IMPROVED communications between police and operators of closed circuit television cameras in a town centre have proved successful.

On Friday night, fights between groups of drunk partygoers were stopped as the cameras in Crook relayed vital information to the police and officers intervened before violence could erupt.

Sergeant Dave Ashton said: "Since the security cameras have been monitored from Darlington, our response time has improved.

"As soon as something is caught on camera, we can be there within minutes and are able to sort things out before they escalate."

On Friday, between 10pm and 3am, officers visited a dozen pubs in Crook and Willington, investigated a report of a domestic assault on the Watergate Close estate and a report of criminal damage in St Mary's Avenue.

As crowds of youths spilled out into the streets at 1.30am, the camera operators monitored behaviour and kept police officers alerted to any problems.

More than half a dozen fights broke out, but police were on the scene before the fights could escalate.

Over the weekend, police officers from Crook, Willington and the Dales, patrolled the area in a riot van and visited pubs to check for underage drinking.

As part of a scheme to improve communications and bring in new revenue, monitoring of Crook's security camera system was handed over to Darlington Borough Council operators, who work from a control room in Darlington Town Hall.

The scheme started in January and police say they have noticed a marked improvement in the communication link and response times over the past three months.

Sgt Ashton said: "The cameras are constantly looking around the town.

"When they pick up signs of trouble, no matter how small, we are immediately alerted."

Before the move to Darlington, the cameras were monitored by an officer at Crook police station, who also had to deal with emergency calls and inquiries from people who came on off the street.

With the decentralised system, camera operators can concentrate solely on the one task.