CRIMINALS who have blighted Keighley's Town Hall Square could be caught on camera after thousands of pounds worth of funding was agreed by councillors to protect this area.

Keighley councillors voted to set aside £5,000 to equip the square with security cameras, following a spate of vandalism and antisocial behaviour.

Members of Keighley Town Council's watch and transport committee unanimously agreed to the spending.

Allotments and landscapes committee town councillors, who are responsible for looking after the square, were informed of their colleagues' decision at their latest meeting on November 12, during which time a wheeled bin was set alight near one corner of the square.

Councillor Michael Westerman, chairman of watch and transport, said the bin was torched at about 7pm, near the environment monitoring station.

He said the fire brigade arrived and dealt with the fire while councillors were meeting in the civic centre across the road.

But he added the incident helped illustrate the need for CCTV in the square, which has been plagued with other recent problems, such as vandalism of seating – including graffiti on a late councillor's memorial bench – obscenities scrawled on the square's paving, and plants trampled or pulled up from the award-winning flower beds.

On one occasion this autumn the bayonet attached to the soldier's statue on the war memorial was tampered with and bent out of shape, sparking an angry reaction from serving and former military personnel.

People have even used the bushes in one corner of the square as an outdoor toilet.

Cllr Westerman said: "It's sad that we've got to have these cameras, but if some people continue to disrespect the square and the memorial then they are necessary.

"I'd ask anyone who witnesses this sort of behaviour in Town Hall Square to contact police about it.

"There will be four cameras, which will cover the whole of the square, and they'll also have night vision to function after dark.

"We've already got the power supply for them, so they can be put in place as soon as possible."

Cllr John Kirby, chairman of the allotments and landscapes committee, said he and his colleagues were delighted that watch and transport had chosen to make the funding available for CCTV.

"It's absolutely superb and my committee is over the moon about it," he added.

"I'd like to thank Cllr Westerman and his committee. It is something we'd discussed in 2016 or 2017, but back then we hadn't seen the kind of damage to the square that has happened over the last few weeks.

"The new CCTV will be monitored and if we catch anyone on it damaging the memorial or other parts of the square we will push for prosecutions, because people have got fed up.

"Ordinary people have had enough of walking through Town Hall Square and seeing graffitied benches or obscenities painted onto the paving. It's got to stop.

"The security cameras will be part of what we hope is a solution to help deter anyone from committing vandalism in the square in future."