THE position of two CCTV cameras in Bidford was a hot topic for residents in Broom when the parish council held its meeting in the village recently.

Many residents have suggested that the area around Budgens supermarket needs specific attention and would be excluded from the coverage provided by two cameras planned for High Street.

The columns for the two cameras, one near the bridge on High Street and the other covering the health centre, pubs and bank in the centre, have now been installed and should be up and running by Christmas.

Stratford District Council's economic development officer, Chris Wood, said the columns were a permanent fixture and were unlikely to be moved even if residents did put pressure on the council.

He said the locations of the cameras were decided on advice supplied from the police of hotspots in Bidford which had suffered the most incidents and needed to be targeted.

He added that with only two cameras, which cost £20,000, it was not possible to cover all areas of the village.

At a recent Bidford parish council meeting, Coun Brian Slaughter said residents should have faith in the experts who install the cameras and wait to see how successful they operate.

"These cameras are being placed by experts who deal with the control centre," he said. "I suggest we let them put them up and we will all have the opportunity to go and see."

But parish councillor Mark Smith said: "You don't do half a job - if you're going to do a job, you do it all or nothing."

The district council is now waiting for electricity to be connected and for BT to connect the transmission cables before the cameras become operational in the next few weeks.

He said local organisations and businesses could be asked for voluntary contributions to the running costs and he was also looking at costs for additional cameras in Bidford at the request of the parish council.