Ashford Borough Council Parking Charter

Our commitment is to provide a parking service that is helpful, fair but firm while working towards achieving excellence.

To be helpful

• We will work with Kent County Council to mark streets and car parks as clearly as possible to show where you can and cannot park.
• Civil enforcement officers will give advice on parking and how to park safely within the restrictions.
• All staff will treat customers with respect and courtesy and will expect the same in return.

Fair

• We will explain and communicate the parking rules.
• Where possible, we will photograph parking contraventions to support the issue of a penalty charge notice. Our officers also wear Body worn cameras.
• We will regularly monitor traffic signs and road markings to help motorists parking throughout the borough.

Firm

• We will take consistent enforcement action to deter inconsiderate parking.
• We will pursue people who try and evade penalty charges to recover debt owed to the Council.
• We will work with the police to prevent crime and anti-social behaviour and to protect our civil enforcement officers from abuse and violence.

Best possible service

• We will reply as quickly as possible to representations against penalty charge notices, whilst properly investigating motorists' comments
• We will aim to get penalty charge notices right first time using accurate "hand-held" technology
• We will take every opportunity to develop on-line services to improve customer access to information

Civil Enforcement Officers will adopt a helpful attitude and a consistent approach to enforcement in order to encourage lawful and considerate parking. Our customer promise is that we will always:

• Be professional, fair and courteous.
• Be polite, calm and understanding.
• Be open and honest.
• Offer advice on the appeals procedure if requested.

Objectives of parking control

The Council's parking control objectives are to:

• Minimise the use of vehicles in the busiest and congested areas at what experience and research shows to be the most appropriate times.
• At the same time provide sufficient short-stay parking facilities to support shops/commercial organisations and leisure activities, thereby underpinning social and economic life.
• Safeguard the needs and requirements of residents, visitors, businesses and other organisations.
• Improve traffic conditions.
• Preserve and improve the infrastructure and the general environment.
• Increase and improve pedestrian and cyclist mobility
• Regulate and control parking both on and off street.

To achieve excellence

• We will respond to all enquiries promptly.
• We will be clear and concise in our explanations and always use plain English.
• We will regularly review communication to improve access to parking information.
• We will review our policies and guides regularly
• We will review our parking services regularly to see how they can be improved, whilst also taking account of resource constraints.