A project aimed at cutting crime and protecting the public with the use of 80 CCTV cameras across town in west Cornwall was officially launched on Monday.

Eight west Cornwall town councils have banded together with Cornwall Fire, Rescue and Community Safety Service (CFRCS) and Devon and Cornwall Police to reduce crime and anti social behaviour and safeguard vulnerable people in their local communities.

The Town Council CCTV Management Group is the brainchild of Hayle Town Council, which after installing cameras in its own town approached other local councils to see if they were interested in joining the project. As a result eight towns - Camborne, Hayle, Helston, Penzance, Redruth, Truro, Penryn and Falmouth - are now taking part in the project with a total of 80 cameras in operation.

Under a contract awarded to CFRCS, the footage from all 80 cameras is being recorded and monitored by dedicated and specially trained staff based in the service’s Critical Control Centre in Tolvaddon, who have direct links to the police and ambulance. The 360 degree state of the art cameras provide high quality digital images which can be used to support police prosecutions. A link is also being provided to the Emergency Management Centre at County Hall in Truro so the images can be accessed in emergency situations such as flooding and major fires.

A special stakeholders group has been set up to oversee and manage the project and ensure that the workload is shared among the eight councils and their partners. The group, which comprises both members and clerks from the town councils, together with representatives from CFRCS and the police, will be chaired by a member from a different council each year.

This year’s chair has been Rowenna Brock, from Falmouth Town Council. She said: “We know that residents in these towns recognised that CCTV was an effective tool in tackling crime and anti social behaviour and wanted it to continue to be used.

“I am delighted we have been able to achieve this by working with the police and the fire and rescue service and I am looking forward to building on the strong partnership which has been developed.

“I would like to pay tribute to everyone who has been involved in this ground breaking project which has been nationally praised as ‘a really good model for devolution.’”

Cornwall Fire, Rescue and Community Safety Service’s Area Manager Kevin Thomas said: “We are delighted to be working in conjunction with the town councils and consider the partnership to be an excellent example of localism and devolution. We are very happy to be contributing to the creation and maintenance of safer communities.”

Superintendent Sara Crane, Devon and Cornwall Police Commander for west Cornwall, added: “We have already seen positive results from the cameras which have already been installed in a number of towns.”

The success of the project was also recognised by the Police and Crime Commissioner Alison Hernandez on her recent visit to Cornwall.