CCTV cameras attached to police jackets are proving invaluable in tackling street drinking in York, officers have said.

The tiny cameras – about 25 of which are being used in the city – are used to capture evidence. They have been instrumental in a crackdown on street drinking in Walmgate and in dealing with associated antisocial behaviour, the Guildhall police team said.

Last spring, police drew up a “top 20” of Walmgate’s most problematic street drinkers, out of 107 who had been subject to police intervention.

They were given notices requiring them to seek help for drug and alcohol issues and stating they would be arrested if they were seen drunk on a public highway.

Footage captured by the cameras includes a scene of officers confiscating alcohol from three prolific offenders near the One Stop Shop, a situation that escalated and ended in an arrest.

Another clip showed a woman initially found collapsed beside Dick Turpin’s grave being spoken to and issued with a notice.

PC Richard Gatecliffe, a beat manager for the Guildhall Safer Neighbourhood Team, said: “For me the camera provides an extra layer of transparency so if the matter goes to court it leaves the defence solicitor only in a position to mitigate – the visual image is hard to challenge. It really is a fantastic tool.”

The cameras are aiding Operation Astound, set up to address drink-related antisocial behaviour and breaches of the alcohol control zone around Walmgate.

From March 2011 to March 2012 reports of antisocial behaviour – defined as anything causing a person to be alarmed, harrassed or distressed – reduced by 35 per cent, police said.

Reported incidents are known to happen within a 100-metre radius of One Stop, thought of as the centre of the community, and tend to peak at about 6pm.

PC Gatecliffe said the problem of street drinking in Walmgate was taken seriously and officers were working closely with the community and alongside Arc Light, The Peasholme Charity and the Salvation Army to address incidents of people feeling intimidated and threatened in the area.

He said: “I don’t pretend for the public and residents down there it’s an easy thing to deal with. We don’t want people living in or visiting Walmgate to be intimidated.

“It has been a success but we need a consistent and persistent approach.”

Alcohol control zones, also known as Designated Public Places Order (DPPO), enable police to seize drinks in public from anyone deemed to be behaving antisocially as a result of drinking.