Hospital car parking campaign - we need your help

Sorry, my links do not work in the previous post! This is the email address to send your stories to the Government:

cpconsultation@dh.gsi.gov.uk

The link to our game and pledge is in my original blog post.

Thanks!

During Mel's illness we had dealings with Burton, Derby, Leicester and Nottingham City hospitals.  At Burton and Nottingham we were told of concession charges.  Burton was only as an outpatient in the cancer unit though and it wasn't always applicable.  Nottingham was the best, £5 for a month.  Again though, initially, we weren't told about it, it was only through word of mouth from other patients.  Both Derby and Leicester were concessionless.

It is a shambolic system, the government should bring in a "one rule governs all" and that should be Free parking at hospitals.  

In our case we were dealing with my daughter's cancer, getting her ready in a morning for a potientally hazardous trip to hospital, worry of infections, cold etc, the last thing you think about is whether or not you have enough change for the car park.  It's ridiculous that anyone should have to pay for hospital parking charges.

Ian

www.mad4mel.co.uk

Hospital parking is a disgrace - treatment and travelling bad enough without having to worry about having enough money to pay for the priviledge of parking!

It cost my partner £18.00 to park at Mayday whilst I had my lumpectomy. Outpaitients at Mayday is very busy and despite having appointments I usually have to wait from between an hour to two hours (excluding duration of appointment). The parking costs mount up very quickly at a time when you can least afford it due to being off work and paying astronomical fuel bills.

To counter criticism of unfair and disproportionate enforcement and charging in hospital car parks, the British Parking Association is currently consulting on a hospital parking charter aimed at both NHS Trusts and car park operators.

The BPA believes in raising standards in the parking sector and delivering a more professional service to the public. The management of and charging for hospital car parking needs to be seen in the context of delivering a better and fairer service to users.

Both Trusts and car park operators recognise the importance of car parking policy in terms of the wider transport strategy and the need to manage traffic and parking in accordance with environmental needs.  They also recognise the importance of professionalism in carrying out their services and the delivery of customer care.  In particular, the delivery of safe car parking for hospital users is paramount.

We strongly believe that there is a need to properly manage car parking and to use pricing mechanisms to regulate demand.  This recognises the value of a car parking space to the user and the need to properly maintain and enhance the car parking environment by reinvesting income.

In producing the Hospital Parking Charter, we have consulted with key Healthcare stakeholders, including Macmillan and the NHS Confederation, to gain their views and help us produce a Charter that recognises the needs of patients and Trusts and how these can assist car park operators to provide a professional service that focuses on high levels of customer care.