The Met Police is now turning to data-driven methods to track down offenders and make better use of officers’ time. Chief among these tools is live facial recognition (LFR), with fixed cameras being installed in Croydon for the first time.
Live facial recognition has already been used in several London boroughs, including during the King’s Coronation in 2023.
LFR scans faces in real time and checks them against a police watchlist. If there’s a match, officers can step in immediately for questioning and a potential arrest.
Croydon was chosen for the fixed-camera pilot due to “previous success” and an assessment of local risk.
The Local Democracy Reporting (LDRS) took to the streets of Croydon to see how the pilot is going.
The summer heat always brings Croydon town centre to life. Market traders joke with shoppers, office workers hunt for sunny lunch spots, and children pester their parents for a go on the fairground rides temporarily set up along North End.
Together, they create a lively atmosphere that contrasts with the negative image often associated with the high street. But some say the mood changes noticeably as the sun sets.
“It’s OK in the morning, we can manage with two staff members,” says Mohammed Kamzi, owner of U Fone. “After 4pm, it’s different. We need three or four people working because someone has to be ready to chase thieves while another watches the shop.
“We see crime here all the time. Just two days ago, someone stopped outside our shop for drugs, and people swarmed around them.”
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Mohammed has worked on North End for four years, a time he says has seen rising crime and waning police visibility. He told the LDRS that the street is a hotspot for gangs, wanted criminals, and people skipping court appearances.
Last year, LFR cameras were sporadically deployed on mobile vans on North End. In March, the Met announced it would go further by installing fixed facial recognition cameras on North End and London Road.
These will look like regular CCTV cameras but will only be switched on when the technology is in use. Despite this move towards fixed surveillance, the use of LFR has so far met with a mixed reaction from locals.
Mohammed sees the benefit in terms of safety but admits some customers aren’t comfortable with it. He told the LDRS: “It’s good for safety, especially with all the stabbings and gangs in Croydon.
“But lots of customers aren’t happy about being watched. They feel anxious, like they’ve done something wrong, even if it’s just for a fine.”
Shane Barrett, a local resident, believes the technology could help, but questions its placement. He said: “Croydon’s getting worse, there are stabbings every other week. The cameras might help, but the stabbings happen on side streets and around Surrey Street, not North End.”
Shopper Helen Matthews said she wanted more clarity from the police. “I can see it being useful, but we don’t know how it works or when it’ll be used.”
Last Friday (July 4), the Met celebrated its 1,000th arrest using LFR. Among those arrested were 93 registered sex offenders and several others in breach of court orders.
Lindsey Chiswick, who leads the Met’s facial recognition programme, said: “This technology is making London safer by removing dangerous offenders. It’s saving officers valuable time and delivering quicker, more accurate results.”
However, some civil liberties groups remain deeply concerned. Madeleine Stone, a Senior Advocacy Officer at Big Brother Watch, says the scale of surveillance is alarming.
She said: “There will be biometric cameras fixed throughout Croydon, which will have a chilling and dystopian effect on the high street. This is Chinese-style surveillance.”
Ms Stone also criticised police for stopping people who turn away from the cameras and try to seek an alternate route. “You’re meant to have the option to avoid them,” she said.
She argued that the technology may not actually save officers time, since police still need to be nearby to act on matches. “I’m sure Londoners would rather see more officers on the streets than these cameras,” she added.
So far this year, LFR has scanned 1.5 million faces in London, leading to 459 arrests – roughly one for every 3,300 scans. More than half of the Met’s so-called “true matches” did not result in an arrest.
Charlie Whelton, Policy and Campaigns Officer at human rights group Liberty, said the technology is being used without proper legal oversight. “It’s a regulatory wild west,” he said.
While the Met mostly uses LFR to catch serious criminals, Mr Whelton warned there’s nothing stopping police from using it on victims or people linked to crimes. Currently, LFR operates under a patchwork of legal rulings, with no unified legislation guiding its use nationwide.
“Some forces use it responsibly, others don’t,” he told the LDRS. “Right now, it subjects people to a digital strip search that goes far beyond traditional policing.”
LFR misidentification has also raised concerns, particularly around race. Some say high-profile mistakes, like the misidentification of anti-knife crime campaigner Sean Thompson, show the technology still has flaws and may disproportionately affect minority communities.
On November 13, 2024, Policing Minister Diana Johnson said facial recognition was a powerful policing tool but acknowledged the need to balance safety with privacy. The government is expected to publish a draft white paper on LFR next year.
In the meantime, Croydon’s own political leaders have largely backed the use of LFR in the town centre. Croydon Council said it supports LFR in town centres to “identify suspects on a watchlist” and tackle violent crime.
Mayor Jason Perry also regularly cites the number of serious offenders taken off the street as proof of LFR’s success. Last year, he told the LDRS: “If you’ve got nothing to hide, you’ve got nothing to fear.”
Croydon South MP and Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp echoed that view, saying: “This technology means wanted criminals can’t roam around town and city centres without being caught.
Labour’s Croydon mayoral candidate Rowenna Davis also gave her cautious support. “I was initially suspicious,” she said. “But the number of violent and sexual offenders caught has convinced me.”
She added: “Do I like the idea of being watched? Not really. But the priority has to be making our streets safe again.”
In contrast, Green councillors Ria Patel and Esther Sutton, whose Fairfield ward will host some of the cameras, remain strongly opposed. Back in March, Cllr Patel said: “Ever since this announcement, my inbox has been flooded with messages from local residents concerned about this attack on their privacy and possible consequences for them.”
The Met insists it has strict safeguards in place. It says biometric data is permanently deleted if someone isn’t on the watchlist. It added that independent testing by the National Physical Laboratory found the system to be accurate and showed no significant bias based on race or gender.
The fixed cameras aren’t yet operational and will be attached to street furniture. No official start date has been confirmed.
A Met spokesperson added: “We’re committed to making London safer by using technology to target the most dangerous offenders. This has helped us take hundreds of violent individuals off the streets.
“We continue to engage with the public to explain how the technology works and to reassure people that strong privacy protections are in place.”
Criminals can just wear face masks.