Wallingford's CCTV system is proving highly successful in cutting crime — but the running costs are worrying the town council and could force cuts in other services.

The town council this year is paying £16,000 towards the cost of its 16 cameras — a rise of £6,000 in the four years the system has been operating.

Town clerk Andrew Rogers told the council: “This is proving very expensive, one of our biggest annual costs.

“And with South Oxfordshire District Council cutting financial support for things like one-stop shops, we are having to find more and more money from a restricted budget to keep our services operating.

“This means we will be having to look at cuts wherever we can when we come to consider the budget to keep up with the camera costs.

“At the moment, there is no question of dispensing with the cameras, but this possibility cannot be discounted.”

Mayor Alec Hayton said: “This is very worrying — the cameras are very useful but they are proving hideously expensive.”

The cost of the cameras and their installation was met by South Oxfordshire District Council and the town council pays for the running costs of the system, which is based at Abingdon.

The town council plans to hold discussions with the district council — together with Thame, Didcot and Henley town councils — over the increasing costs.

But the effectiveness of the cameras has been proven.

During a three-month period earlier this year, staff on the cameras: l Kept watch on youths congregating in Market Place l Alerted police to underage drinkers and drug usage l Monitored 72 incidents l Produced 14 evidence packs for court proceedings l Carried out 16 searches of TV footage for police and were instrumental in ten arrests.

In one case, police asked the operator to look out for a vehicle believed to be involved in a shoplifting expedition in the town.

The operator saw the car and followed it round the town. When the car stopped, police arrested the person who went into the shop, but the driver sped off. The operator kept the car in view and reported it parked in a local car park, at which point the police took it away for forensic tests.

Dorothy Brown, district council cabinet member for community safety, said: “These results are good news for Wallingford. Closed circuit television is a valuable tool in the fight against crime and antisocial behaviour, which is one of the council’s priorities.

“The cameras contribute to deterring crime, reducing the fear of crime and increasing the rate of detection.

“The presence of the cameras helps residents feel safe and encourage more people to use their town centres.”