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Council’s CCTV is helping to keep residents safe
North Ayrshire Council’s network of public space CCTV cameras has been acknowledged as a key element in keeping communities safe.
The behind-the-scenes work being done by the Protective Services team supports the emergency services in their day-to-day business.
This can include anything from tracking a prolific shoplifter, to swiftly noticing fires such as the recent blaze at the former Forum Shopping Centre taking hold.
There are 167 surveillance cameras operating across the area, covering: the town centres of Ardrossan, Beith, Dalry, Irvine, Kilbirnie, Kilwinning, Largs, Saltcoats and Stevenston; various housing estates and a range of Council properties.
Council staff monitor the feeds at Marress House, look after maintenance and upgrades and work closely with Police Scotland and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service on a regular basis.
In 2024-25 alone, the team was involved in:
- producing 279 discs of evidence for court cases
- supporting Police Scotland in 495 arrests
- 4447 reviews linked to Airwave – which is the secure radio network used by all emergency services and public safety organisations across Great Britain and
- 137 requests for support from Crime Watch Scotland’s shop radio service, which connects local businesses via radio to share information and drive down crimes such as shoplifting.
Quote: The work of the Council staff involved in our CCTV network is crucial to so many aspects of daily life in North Ayrshire. Our Protective Services team, in recent times, has assisted the police with a variety of matters from missing persons and vulnerable people to disturbances and anti-social behaviour. They were also involved in high-profile incidents such as the two fires at the battery recycling plant in Kilwinning and a police investigation into a sizeable cannabis farm in Irvine. I would like to congratulate the team for the difference they are making to safety for those living in and working in North Ayrshire.
Quote from: Councillor Alan Hill, Cabinet Member for Communities, Housing & Islands
Members of the team are also heavily involved in out-of-hours emergency calls and providing additional support for a number of Council services.
In 2024-25, they handled more than 33,000 calls including emergency housing repairs, road incidents, smoke and fire alarms being activated within Saltcoats high flats, support during weather warnings and contingency incidents.
Councillor Hill added: “The aims of the network are to prevent crime, improve public confidence and gather evidence when a crime is committed.”
Published: 10 March 2026