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In the UK, there is no legally fixed CCTV retention period. Keep recordings only for as long as the system’s stated purpose requires, then delete them securely. Thirty days is common, according to GOV.UK, but it is not a legal rule. If footage may be relevant to a crime, promptly ask the system operator to preserve the specific time window; sharing it with police is a separate decision that should be limited, documented and secure.
How long should CCTV footage be kept in the UK?
The UK GDPR and Data Protection Act 2018 do not set a minimum or maximum period for keeping surveillance footage. The Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) says the purpose of processing should determine the retention period. Choose the shortest period that meets that purpose, document it, check that the schedule is followed, and securely delete footage when it is no longer needed. See the ICO guidance on CCTV retention.
Do not keep recordings simply because a recorder has spare capacity, its default setting allows it, or the footage might be useful someday. The government’s Surveillance Camera Code of Practice also says that retention should reflect the system’s purpose and be proportionate. Review the initial period in light of experience; an exceptional investigation should not determine the routine retention schedule for every recording.
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GOV.UK says that most CCTV footage is deleted 30 days after recording. This describes common practice; it does not require every operator to retain footage for 30 days or make 30 days a legal safe harbour. The guidance does not state a publication year. Because recordings may be overwritten according to an operator’s ordinary schedule, act promptly if a particular clip matters. See GOV.UK’s CCTV guidance.
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How to ask for footage to be preserved
If an incident has occurred, contact the system owner or operator as soon as possible. Give the date, approximate time, location and a short description of the incident. Ask them to preserve the relevant time window, and explain whether police are investigating. A preservation request is not the same as a request for a copy: retaining a clip for an investigation does not by itself mean the operator must provide it to you.
Where a specific investigation makes continued retention necessary, the operator can keep the relevant footage for that purpose. The extension should be limited to the material needed and reviewed rather than becoming indefinite retention of all routine footage.
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Can CCTV footage be shared with police?
Often, yes. The ICO says it is appropriate in most cases to disclose relevant footage to law enforcement when a system is used to prevent or detect crime. It gives the example of a shopkeeper proactively sharing footage of a crime on the premises. Relevant disclosure may also be acceptable when the system was set up for another purpose.
That does not mean every police request automatically has to be obeyed. The ICO describes disclosure as often voluntary unless a court order or another overriding legal obligation applies. The operator remains responsible for assessing the request and deciding what to disclose. Read the ICO’s guidance on sharing information with law enforcement.
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How an operator should share footage with police
- Check the request. Confirm the police force and the officer or contact details. Record the incident reference if one is provided, the purpose of the request and the time range sought. Clarify the scope if it is unclear; the guidance does not require one particular request form for every case.
- Preserve the relevant clip. If the investigation requires it, prevent that specific recording from being deleted under the routine schedule. Record why it is being retained and review whether the need continues.
- Export only what is relevant. Limit the disclosure to the time and material needed for the purpose. Keep the original recording and its metadata intact where the system allows. Accurate date, time and location information can matter to evidential use; the Surveillance Camera Code warns that unreliable metadata or excessive compression can undermine it.
- Log the disclosure. Record when the footage was shared, the recipient and organisation, what was provided and why. Keep an audit trail, particularly where the clip may become evidence.
- Agree a secure transfer method. Ask the receiving police force how it accepts evidence. Use a method that restricts access to the intended recipient and reduces the risk of loss or unintended distribution. The ICO notes that encryption can be effective where appropriate; official guidance does not prescribe a universal file type, USB drive or portal.
- Do not post the clip publicly. Sharing identifiable footage on social media or an open video platform can be an unfair or unlawful disclosure. Public posting is not a substitute for reporting an incident to police.
For more on controlling access and transfers, see the ICO’s guidance on keeping surveillance systems secure.
What if you appear in the footage?
You can make a subject access request to the system owner verbally or in writing. Help them locate the recording by giving the date and time, a description of yourself or the event, and proof of identity where appropriate. GOV.UK says owners usually have one calendar month to respond. See how to request CCTV footage of yourself.
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Contact the operator quickly if the clip may be deleted before the response deadline, and explicitly ask that it be preserved while the request is handled. The operator may need to obscure other identifiable people before releasing footage, or may refuse if disclosure could put an ongoing criminal investigation at risk.
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What home and business CCTV operators should consider
Commercial premises
GOV.UK says businesses should tell people CCTV is in use and why, keep footage only as long as needed, generally be able to provide a person’s images within one calendar month, and share images with authorities such as police when appropriate. See the government’s CCTV guidance for businesses and read it alongside the ICO material on retention, disclosure and security.
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Domestic systems
Government guidance for domestic CCTV advises owners to keep the date and time accurate, secure recordings, restrict access, learn how to export footage and delete recordings once they are no longer necessary to protect property. It warns against using recordings for unrelated purposes such as posting them on social media. If cameras capture beyond the home boundary, data-protection obligations may apply. See GOV.UK’s domestic CCTV guidance.
Choosing a routine retention period and transfer method
There is no pair of legally prescribed retention durations to choose between. Set a short, proportionate routine period based on the system’s purpose, how long it reasonably takes to notice or investigate incidents, the ability to store and retrieve recordings, and the privacy impact on people recorded. Document the rationale and review it against experience. Treat preservation for a live investigation as a separate, specific decision.
For police delivery, check what the receiving force accepts and consider security, access control, image quality, metadata preservation and whether handling can be audited. No single medium or file format is established as the universal choice by the official guidance.
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