Police arrested a woman motorist on suspicion of drink-driving in Letchworth, after being alerted by a CCTV controller more than seven miles away.

Just after midnight on January 9, the motorist was spotted by the controller leaving The Three Magnets pub in Letchworth town centre - "staggering before getting into a car".

The police were alerted and caught up with the vehicle, at which point the woman was arrested on suspicion of drink-driving.

The case is one of six examples of the work of the Hertfordshire CCTV Partnership to be highlighted in a report to the latest meeting of the Joint CCTV Executive this month. In other examples, the CCTV controllers are reported to have spotted and then tracked those suspected of carrying a knife and a handgun, until police arrived.

The partnership is made up of Stevenage and Hertsmere borough councils, and North Hertfordshire and East Hertfordshire district councils.

It operates a 24-hour CCTV control and monitoring room, based in Stevenage, which is directly linked to the police headquarters control room, in Welwyn Garden City.

And - with a network of cameras across the four authorities - it aims to reduce the fear of crime in public, residential and business areas, as well as at schools.