Breckland Council considers exemptions from car parking fees

Breckland Council's cabinet recently voted in favour of introducing charges across the district amid increasing budget pressures.

However, the proposals have been met with significant backlash from local business owners who say the move will have a "seriously damaging" impact on high streets, particularly in smaller towns like Watton. 

Sam Chapman-Allen, the leader of the council, said the plans remain in very early stages of development and has conceded that some car parks may have "no charging at all". 

Watton town centre (Image: Ian Burt) WHAT ARE THE PLANS? 

Breckland Council is pushing forward with its plans to introduce car parking fees across Dereham, Swaffham, Thetford, Watton and Attleborough.

The proposals would see one car park in each town offer the first hour’s parking for free, with tariffs between 50p and £1 for the first chargeable hour at the others. 

READ MORE: New charges proposed for 13 Norfolk car parks

Fees would differ from town to town with the cost of an entire day ranging from £2.50 in Watton to £3.80 in Thetford.

These plans are still in development and are set to be considered in more depth at a meeting this week ahead of an official public consultation. 

BUSINESS BACKLASH

Many business owners have called on the council to reconsider the move and believe that parking fees will have a "seriously damaging" impact on their high streets. 

Paul Adcock of Adcocks (Image: Ian Burt) Mark Bunning, who runs a photography business in Watton high street, presented a petition to Breckland Council alongside Paul Adcock, owner of electricals firm Adcocks.

Mr Bunning said this had been signed by more than 3,000 people who felt the proposals were not suitable for their town, which is the smallest under consideration. 

Watton town centre (Image: Matthew Usher) He told the council: "Watton has no train station, no arterial road through the town, almost no national chains and no bank. It is a myth that our high street is doing well.

"The public feel that the charging model is wrong and not fitting for our town. We need to ensure Watton high street is given the best chance of survival - there are only so many nails you can put in a coffin before you cannot lift the lid."

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Mr Bunning's presentation was met with support from several councillors, who agreed that Watton should be exempt from any new policy.

Sarah Taylor, who represents Dereham at the council, said: "We need people to dwell in our market towns and one hour of free parking is woefully insufficient. These aren't major cities where churn is vital.

"I think this is entirely the wrong decision for Watton."

POTENTIAL EXEMPTIONS

Sam Chapman-Allen, the leader of Breckland Council, stressed that the plans were still in the works and would include different measures for each town. 

Breckland leader Sam Chapman-Allen (Image: Breckland Council) He said: "The council has made the decision in principle to charge for parking but we don't know what the final outcome looks like yet.

"Some car parks may have no charging at all while others do. We may offer different types of resident permits or business permits, but at this moment in time we do not know what each car park is going to look like in each one of our market towns.

"We can't have a uniform approach and we will look at each car park individually."

Breckland Council's cabinet voted in favour of introducing a new charging model at a meeting on July 15, with hopes to launch a public consultation in the coming weeks.

The results of this will be used to further inform how the new scheme might look and where the new charges will be implemented.