Big Brother or peeping tom?

UK installs CCTV in

school bathrooms, changing rooms

Published: 12 September, 2012, 15:26

Over 200 UK state schools have installed cameras in bathrooms and changing rooms to monitor

students, a recent surveillance survey reported. British parents will likely be shocked by the study’s

findings.

The survey is based on a freedom of information request conducted by Big Brother Watch, an anti-

surveillance activist group. The group said they were shaken by the results, which was much higher and

more extensive than expected.

The report "will come as a shock to many parents", Nick Pickles, Director of Big Brother Watch

said. "Schools need to come clean about why they are using these cameras and what is happening to

the footage”.

- 47,806 cameras used in 2,107 schools

- 207 schools have 825 cameras in changing rooms and bathrooms

- 90% of schools use CCTV cameras

- 54 UK schools have 1 camera or more per 15 pupils

- 106,710 CCTV cameras estimated in high schools and academies in England, Scotland and Wales

A total of 825 cameras were installed in the bathrooms and changing rooms of 207 different schools

across England, Scotland and Wales, according to data provided by more than 2,000 schools.

It remains unclear where in the bathrooms and changing rooms the cameras are located, who watches

the footage and whether any pupils were recorded while changing.

The principal of the Wildern School in southern England, however, said that the cameras in her school –

one per bathroom – are located "nowhere near the toilet cubicles."

"The images are not looked at unless there has been a reported problem and all images are deleted

after a maximum of 30 days," she said.

Video recording in toilets or changing rooms is legal, but recommended only for exceptional

circumstances, the Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) reported. The ICO is an independent

authority in the UK, whose duties include promoting privacy.

Research also showed that the extent of CCTV use varied widely from school to school. “With some

schools seeing a ratio of one camera for every five pupils,” the report said. “CCTV appears to be used

as a quick fix to much more complex problems and issues that simply cannot be solved with passive

surveillance.”
UK schools so unsafe that surveillance needed in the most
private spaces?

Since the 1990s, the UK’s Home Office has spent 78 percent of its crime prevention budget on CCTV

installations, and schools have likewise invested significant resources in their own surveillance

equipment, the Big Brother Watch report said.

No significant research has been done into whether CCTV cameras actually lower crime rates.

Big Brother Watch was able to locate a single study by the French Institut D’ Aménagement Et

D’Urbanisme, which concluded that theft and burglary continued to increase after the 2007 installation of

CCTV in the Île-de-France region. A marginal reduction in disorderly incidents in schools was also

reported.

‘Shocking’ highlights

The Big Brother Watch report estimated that more than 100,000 cameras monitor students and teachers

across Britain, with 90 percent of the schools surveyed acknowledging the use of some form of video

surveillance.

Responses from 2,107 secondary schools showed that they used 47,806 cameras in total with more

than half installed inside the schools. The Radclyffe School in Oldham surpassed all other schools in the

survey, with 20 cameras total in bathrooms and changing rooms.

Sharon Holder, the GMB's national officer, told Newsvine that her trade union was disgusted with the

findings.

"Placing CCTV in school bathrooms poses a worrying development in school policy and raises a

number of questions,” she said. “How many parents have given headteachers permission to film their

child going to the toilet or having a shower? What happens to the film afterwards? How much discussion

has there been on governing bodies and to what extent have councils and councilors had any input into

these developments? What problems are the schools trying to solve?”

Bucks schools defend using CCTV in toilets

9:45am Tuesday 25th September 2012 inNewsBy Simon Farr

SCHOOLS have defended their use of CCTV after a study by a civil liberties group
revealed they have cameras in toilets and changing rooms.

Big Brother Watch used the Freedom of Information Act to gather data about the use of
CCTV in 2,107 schools across the country.

The group claims 207 of those schools have cameras in toilets and changing areas,
including the Highcrest Academy and Princes Risborough School.

Big Brother Watch said its findings call the privacy of schoolchildren into serious doubt
and called for Government action.

But the south Bucks schools have explicitly stated the cameras are not pointed towards
urinals or cubicles, and their ‘secure’ systems were only used to ensure the safety of
pupils and staff members.

In a statement, Highcrest said: "The academy operates a CCTV system which is secure
and access is strictly restricted with permission required from senior staff. Two staff must
be present when recordings are viewed.

"CCTV cameras are not situated in any toilet area but do cover hand wash areas. CCTV
reduces any instances of misbehaviour or bullying, and comments from students or
parents about the system are almost always positive."

Princes Risborough School said it sought advice from the police and OSTED before it
installed the CCTV system.

A statement to the BFP reads: "The purpose of the cameras is for the security and
protection of the school and the safety of the children, staff and visitors.

"There are cameras which monitor all access points to the school and these have
successfully been used in prosecuting intruders. There are also cameras at key points
within the school to monitor corridors and stairwells.
"A small number of cameras are sited in our main toilets and these are static and are
explicitly not focused on either urinals or cubicles. Police advice was sought and given
over how and where these cameras should be mounted.

"The school constantly reviews its security in light of changing circumstances and
technology. There are no plans to extend the cameras though the technology may be
updated.

"No camera images are projected onto any screens and the cameras are not monitored.
The only time they would be accessed is if there was an incident that needed to be
investigated. Such occurrences are extremely rare.

"We know, and Ofsted have confirmed, that our students feel very safe at school. We
have very little vandalism, very little graffiti, are smoke free and bullying is very rare.

"Princes Risborough School has an extremely high reputation for its pastoral care and
parents and students alike at completely at ease with the present situation."

Big Brother Watch said it was highlighting a sensitive issue concerning not just who is
viewing the footage but also that young people are growing up into an environment
where surveillance is the norm.

It is calling for the Home Office’s code of practice for CCTV to be extended to all public
bodies and a government-commissioned independent review of the use of CCTV in
schools.

Director Nick Pickles said: "This research raises serious questions about the privacy of
schoolchildren across Britain, with some schools having one camera for every five pupils
and hundreds of schools using cameras in toilets and changing rooms.

"The full extent of school surveillance is far higher than we had expected and will come
as a shock to many parents.

"Schools need to come clean about why they are using these cameras and what is
happening to the footage.

"Local authorities also need to be doing far more to reign in excessive surveillance in
their areas and ensuring resources are not being diverted from more effective
alternatives.
"The Home Office’s proposed regulation of CCTV will not apply to schools and the new
commissioner will have absolutely no powers to do anything. Parents will be right to say
that such a woefully weak system is not good enough."

The figures also revealed Cressex Community School has seven cameras for every 15
pupils - but none in locker rooms or toilets.

Headteacher David Hood said this was because its new building was large, modern and
is designed to cater for more pupils than are currently at the school.

He added: "As the number of pupils at the school gradually rises, the ratio of cameras to
pupils will diminish.

"We use the cameras simply because they make people feel safe, they are not monitored
and we only use them if we need to review or investigate an allegation."