MORE CCTV cameras are to be installed in Blandford following attacks on shops and a brawl in the town centre.

Civic leaders have voted to install fixed cameras at the Damory Street- East Street junction, and near the Iceland store, and to invest in a portable camera for police.

Town mayor Cllr Esme Butler said councillors and police had joined forces to decide the locations.

“The portable camera we felt would be a good investment for the police to use wherever trouble comes.”

And the mayor spoke out to reassure residents following attacks earlier this year at Costa Coffee, EH Jeans, and Chaffers, and reports to the council by worried residents of a recent street brawl at The Plocks.

“We are always upset when we hear about crime. The raid on Chaffers was particularly disturbing with a firearm involved,” said Cllr Butler.

“Whenever you hear about crime it’s worrying, but the police have a visible presence, particularly at weekends and in certain areas where we have concerns about anti-social behaviour.

“Police assure us we are one of the safest towns in Dorset.”

Trina Horrocks, chair of the town’s chamber of trade, welcomed the investment.

“It’s difficult times. It can only be made better by having extra CCTV cameras. You do sometimes feel targeted, but you hear of other places suffering as well, like Weymouth,” she said.

But Pauline Murray, 70, whose family has run the James newsagents in the Plocks since 1903, said her tenants had given notice as a result of the brawl, for which three men have been arrested and released on bail.