THE News’ Freedom of Information request on Chard’s CCTV has been turned down this week.

The request in January asked about the system overlooking Holyrood Street and Fore Street, but this week a refusal order came through.

The following questions were asked after the camera failed to catch recent burglaries, vandalism and assaults in the town:

1. Since the installation of the CCTV camera on May 31, 2006, up to the present day how many times have images been used as evidence in court cases?

2. How many convictions have there been as a result of evidence provided by the CCTV camera in this time?

3. How many times have recordings from the CCTV camera been accessed and how many times have recordings been handed over to the police in the last 12 months?

The reply from Avon and Somerset Police said: “There is no central record held in relation to the number of times images from this camera have been used in court cases.

“To try and answer your questions would involve firstly trying to identify all court cases where CCTV footage was used as evidence.

“We would then have to identify any footage, used from this specific camera before then looking at the outcomes of those cases.

“This would involve hours upon hours of work and the cost of providing you with the information is above the amount to which we are legally required to respond.”

As the request would cost more than £450 to fulfil, police have the right to turn it down under the terms of the act. The News is now appealing the decision.

To find out more about the FOI process follow the link below.