November 24, 2017 5.17 pm This story is over 76 months old

Lincolnshire hospitals staff car parking charges hiked for first time in five years

This will come into effect from next month.
Lincoln County Hospital. Photo: Steve Smailes for Lincolnshire Reporter

Staff car parking charges will rise at Lincolnshire’s hospitals for the first time since 2012.

United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust has agreed to introduce the price hike from December 1 this year.

Charges for some staff will increase by more than one third, with the cost of a day permit will rise by 20%.

Below is a list of the increase:

A summary of the price hike

ULHT’s director of estates and facilities Paul Boocock said: “These difficult times have led to difficult decisions needing to be made by our trust board.

“We appreciate that some staff may be disappointed with this news but we had to make the difficult choice to introduce these charges rather than reduce patient services.

“This increase puts prices in line with local government rate increases but still below most other trusts. Rates will still be less than £1 a working day for most staff.

“There hasn’t been an increase in charges since 2012 yet there has been an increase in the costs of running the service.

“Moreover, ULHT has paid the VAT for staff, and not passed this on.

“This means that over the last few years, ULHT has been subsidising the real cost of the trust providing car parking service and not passing it onto staff.

“As we are now in financial special measures we need to address this balance.”

‘Staff have not been consulted’

Corall Jenkins, regional organiser for the union UNISON, said: “ULHT have chosen to address the deficit by unilaterally introducing an increase in car parking charges for staff and patients without consultation.

“Staff have not been consulted and those staff who pay for parking through their salaries, have not been given a choice to opt out.

“Staff feel they are invisible as the trust seek to minimise the deficit.

“The trust must and should recognise that staff are real people, who have been subject to pay freezes year on year and the percentage increase for all staff is almost 35%, with the exception of day permits.”