TRAFFIC wardens in Ledbury and throughout the county will be wearing video cameras by the end of the month, as a deterrent against aggressive behaviour from members of the public.

A council spokesman said: "All of our front line staff are trained in conflict resolution techniques to diffuse most situations, but these techniques do not always work, and the use of body worn video equipment will help to protect staff further."

The purpose of the camera is to deter any aggression in the first instance, and should a physical or verbal attack take place it will capture video and sound to assist in the identification of the person responsible.

The spokesman added: "The council treats all cases of aggressive behaviour towards its staff seriously and will report such incidents to the police."

Councillor Paul Rone, cabinet member for transport and roads said, “We understand that receiving a parking ticket is frustrating but we cannot and should not expect civil enforcement officers to be subject to verbal or physical attack.

"The use of body worn video equipment will help to deter people from venting their frustrations on the civil enforcement staff and we hope people will think twice before abusing officers who just have a job to do."