Police are planning to deploy Live Facial Recognition (LFR) technology in Stockport to help catch wanted criminals.

Following successful trials in Manchester city centre, Greater Manchester Police (GMP) is looking to deploy vans containing LFR cameras to Stockport town centre.

The cameras focus on a specific area or crowd and check faces against a pre-prepared watchlist. An alert is issued immediately if there is a match, at which point officers can take action.

While LFR can be used to catch wanted criminals, it can also be used to help find missing persons.

Since October 2025, when LFR was first introduced, GMP have made 40 arrests and charged 30 with various offences. One in five of these arrests were registered sex offenders.  

GMP has been using two vans supplied by the Home Office since the initial rollout, and they have been deployed 23 times. 

Some notable deployments include Piccadilly Gardens, Manchester Airport and the Manchester Derby football match - which is the first time LFR has been used at a football game. 

Inspector Jon Middleton said: "This proactive approach allows officers to intervene more quickly before suspects can commit further offences, reducing the risk to the public. 

"We will continue to deploy across Greater Manchester to support our neighbourhood policing teams." 

Greater Manchester Police watchlists are made up of vulnerable missing persons, people wanted for a crime or by the courts, or who are under certain conditions that could be breached. 

The cameras focus on a specific area or crowd and can detect faces compared to a pre-prepared watchlist with an alert issued immediately if there is a match so officers can act. 

Sergeant Ryan Magee, from the Sexual Offenders Management Unit, said: "The introduction of Live Facial Recognition technology has seen significant improvements in public protection and proactive policing. 

He went on to say that "LFR has quickly proven to be an invaluable safeguarding asset".