

8.2 A subject access request should be made in writing to the College Data Protection Lead (Senior Bursar). In certain circumstances a reasonable fee may be charged to cover administrative costs.

For further information, please contact: 

The Data Protection Lead  
data.protection@cai.cam.ac.uk  
¾«¶«Ó°Òµ College 
Cambridge  
CB2 1TA

Annex A 

Digital video recorder locations and identification details

Location	DVR Type	Serial Number
SHBIT Rm	Truvision DVR	TVR46161620191221CCWR090350536WCVU
SHB IT Rm	Truvision DVR	TVR46161620191221CCWR090350526WCVU
Computer Office	Truvision DVR 45HD	090290005
Old Courts Porters Lodge	Truvision DVR 15HD	090307265
1 Grange Road	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420150320AARR090111919WCVU
1 Mortimer Road	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420150401AARR090114769WCVU
5 Mortimer Road	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420150320AARR090111803WCVU
8 Mortimer Road	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420150924AARR090139535WCVU
3 St Pauls Road	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420150320AARR090111797WCVU
4 Gresham Road	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420150320AARR090112079WCVU
7 Gresham Road	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420150924AARR090139409WCVU
43 Glisson Road	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420150320AARR090111809WCVU
47 Glisson Road	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420150320AARR090111791WCVU
Sportsground	TVN10 - S	TVN1004CS0420151111AARR090148005WCVU
2 Mill Road	TruVision Recorder	TVN1004CS0420151123AARR090148981WCVU
35 Chesterton Road	TruVision Recorder 4 Channel 2TB	TVN1004CS20420140804AARR090073736WCVU
Boathouse	TruVision Recorder 16 Channel 8TB	TVN2116P1620160509BBRR090172894WCVU