Experts on CCTV including counter-terrorist police, Home Office officials and a fact-finding team from Australia were invited by Harborough District Council to the town’s Angel Hotel.

About 70 people, many of whom were members of the Public Space CCTV Managers Association were welcomed by Cllr Paul Dann, the council’s lead for community safety and CCTV.

The event comes as the district council is moving its own CCTV scheme into the digital age and ties in with the launch of a National CCTV Strategy.

Mr Dann (Con) said: “CCTV in Harborough district is very small when compared with the schemes managed by some of the delegates who attended the meeting. Some representatives at the event were from London Transport where 9,000 cameras are installed.

“The event helped us share information and find out how other areas fund CCTV projects. We are perceived as a low-crime district, but it is important not to be complacent. We used the event to find out how we can develop our CCTV strategy to tackle trouble-spots in the district.”