Video Surveillance

Policy

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Background

Visitors to Christ Church Grammar School’s Claremont campus are required to report to the School’s reception desks to “sign in”. The Claremont campus does not have perimeter fencing and is therefore easily accessible to the public from Queenslea Drive and Stirling Highway. This increases the difficulty for the School to manage visitors to the school.

Over the years, the number of incidents of theft, vandalism and break-ins have increased. This has been a concern for the School’s Council and management. As a result of this, in 2017, the Christ Church Grammar School Council approved the installation of video surveillance cameras as part of the School’s security risk management, to act as a perimeter security in areas most prone to vandal damage and break-ins, and to ensure the safety and security of students, staff and visitors. The visual presence of CCTV cameras are a strong deterrence against inappropriate behaviour and will reassure staff and students that they are protected within the School campus.

Policy statement

As part of the Christ Church Grammar School’s strategy to ensure the health, welfare and safety of staff and students, and to safeguard the School assets, Christ Church Grammar School will make use of a video surveillance system.

The video surveillance cameras will NOT be used for the following purposes:

  • Monitoring individual work performance
  • Monitoring non-school areas or public places from school sites

Privacy

In Western Australia, the Act dealing with surveillance is the Surveillance Devices Act 1998 (WA).  This Act deals with the use of surveillance devices to monitor private activities which are defined as being:

private activity: any activity carried on in circumstances that may reasonably be taken to indicate that any of the parties to the activity desires it to be observed only by themselves, but does not include an activity carried on in any circumstances in which the parties to the activity ought reasonably to expect that the activity may be observed;”

To meet the requirement of the Act to protect the privacy of staff and students no surveillance will take place in areas or at times when staff or students have a reasonable expectation of privacy. There is signage indicating that surveillance monitoring is in place.

The School will ensure compliance with all relevant the Surveillance Devices Act 1988 (WA) and the Privacy Act (1988).

Hours of operation

The video surveillance system will be in operation twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week all year.

Location of surveillance cameras

  • The cameras are placed in outdoor locations only and are linked to digital recorders.
  • Cameras placed outside are positioned only where it is necessary to protect external assets
  • Surveillance cameras will not be used to monitor inside rooms
  • The cameras will be set up in orientations which will not compromise the privacy of residents residing in the vicinity of the School
  • The video surveillance cameras will not under any circumstances be used in the following areas:
    • Toilets
    • Change/dressing rooms
    • Showers
    • Other areas where individual privacy is paramount

 Access to surveillance data and data capture

  • The surveillance videos will only be accessed when incidents of criminal activities take place and the Principal, the School Executives, and delegates believe that the surveillance system may have recorded the incident.
  • The surveillance data and data capture will only be accessible to the Principal, School Executives and delegates, and whose use of the data will be limited to the above stated purpose of the surveillance
  • When the surveillance data is viewed, a written record in the surveillance data viewing register must be made stating:
    • Date and time surveillance data was viewed
    • Name and title of person(s) viewing the data
    • The reason for viewing the surveillance data
    • List of cameras from which surveillance data was viewed
    • Signed authorisation for viewing surveillance data
  • Upon lawful request, the Principal or delegate will provide the police with any surveillance video required
  • Surveillance data will NOT be provided to non-authorised persons, including school staff, parents and contractors without the express approval of the Principal or delegate.
  • Recordings will not be disclosed except in accordance with this policy or as required by law
  • The surveillance data will be stored on servers securely located on the School’s campus and can not be accessed remotely, only visual data (not audio) will be stored.
  • The surveillance data and security will be managed by the School’s Network and Projects Engineer

Use of surveillance data

  • Following the detection of any incidents from the surveillance data the Principal and School Executives will not undertake investigation of serious matters that require police involvement. The Principal, or School Executives will seek advice from the Police.
  • The collection of surveillance data must not involve any form of entrapment of the surveillance of a person.

Surveillance data retention

The surveillance data will be continuously recording with existing data being over-written after a minimum 30 days of initial recording unless required for a specific investigation. The retention period of the data will depend upon the size of the resolution and compression of the surveillance data collected.

Communications

  • Signs will be placed at entry points to inform the community that the School has operational video camera surveillance
  • The Principal or delegate will inform students, staff, and parents at the beginning of each school year that video surveillance will occur throughout the school year and explain the purpose for such monitoring practice.
  • The Principal or delegate will also inform staff and students that violation of School policies or laws captured through surveillance data may be used as evidence that may subject them to appropriate disciplinary and legal action, including but not limited to, disclosure to law enforcement