Tensions in security partnerships: Observations of a city CCTV system and its partners on the ground

Abstract

This paper is based on data gathered for an evaluation of a large public area closed circuit television (CCTV) system in an English city. The methodology includes semistructured interviews with security guards, shop assistants and camera operators, and a survey of retail premises, as well as observations and data analysis from the camera control room. The paper deliberates on the working relationships between the different practitioners who used the radio/CCTV link that monitored the local shopping precinct and aims to reflect firstly on the tensions in practice, between different practitioners in their interactions with the public, and secondly the tensions between practitioners in their interactions with each other. The paper concludes that although the link has a number of positive consequences for the working conditions of those using it, there are a number of tensions between practitioners who raise issues in respect of accountability and effective working relationships.