Safety tech delivers for vulnerable families

Privately created and funded, Peggy’s Place is a transitional shelter for women and children escaping domestic violence. The organisation offers a stopgap for vulnerable families that have transitioned through a refuge but aren’t yet ready for independent living. The facility takes referrals from other refuge centres throughout Queensland, many of which are at capacity, and provides an alternative dwelling with childcare and other services for people who may be on the waitlist for permanent housing — a process that can take years.

Set on 37 acres, Peggy’s Place provides more than 70 beds for women and children. It offers access to a full gamut of wraparound services aimed at helping families on the road to recovery, including trauma-informed counselling, occupational therapy, medical support, legal and housing support services, health classes and financial upskilling.

One of the most important elements needed to provide peace of mind for residents is security and safety from violent spouses and partners. Given the size of the building and the expanse of the property, the Peggy’s Place team needed a solution that would offer security, without feeling like a prison.

Securing the property for greater safety

Not knowing where to begin, the Peggy’s Place team turned to its managed IT services provider QCS Group for assistance.

Working with supplier VSP Security Wholesale, QCS Group settled on technology from Axis Communications to meet the unique security challenges at Peggy’s Place, based on recommendations from other organisations and the vendor’s prominence in high-profile environments such as airports. Axis safety camera technology is also National Defence Authorisation Act (NDAA) approved — a requisite for the project.

In a bid to cover as much of the property — with as little intrusion — as possible, the client and two providers worked together to identify the most suitable Axis products for the project.

Axis P3719 network cameras are used in the outdoor areas, selected for their ability to provide 360-degree visibility and infrared illumination for coverage at night — a useful tool for securing the 37-acre property.

The impact-resistant Axis P1447 network camera model is employed at the property gates, providing clarity of vision and captured detail even in challenging light conditions.

Axis P4707 network cameras are installed inside the building, where the devices’ double-camera multidirectional visibility provides extensive coverage with minimal camera placement. This helps make the safety camera system unobtrusive, ensuring residents don’t feel watched or controlled.

Perfectly positioned for unobtrusive visibility

With a selection of the smaller Axis network cameras employed to provide extensive coverage while staying largely hidden from view, QCS Group and the Peggy’s Place team worked with electricians and fencing professionals to position camera posts in locations that offer maximum visibility of areas in most need of coverage, such as the front gates.

The building at the centre of Peggy’s Place was constructed in the 1940s and the construction methods of that era created cabling challenges for the team. However, much of the cable routing was surface mounted, negating the need for interior ceiling and wall access. Ultimately, networking the Axis cameras via fibre-optic cable was a smooth process, requiring only a few adjustments to existing infrastructure.

Some physical areas encountered more ambient light reflection than expected in the original layout plan, which impacted visibility. Minor tweaks to camera positions and angles fixed the issues and provided the coverage required.

With help from the Axis Site Designer, QCS Group mapped a plan of the entire site, providing documentation to easily facilitate any amendments or upgrades to the network camera system, such as installation of networked speakers if required in the future.

Early alerts for increased safety

While creating a safe space for victims of domestic violence lies at the core of the organisation’s mission, Peggy’s Place must also ensure the safety of its own team members.

It is not uncommon for domestic and family violence perpetrators to track down victims in refuges or other accommodations and attempt to gain entry. In the event of a perimeter breach, the new networked camera system issues an immediate alert to staff, allowing them to quickly call emergency services and ensure timely intervention when needed.

In the absence of full-time security personnel, the safety camera network has dramatically improved how effectively Peggy’s Place manages and oversees what’s happening on the property at any given time. This means staff are confident they can bolster their own safety — and that of residents — through active surveillance and automated intruder alerts if the property is breached.

Most importantly, the system helps the Peggy’s Place team improve the safety of residents, with vulnerable families given some level of respite from the fear of violence.

Enabling law enforcement for greater safety

With the Axis network camera system in place, QCS Group and Peggy’s Place are exploring options to increase security even further. The team is already utilising advanced functionality embedded in the Axis technology, including licence plate recognition, which is used to record the arrival and departure of visitors. Potential future capabilities to be added include facial recognition technology and integration of Axis’s network speaker technology — an easy upgrade to the current system.

Other functions being explored draw on the capability of Axis analytics software. This includes recording of incidents and applying software-based image redaction before exporting for use by law enforcement individuals — something that may be required in the aftermath of an incident or in the course of an investigation — allowing Peggy’s Place to meet legal requirements while protecting the privacy and anonymity of residents.

The networked safety camera system is providing residents and staff at Peggy’s Place with a new level of safety and security, and delivering much needed peace of mind.

“The Axis network cameras are designed to be unobtrusive and discreet, which is crucial for ensuring the safety of residents at Peggy’s Place,” said Vicki Cole, Business Manager, Peggy’s Place.

“The cameras are compact and positioned in a way that does not draw attention to them, which is especially important for residents who have been controlled by their partners. The cameras provide the necessary visibility to ensure optimal safety and security for everyone at Peggy’s Place.”

Image credit: iStock.com/brazzo