BWV storage media required for footage storage systems

Freedom of information request reference no: 01.FOI.25.046373

I note you seek access to the following information:

How much storage media is required for all of the body work video footage that is stored on police systems, whether in data volume or in footage duration or ideally both, and how much is generated in each of the last 12 months and each of the last 10 years.

Decision

I have today decided to disclose the located information to you in full. Please find below information pursuant to your request above.

The MPS commenced BWV in October 2016 and has used Axon cameras. The recordings from these cameras are stored in the digital evidence management system named Evidence.com. Footage is recorded onto internal storage inside the camera. The cameras does not have the ability to delete or edit the footage. When a police officer docks their camera to charge the battery, the footage is then automatically uploaded to secure servers. However, the recordings that aren’t categorised as required for evidence at court or in other legal proceedings will be automatically deleted within 31 days from the system.

Further information on BWV privacy and its use can be found within this link:

MPS Website | Body Worn Video - Privacy & BWV

Below table shows the Annual Data Storage in Gigabytes (GBs) for 2016- 2025:

The figures represented within the table is the Cumulative Data stored (GBs) and the Data stored (per year) in gigabytes (GBs).

• Cumulative Data: This represents the total volume of data stored on the internal storage by the end of each year, including all the data stored up to that point.
• Final Data: This represents the total volume of data retained at the end of each year, after necessary deletion’s have taken place in line with retention policy.

Data Caveat:

• The figure for 2025 shows the data up to 5 August 2025 and is therefore a partial dataset. It is important to note that this is subject to change as additional data is captured and processed, and further deletions are carried out once it hits the six-year limit and the footages are automatically deleted every day. However due to large amount of data stored within the system, these deletions can also take up to a week to process.

• As noted in the table above, the final data value for each year have been reduced from their respective cumulative total figures. For example, the cumulative data volume for 2024 reached 1,760,082 GB, but was ultimately reduced to 108,651 GB by end of the year, following the scheduled deletion of footage in line with the retention policy requirements.

• Data that is retained is given a retention category in line with its retention requirement is as follows:

• VOLUME CRIME (6 years) - Evidential and Relevant used or unused material (anything that appears to have some bearing on any offence under investigation or any person being investigated).
• SERIOUS CRIME (30 years) – Sexual and violent offences and specified offences under CJS 2003
• MAJOR CRIME (100 Years) - Serious offences and public protection matters
• POLICING PURPOSE (6 years) - Protecting life/property, Preserving order, preventing commission of offences, Bringing offenders to justice, duty or responsibility arising from common or statute law.

• To conclude, the only approach to have a reliable figure is to wait until the full year is completed.