British Parking Awards 2024 - The Winners Review

T he W inner s

See you next year on 12 September for the…

Parking is the winner...

The British Parking Awards 2024 honoured a sector that keeps our world moving, writes the event’s founder Mark Moran

The winners of the British Parking Awards were revealed at the Royal Lancaster London on 13 September. Yes, it was Friday the 13th, but the British Parking Awards 2024 proved to be lucky for some! The British Parking Awards were founded by Parking Review magazine back in 2002 to honour excellence in the design, operation and management of parking.

This year’s finalists were whittled down from a list of over 140 entries by a jury of 25 independent-minded experts who are truly passionate about parking. A key reason for the awards being so respected, and the trophies so coveted, is that the competition is built on the trust placed by entrants in the decisions of the jury. The entries were divided between teams of jurors, who read and ranked them ahead of a series of meetings both online and in person to establish the short list.

The next stage saw entries re-read and discussed by the wider pool of jury members, with site visits undertaken for the car parks and systems, and apps and websites tested out. Where needed, follow-up questions were posed to entrants and testimonials checked or gathered for individuals in line for categories such as Rising Star, Person of the Year and the Lifetime Achievement Awards. The jury then assembled at the Royal Lancaster London in person for a day of discussion and debate at which the final list of winning entries was agreed.

In parallel, the Landor LINKS team was busy organising the British Parking Awards event, which over the past 22 years has grown in scale and ambition to become firmly established as the highlight of the sector’s social calendar.

The awards’ longtime home is the Royal Lancaster London, which is renowned for the quality of its catering and elegance of its banqueting rooms. The selection of this year’s menu was, as ever, a challenge that the events team and invited guests take

very seriously, and enjoy as they are treated to a range of exquisite creations for each course. The final selection was among the finest menus we have composed, and one of the greenest as both Landor LINKS and the Royal Lancaster are committed to supporting sustainable and low-carbon practices –without sacrificing flavour!

The 650 people who attended the 2024 ceremony were treated to a mesmering film and show designed by Landor LINKS’s event team. The ceremony was kickstarted by Paul Moorby OBE, founder of main sponsor MiPermit, and leading parking professional Anjna Patel OBE. They handed the ceremony over to this year’s hosts, the comedian and broadcaster Paul Sinha, and acclaimed voiceover artist Roger Tilling.

A day of wit and wonder saw a parade of parking professionals invited to take to the stage to collect their trophies, pose for pictures and record video messages that can be found on the official website. And those who wanted to continue celebrating headed to The Swan overlooking Hyde Park.

We next gather again for the best day in parking at the Royal Lancaster London on 12 September 2025.

Mark Moran is editor of Parking Review

Mark Moran

Paul Sinha

Did you hear the one about...

The British Parking Awards were presented by a line-up of talented and insightful hosts

The British Parking Awards began with a welcome by Anjna Patel MBE, a leading figure in the UK local authority sector. “You do a wonderful job in this country,” she said. “You keep the country’s wheels moving. You lead the country in technology. You show the government where they should be going and where the legislation should be. This sector is really, really successful and contributes so much to the economy. One day, government will actually come to realisation that we contribute so much to the economy. But if not, we might have to form our own pollical party!”

Next on stage was Paul Moorby OBE, founder of Chipside, provider of MiPermit parking solutions. He reflected upon the tough times the industry has faced and acknowledged the resilience of those gathered, emphasising the importance of being able to laugh and, sometimes, cry together.

Moorby said: “All around the world, every country is considering what the future looks like. What does society look like? What does industry look like? And in our sector, what does the world of transportation look like with a smaller population? What does mass transport look like? Is it affordable? Can we have people driving their own personal vehicles? Should we prevent that from happening? That is what we’re all working on and you should all be proud that you are designing the future for the next generation.”

As the awards ceremony’s guest host Paul Sinha took to the stage he noted the esteemed people he was following, saying: “What a nice change is have someone on stage who possesses neither an OBE nor an MBE –you’re just slumming it now!”

Sinha kept the audience laughing as he ran through his journey from doctor, to stand-up comedian and professional quizzer, a talent that saw him become ‘The Sinnerman’ on ITV’s The Chase.

Looking back at his headline performance at The Comedy Store, Sinha revealed: “Last summer, I has my a first solo show at the world famous Comedy Store in Piccadilly in central London, bloody three and a half hours drive from Central London in a place called South London. I apologise now, if that three and a half hour drive is the fault of anyone in this room... I’ve not done the research!”

Sinha then conducted the presentation of the trophies, riffing all the way with the ‘Voice of Parking’ Roger Tilling. He closed the event by stating how much he had enjoyed the company and hoped to come back again.

Paul Sinha on a digital version of the set of The Chase

Paul Moorby OBE

Anjna Patel MBE

Classic British Parking Awards trophies flanking the Parking Rosettes presented for special categories

The competition

Entries to the British Parking Awards are assessed by a jury drawn from across the parking, transport and motoring sectors. There were 140 entries to the 2024 competition, plus a series of nominations for special awards such as those for the Lifetime Achievement and ‘Parking Rosettes’.

The judges

Chair and organiser: Mark Moran, editor, Parking Review

Jason Benjamin, parking manager, Portsmouth City Council

Simon Cheung, director of operations, Chipside

Polly Church, director, Potter Church & Holmes Architects

John Elliott, Local Government Technical Advisers Group (TAG)

Graham Footer, chief executive, Disabled Motoring UK

Mark Frost, director, Fern Consulting

Elisabeth Gilliard, independent management consultant and vice president, Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport (CILT)

Phil Grant, parking services manager, Harborough District Council

Nick Lester-Davis, director, Nick Lester-Davis Consulting

Gavin Manger, parking professional

John McArdle, independent consultant

Chris Naylor, head of membership and relations, IPC

Paul Necus, independent consultant

Angela O’Shea, independent consultant

Laura Padden, director, PATROL

Anjna Patel MBE, parking professional and chair of the BPA

David Peach, managing director, Workflow Dynamics

Andrew Potter, director, Parking Perspectives

Mark Potter, director, Potter Church & Holmes Architects

David Pye, director, Capital Traffic Management & Parking

Manny Rasores de Toro, principal, MR Parking Consultancy

Mahmood Siddiqi, head of technical development, PTRC

Richard Talbot, director, The Railway Consultancy

Steve Thompson, independent consultant

In addition the British Parking association’s regional managers provided feedback on the Park Mark and Park Access status of facilities competing in the Best Car Park and Car Park Renovation categories.

Landor LINKS would like to thank all the jury for their great work.

The Winners

Parking Person of the Year

Michael Wiktorko

Rising Star Award

Nisha Damhar

Andrzej Paszek

Parking Team of the Year

ZZPS

Parking Partnerships Award

Marston Holdings, City of Westminster and the Metropolitan Police

The Front Line Award

Ellen Tooley

The Back Office Award

Durham County Council and NSL

Parking in the Community Award

Marston Holdings and Social Bite

Parking Operator of the Year

Q-Park

Communication Award

Major Incident response: APCOA and London Luton Airport

Better Streets Award

Pavement parking controls: City of Edinburgh Council, Project Centre and NSL

Traffic Team Award

Project Centre

Parking Technology Award

Peterborough City Council and Imperial

The Car Parks

Best New Car Park

Blackpool Central Multi-Storey Car Park

Car Parks: Special Projects Award

Fidelity Kingswood Multi-Storey Car Park

Car Park Renovation Award

The Plaza Multi-Storey Car Park

EVolution Award

EV Charging Award

Cambridge City Council, Connected Kerb and Stripe Consulting

Parking Rosettes

Accessible Parking Award

London Borough of Haringey

Connected Vehicles Award

Parkopedia

Special Awards

MiPermit Inspiration Award

Vaso Vaina

Lifetime Achievement Award

Amanda Jones

Maureen Williams

Special Jury Award

The Single Code of Practice: The British Parking Association and the International Parking Community

Putting parking in the picture

Practice makes perfect… behind the at the British Parking Awards 2024

Roger Tilling

Landor LINKS show designer Justin Andrew and Roger Tilling

Matthew Walker Photography took the photos and created the videos

Rehearsing the awards

The stage awaits…

Snapshots...

How the sector responded to the British Parking Awards on social media

Vaso’s inspiring vision

MiPermit Inspiration Award

Designing car parks is often seen as a mundane task between architectural groups and is regularly frowned upon. It is sadly true that other architects already involved in the sector, from other practices, refer to car parks as “boring” or not interesting structures. But not for Vaso Vaina, managing director of Stripe Consulting. She is an architect who treats these structures with the respect they deserve, applying to each design the latest in architecture, fire safety and engineering.

Vaso Vaina joined Stripe Consulting as a design manager in 2018, coming from a similar position in a major UK housebuilding company, Churchill Retirement Living. She then progressed to become head of architecture

In August 2021, the company’s owner sold the majority of the company shares to Ballast Nedam UK. This created an opening for a managing director in Stripe. In recognition of her hard work and dedication to the company’s future, she was selected for the director role and since then she has been overseeing the company’s multi-disciplinary team operations.

Vaina has been practicing since 2004 as a fully qualified architect and has been involved in the design of award winning developments. Vaina is a RIBA chartered architect, chair of the RIBA Surrey branch, and a fellow of the Chartered Managers Institute. She also mentors students at Brighton and Portsmouth architectural schools, as part of the RIBA Future Architects scheme, and gives her own time to participate at mock interview events.

Setting a vision

Vaso drafted Stripe’s first ever company mission and vision statements, embedding sustainable design principles. It reads:

“Our vision is to be the number one consultancy choice for all clients with car park related projects. Lead and contribute developments in the car parking sector. Design efficiently, specify sustainably, with repurposing and recycling at the core of every decision.”

Vaina actively encourages engineers and architects to consider embodied carbon from early design and specification stages. She allocates time to staff to get familiar with the latest developments in the sector. These include seminars on carbon and Biodiversity Net Gain (BNG) calculations. She is raising awareness about BNG that will affect all car park applications moving forward, as this became law in April 2024.

Stripe moved to a brand new office in February 2024 and as a business it has made significant progress in going paperless and implementing a new sustainability policy. It is now sharing waste and mileage data with the wider group and contributes to quarterly reviews and annual data collection.

Vaina also encourages clients to engage with building contractors with strong social value records:

• creating jobs and long-term employment

• ethical and low-carbon supply chain sourcing

• engaging charities, community organisations and non-profit organisations (NPOs)

• promoting a sense of identity and cohesion within communities.

For example, she led the multi-disciplinary team that delivered a £25m multi-storey car park in a deprived neighbourhood in Blackpool, working with subcontractors employing ex-detainees.

Vaso Vaina

Vaso Vaina

Championing inclusivity, diversity and wellbeing

Transitioning the company from a single company owner to being part of a bigger group, Vaina saw an opportunity to reshape the team. In all recruitment processes she looks out for the most qualified candidate to take the role, regardless of gender, age, nationality or faith and beliefs. She never asks questions during an interview that would reveal personal information about a candidate. She organises meetings with recruiters, making clear the company’s inclusive policy and actively encouraging them to look within all professional and social groups.

The COVID lockdown years had a significant affect in the way Stripe works. Whilst it appeared unthinkable to operate a multidisciplinary design team remotely at first, during the pandemic this became the norm. Under Vaina’s leadership the company continued with remote working for a full two years after the restrictions were lifted. Whilst working from home benefitted some, others were left feeling isolated and it impacted their mental health. Managers including herself blended family and professional boundaries and reached a point of burnout.

Vaina recognised that not one rule fits all and she made adjustments to suit individual circumstances. While keeping an eye on productivity and individual performance, she allowed flexibility for employees who decided to move away from the office during COVID. She allows flexibility also for new mums and dads with school age children.

She encourages conversations about mental health within the business and she reached out to external providers for mentoring tips for managers. Vaina introduced physical and mental health questionnaires. She had looked to nominate a mental health ambassador, but feedback from staff suggested that they would open up more easily to someone external to the business. She then trusted this role to a new HR advisor role, created in the UK by the group of companies.

Vaso also regularly organises H&S training modules involving her whole team.

Parking sector ambassador

Through her involvement with RIBA, Vaina champions the values of good design in the car parking sector. She is a great car parking ambassador. When she attended a Members Forum event at the RIBA headquarters at Portland Place in London, Vaina was the only architect with car parking design experience among the participants and didn’t shy away from advocating the sector.

She is also mentoring new talent into the sector and safeguarding its bright future in terms of necessary skills, by bringing new architectural talent to the sector.

Vaina also made time to help develop the programme at Landor LINKS’s Car Parks conference, held in March 2024. She worked in close cooperation with programmer Mark Moran, editor of Parking Review, on shaping an agenda that encapsulated the full design life of a car park. From inception and initial design stages, to lifecare plans and maintaining them in the years to come. The conference covered subjects like the change in 2023 to the car park designs standards and raised awareness on ever-changing standards regarding fire safety and introduction of new uses. The conference gathered significant interest from car parking sector peers associated with the built environment and a sequel is planned for 2025.

Vaina also regularly uses social media platforms like LinkedIn to promote fire safety, structural safety and compliance issues associated with car parking projects.

By initiating her registration in the RIBA Principle Designers database, Vaina will be the first car park specialist architect to serve these type of structures, following the introduction of the Building Safety Act in October 2023. And by initiating her regis-

Award sponsored by

tration in the RIBA Client Advisor register, she will also be the first person qualified and with extensive industry experience to provide client advice, in both the private and public sectors.

Accreditations like these, bearing the logo of an architectural institute like RIBA, help to give to the design of car parks the importance and attention it deserves.

Vaina is an active member of the British Parking Association (BPA) Suicide Prevention working group, leading to the publication of the Suicide Prevention in Car Parks factsheet and guide. She regularly presents at national exhibition and conference events on parking, and also participates in the BPA’s Structures and Women in Parking Groups.

Vaina assisted Sara Fisher when the BPA was creating a presentation to launch their Park Access accreditation. She drew from the extensive library of projects she designed and completed, showcasing the successful implementation of accessible bay design and provided most of the visuals that Fisher used in her slides. This presentation was shared in all working groups within the BPA, Parkex and the Car Parks conference.

Vaina regularly presents at the BPA main event Parkex, covering the very sensitive subject of suicide prevention. Last year she presented some practical examples of what can be done to eliminate or reduce the risk in existing and new structures. This year at Parkex in Birmingham she participated in an interactive session, encouraging all participants to discuss suicide prevention.

Vaina attended the UKREiiF in Leeds this year, as part of the Women in Architecture delegation, raising the profile of women in construction. She met with several teams raising the profile of car park specialist designers in this huge event.

She maintains high standards in all project she delivers with her team. Her team successfully renews their ISO and Safe Contractor accreditations. The fact that she gains repeat business from clients and numerous positive feedback statements illustrates the level of excellence she achieves in her work in the car parking sector.

Winner’s words

Vaso Vaina: “I really hope that I have received this award for the work that I have put behind suicide prevention in car parks, for mentoring young architects to try to enter the sector, and for educating the industry on latest changes of design standards.”

Vaso Vaina flanked by Simon Cheung from headline sponsor MiPermit and awards host Paul Sinha

Setting a new standard

Parking Person of the Year Michael Wiktorko

Michael Wiktorko started his journey in the parking sector in 2009 as an apprentice – the top third choice in his application for a council apprenticeship programme that has significantly changed his life. Little did he know then that he would still be in the parking industry 15 years later!

During his career so far Wiktorko has worked with several local authorities as well as a stint in the private sector, but has spent the majority of his career in Hackney Council’s parking services. At the east London borough he has progressed from an apprentice through a wide range of roles in the sector such as parking correspondence officer, permits officer, debt recovery officer, and debt recovery and finance team leader.

In 2018, he became the service area manager for Hackney’s parking enforcement service area where he has achieved great success, made an outstanding contribution to the industry and represents a ‘model of excellence’. More recently he has been promoted to senior service area manager for parking customer services to take his role to the next level and to continue improving the image of parking to the general public.

Changing public perceptions

Parking is often perceived as a service that is designed for revenue generation. Wiktorko has been working extremely hard to tackle this unhelpful stereotype and delivered a number of innovative approaches that helped to change this.

For example, when Hackney Council started the roll-out of new low traffic neighbourhood (LTN) and School Streets schemes, one of the first challenges he faced was pushback from drivers not being aware of the new schemes, constant complaints and reputation-damaging news articles stating that councils were just doing this to bring in cash.

Wiktorko responded by implementing a new process where warning notices are issued instead of penalty charge notices (PCNs) for the initial first phase of new schemes. These warning notices do not carry a financial penalty. There have been tens of thousands of warning notices issued that helped to raise awareness and improve driver compliance with such schemes.

Parking is often seen to deal with permits, car parks and bus lanes – often the most difficult cases are managed following complaints or elected members’ enquiries. Wiktorko has taken proactive steps to implement a new abandoned vehicle policy that enabled the council to take stronger action against vehicles that cause the most nuisance to local communities, often they are used by criminals and attract anti-social behaviour.

Insourced parking enforcement contract

Wiktorko has led his team through a major transformational change – bringing parking enforcement back in-house.

The opportunity came when the outsourced parking enforcement service, which had been provided by an external contractor since 1999, came up for review. The council was facing additional financial pressure to deliver savings and a long-standing dispute between unions and the external contractor. Furthermore, the service suffered very low morale in the workforce along with a high staff turnover rate.

Wiktorko reviewed the contract and the statutory service provision. He managed to find win-win solutions that delivered over £500,000 savings per annum, resolved all outstanding issues with the unions and delivered more effective and higher-performing service for residents by insourcing the service.

His work led to the creation of a new in-sourced parking enforcement team, which was named Team of the Year at the British Parking Awards in 2023.

Rebranding the role

One key aspect of the transformation of parking in Hackney saw Wiktorko design and implement a rebranding of civil enforcement officers as ‘road and traffic enforcement officers’ (RTEO). This

Michael Wiktorko

change expanded the officers’ role with the aim of combatting long-standing negative stereotypes associated with parking enforcement. In conjunction with the rebranding, a new uniform was designed to give the officers enhanced comfort, improved durability, and adaptability to various weather conditions.

The goal of the rebrand was to present a more approachable and helpful face to the community. For example, the officers are now the “eyes and ears” of the council, ensuring that problems such as vandalism, fly-tipping, graffiti, uncollected waste and anti-social behaviour are reported promptly and no longer rely on residents and businesses to report such issues.

This change has improved the overall image of the enforcement officers which resulted in a reduction of physical and verbal attacks on our staff from 172 attacks in 2020 to 13 in 2023 (representing a 92% reduction).

Transition to a four-day working week

Another bold move in the transformation was the implementation of a four-day working week for RTEOs. This initiative is aimed at improving work-life balance and to provide officers with five consecutive days off every three weeks to rest and take a break from their demanding roles.

The transition has improved the deployment of parking enforcement across the borough as this could now be achieved with a single shift, as opposed to the previous requirement of two shifts to cover the majority of parking restrictions.

The four-day working week is based on nine working hours per day as opposed to seven hours per day which reduced the overall time lost to travel between streets each day (improving time spent on duty and enforcing by 12%).

Previously, staff were required to work on Sunday which has led to problems in recruitment and retention. This was replaced by overtime work that is allocated fairly and in a transparent manner to top performers (based on quality not quantity of enforcement activities). This removed the pressure on the staff who did not want to work on Sunday and created an opportunity to recognise and reward hard-working enforcement colleagues.

The new rota provides for a “team day” every Wednesday, which provides an opportunity for training and individual checkins to take place without affecting service delivery.

Local

knowledge and community support

Parking services has expanded the use of controlled parking zones (CPZ) over the past decade, moving from 64% coverage in 2011/12 to 100% in 2022/23. The borough has been split into three districts with regards to parking enforcement.

Officers are deployed in their districts all the time and are not rotated between different locations on a random or rotational basis. This ensures they build local knowledge, provide community support and act as the face of the council by providing further information and advice about parking restrictions, permits, processes and consultations. This allows the managers to train officers with information specific to their district, as opposed to training on all issues, enabling officers to become familiar with locations that are normally compliant, and locations where there is a higher chance of drivers being aggressive, along with fully understanding and being sensitive to local community needs.

Engagement and satisfaction

Wiktorko puts his team at the forefront of service delivery –something that he learned very early in his career. He promised himself that if he ever became a manager he would focus on staff wellbeing first. He learned and adopted the theory that people don’t work for organisations – people work for people. The transformation work that Wiktorko led has also had a significant

Award sponsored by

impact on staff engagement and satisfaction. Staff surveys conducted every six months have shown an increase in engagement rates (improving from 53% in 2022 to 84% in 2023), indicating improved morale and motivation among enforcement colleagues.

The creation of apprenticeship positions further supports the development of new talent within the parking industry and is expected to address future recruitment challenges. A recent council-wide staff survey has further shown how Wiktorko has led the team and it forms part of his testimonial.

Wiktorko designed a new structure that created an environment for team leaders and managers to spend time with officers directly in coaching, supporting, training and motivating staff. This has had a real positive impact on the staff. During 2023/24 his team has seen only one member of staff leaving for better opportunities externally – a few years earlier at least 30% of staff would leave to work elsewhere.

School Streets enforcement programme

Wiktorko has led the implementation of enforcement in School Streets that set a new standard for the UK. This work was further recognised in 2023 with an award at the British Parking Awards for School Streets. His innovative approaches to managing vehicle access around schools during peak times, enhancing safety and reducing traffic-related pollution has resulted in creating safer and more sustainable environments for school children.

Payment arrangements in debt recovery

Wiktorko has worked on redefining the debt recovery processes and contracts for outstanding debt in relation to parking penalty charge notices (PCNs). With the new Taking Control of Goods Act coming into force, he had the foresight to understand that the future of the debt recovery work would focus on the support to vulnerable debtors and offering payment arrangements.

A very similar process was later implemented in the form of “breathing space”. The initial scepticism about accepting partpayments and instalments resulted in over 30% increase in the income recovered and now represents standard practice on Hackney Council debt recovery contracts.

Sharing experiences

Kevin Keady, assistant director at Hackney Council, says: “Michael has always known that parking is just a tool to deliver greater change in the local communities and make the lives of residents safer, healthier and better. Michael is a strong advocate for the parking sector and wants to share his ideas on how to deliver the best performance in the sector with all stakeholders, both public and private.”

Winner’s words

Michael Wiktorko: “Wow! I never expected it! This award means a lot. I was quite unprepared, so I don’t really know what to say, but it means a lot. I hope I can continue to develop parking and make the difference for better communities and the country.”

The Hackney parking team

The heart of Camden

Lifetime Achievement Award

Maureen Williams

Maureen Williams is the enforcement manager at London Borough of Camden. Her long and varied journey in parking started at the ground level in November 1991, patrolling the streets of Camden as a parking control officer. Over the following decades she has developed, and transformed into one of the most experienced and capable enforcement managers in London.

Williams has been a key contributor to the evolution and effective delivery of the parking service in Camden. She has developed a strong and highly capable team, and is held in high regard by both her colleagues at NSL and the client team at Camden Council. Williams has led her team through changes such as transitions from being an in-house to an outsourced service, changes to working environment, in procedures and through the uncertainty and anxiety of the COVID-19 pandemic. She currently manages NSL’s Regis Road base, which is the largest in Camden with over 70 colleagues under her wing.

As an NSL base manager she has undertaken development courses offered by Marston Holdings, including Managing People Positively and Leading Teams, which has helped Williams to enhance and hone her skills, whilst enhancing her knowledge of the technical and process-related elements of her role, such as performance and absence management, along with IT and Health and Safety elements that were essential to her remit.

Over time Williams has adapted her leadership style to a more strategic approach, encompassing not only her own team but also with developing her relationship with the client. Having previously worked as a member of the Camden Council parking

team, she was able to proactively harness her knowledge and understanding of the client’s operation, using this to identify opportunities to further her own development and that of her team, focussing this for the benefit of both her employer and her clients.

In addition to developing her own skillset, Williams has taken a keen interest in developing her own team, taking time to identify talent, and proactively providing opportunities for her subordinates to broaden their experience and capability. She prides herself in offering additional or extended duties to enthusiastic colleagues, providing them with a platform to not only learn new skills, but to highlight their capabilities, which might not otherwise be demonstrated.

Testimonials

Andrea Jones, strategic operations director, Marston Holdings: “I first started working with Maureen in 2011 when I became the parking operations manager for the London Borough of Camden. There are a lot of adjectives to describe her; however her knowledge of the borough and dedication to both her client and her team stand her out from the crowd. When I think of Maureen I always see her smiling no matter what the situation, a characteristic we all strive towards but rarely achieve.”

Sileshi Woyessa, asset officer at Camden Council: “Maureen is one of the greatest assets in the UK parking sector. She is a seasoned professional who has lived through and adapted herself to the ever-changing technological and legislative landscapes of the parking industry, embracing, managing, implementing, and radiating change throughout her long career. Maureen’s long service, unwavering dedication and distinguished leadership in parking enforcement makes her a true inspiration for young professionals, principally for young women of all backgrounds, who would shape the future of our industry.”

Winner’s words

Maureen Williams: “I’ve been in parking for 33 years and it gives me pleasure to be recognised at this level. It recognises my competence and that I manage a good team of people. A big thank you to everyone who recognised my contribution to parking by nominating me.”

Maureen Williams

Award sponsored by

The Traffic Order Oracle

audiences. Jones also delivered the first Traffic Orders for motorcycle charging in the London Borough of Westminster, a politically sensitive and high-profile scheme, showcasing her ability to manage complex and impactful projects.

Amanda Jones has over 35 years of experience in drafting and processing Traffic Orders, which she gained while working in local government (Greater London Council, City of Westminster Council) before starting work with Project Centre in 2021.

Jones is expert in drafting high-quality and technically robust Traffic Orders of all types and is wholly familiar with the relevant legislation relating to them.

Jones has demonstrated exceptional expertise within Project Centre, particularly in drafting and processing a comprehensive range of Traffic Orders and notices. Her proficiency encompasses controlled parking zones, waiting and loading restrictions, bus lanes, cycle lanes, banned turns, one-way streets, road closures, pedestrian-only zones, speed limits, and variations in parking charges. Additionally, her skills extend to Town and Country Planning stopping up orders, footpath orders, and notices for pedestrian crossings, road humps, and cycle tracks.

Jones has consistently provided expert advice to various local authorities, establishing herself as the go-to person for inquiries on the latest developments in traffic orders. Her commitment to simplifying and modernising the traffic order process, in collaboration with local authorities and the Department for Transport (DfT), has resulted in a more efficient and cost-effective service for clients.

Noteworthy achievements include being among the first to produce a combined waiting, loading, and parking place mapbased Traffic Order, significantly enhancing the transparency and accessibility of the traffic order process for non-technical

Testimonials

Nikki Musson, senior parking consultant, Project Centre: “Mandy has a wealth of knowledge and experience, particularly where traffic orders and traffic/parking management are concerned, gained from working both in the public and private sectors over the years. Her friendly, professional approach makes her an invaluable team member who we can all learn from and discuss solutions to the trickiest of parking problems. Put simply, there’s rarely a situation she hasn’t met before or can’t apply her extensive knowledge to, which is why we call her The Oracle!”

Steven Halsey, principal parking consultant, Project Centre: “Mandy has been a font of knowledge for all things traffic order related and has helped me to accurately plot legal milestones for implementing experimental and permanent TROs into project timelines for client moving traffic schemes. Without her help and guidance, I would not have been as confident providing accurate timelines or been so comfortable answering questions about the process when it comes to orders and their legal requirements.”

Andrew Griffith, Traffic Order specialist, Waltham Forest: “In 2006 I was seeking a change in career and applied for a role in Westminster where Amanda worked as a senior order maker for West-One (WSP). I applied as an apprentice. I was inexperienced but she saw potential in me. She put in a good word and the result is that – with her help, guidance and expertise – I have looked after the day-to-day Traffic Order process for a local authority for the last 11 years. She was, and still is a great mentor, very calm with attention to detail.”

Winner’s words

Amanda Jones: “I’ve been in the industry a long time. I’m considered an expert in my field. I’ve mentored a lot of people over the years at a lot of different organisations. I’m a bit taken aback, but I’m really thrilled that I’ve been recognised for my many years of service in this industry.”

Award sponsored by

Lifetime Achievement Award

Amanda Jones

Amanda Jones

Agena’s brightest star

Rising Star Award Andrzej Paszek

Andrzej Paszek joined Agena Group in 2021 as a mobile parking operative to help finance his studies.

But it quickly became apparent that the company had gained a young talent with big ambition and the skills to go far. Within months he began moving up the organisation taking on managerial responsibility and proving himself to be an exceptional line manager, and is now a junior IT project manager

Alex Cooke, Agena’s chief operating officer, says: “When Andrzej expressed his ambition to apply his Business Degree and retrain to become a project manager, we knew it was our duty to help him achieve his goals and he was welcomed onto our Ascend Apprenticeship scheme. Having completed his apprenticeship in record time – 12 months rather than the allotted 21 months – Andrzej is now a qualified junior IT project manager and has contributed to some of the most pivotal projects in Agena Group’s growth and diversification strategy.”

Paszek commenced his degree at Middlesex University and around the same time joined Agena Group in 2021 as a mobile patrol operative, which fitted around his studies as it gave him the flexibility he needed. However, Agena Group recognised that it had gained a young talent with big ambition and the skills to go far. Within seven months Andrzej was promoted to warden team leader, transforming an underperforming team of 30 wardens into one of the highest performing teams.

When Paszek expressed his ambition to apply his International Business degree and retrain to become a project manager, Agena saw an opportunity to nurture his talent whilst fulfilling an essential need within the business. At the time Agena Group was preparing to launch a growth and diversification strategy, which was underpinned by the development of digital-first products and industry-leading data insights solutions. This was to be led by its tech innovation business, Atria. In preparation it advertised a role for apprentice project management officer and invited Paszek to apply.

Agena Group’s Ascend Apprenticeship programme is an essential tool for retaining and attracting talent into the business. Core to the programme is the opportunity for current employees to retrain or develop in their chosen career path whilst earning a market rate salary.

Pazek’s dedication to his apprenticeship and hard work saw him complete the course in a record 12 months – half the time expected. Fleur Grewcock, educator at Heart of England Training, says: “The APM apprenticeship is usually completed over the space of 21 months. Nine months dedicated to the PMQ and then the following year to the gathering of evidence for the standard. Andrzej completed this all in one year which I have never known before. This was due to his determination and dedication.”

Since joining Agena Group, Paszek has proven to be an asset to the business in every position he has held. He has contributed to some of the biggest digital transformation programmes seen at Agena, managing complex programme plans and coordinating between core teams and stakeholders across the group. He has become a conduit between the IT development teams and the end user and has worked hard to improve its internal processes.

Award sponsored by

For example, as project management officer he supported the ‘Fleet’ initiative to address complex processes for recouping parking charge notices (PCNs) attached to rented vehicles. Savings this year include:

• percentage cost savings: approx. 72.93%

• number of letters saved: approx. 28,985.14

• CO2 emissions saved: approx. 0.122016 tones (roughly equivalent to 81% of the emissions from one short-haul flight).

He also managed programme plans for the launch of a suite of new digital products core to Agena’s diversification drive including its first ever consumer-products. Technology-enabled solutions now account for 53% of total revenue.

Meanwhile, Paszek oversaw the delivery of ‘Timesheets’, an internal app that monitors financial and time-spend on projects to enhance forecasting, forward planning and budgeting.

Paszek reimagined the IT change management process for internal and customer change requests, including managing full IT road map and developing a system of transparency and collaboration between IT teams and stakeholders. He also contributed to Agena’s certification as ‘Carbon Neutral’ six years ahead of schedule as part of the company’s environmental committee. This year Paszek implemented Agena’s ‘Think Before You Print’ campaign designed to reduce printing and paper-waste and to move the organisation to digital-first approach.

Always looking for opportunities for growth, Paszek successfully applied to the company’s Bright Stars mentoring scheme, a 12month programme of training, development and mentoring with a senior leader which he completed simultaneously to his apprenticeship programme.

COO Alex Cooke, who is Bright Star mentor, says: “Andrzej has an incredibly bright future ahead of him and he has started to take on some bigger and more demanding projects in reflection of this. We hope that he continues his journey with Agena for as long as possible and the challenge for us it to make sure we can keep up with him along the way!”

Winner’s words

Andrzej Pazek: “This award means really a lot. I mean, I never won anything in my life, so it’s really great to be recognised. Even being nominated was such a huge honour. So, actually getting to win the award… I can’t really describe it.”

Andrzej Pazek with Peter Bitten of sponsor Flowcrete and Paul Sinha

Delivering liveable places

Rising Star Award

Nisha Damhar

Nisha Damhar has risen to the status of associate director in WSP Liveable Places after just under six years in the parking industry. Her parking journey started in 2018 with back office roles at both Hampshire County and Bournemouth Christchurch and Poole Councils, both of whom she has retained positive working relationships with since joining WSP. Damhar joined WSP in 2021 as an associate consultant with responsibility for leading the Liveable Places Traffic Order workstream and delivery of the Westminster traffic order services contract.

It is a high-profile role and Damhar took it on at a critical time. She made an immediate positive impact on team performance, morale and overall contract delivery for Westminster, a key account for the company. She also line manages six staff and oversees the wider traffic order workstream which includes staff in three offices in the UK.

In her three years at WSP Liveable Places, Damhar has helped resecure the Westminster City Council Traffic Order contract which she manages and led the Liveable Places Traffic Order workstream, receiving the Parking Team of the Year trophy at the British Parking Awards in 2022.

Her hard work and achievements to date saw her promoted to associate director at the end of 2023. WSL technical director Ollie Miller says: “Despite being relatively new to her parking career, Nisha is a well-established and highly respected member of the wider Liveable Places and Mobility services. She has demonstrated a commitment to good practice and outstanding performance on numerous occasions. Her ability to break down complex issues and describe them in non-technical terms that a wide audience can understand has been invaluable in bringing her team and colleagues with her with the service improvements she has introduced in her time at WSP.

“An example of her consistent application of good practice is her delivery of the Westminster Traffic Order contract. Using Nisha’s newly devised reporting queries in the project management database and various tracking spreadsheets, reports and minutes, we can now efficiently extract data on key performance information. Where previously this was a manual and time-consuming process, thanks to Nisha it is faster and allows her to spend more time using that information to improve the service further.”

Damhar introduced an innovation spreadsheet where team members can contribute ideas and suggestions for innovative improvements which may streamline the service and/or cut costs for Westminster whilst maintaining service standards. In order to ensure there is tangible benefit in implementing any of the suggested innovation improvements Nisha introduced a ranking system which considers a range of criteria, including cost and complexity, risk and dependency to identify those concepts that are deliverable.

Damhar has also been proactive in liaising across WSP colleagues nationwide to resolve resourcing pressures that occasionally arise in Traffic Orders, which is a very niche specialism. It is that kind of attitude, acting without ego but with a total commitment to delivering for her clients that has allowed Damhar

Award sponsored by

and the team to improve the delivery of the Westminster Traffic Order contract and has allowed her to emerge as a talent and future leader of WSP and rising star of the parking industry.

Miller said: “Despite her limited number of years, Nisha Damhar has proved herself fantastically capable at managing people, leading teams, and nurturing and developing those staff she is responsible for. Within the WSP Liveable Places team, graduates and apprentices will work on traffic order projects that Nisha leads on, and she is always generous with her time in helping develop their understanding and competence in the field. In a busy and fast paced role, it is not always easy, but Damhar finds the time and prioritises developing those around her, which is brilliant.

“We have successful and long-established programmes within WSP for mentoring, leadership academies, pathways to chartership and talent nurturing which results in very good rates of staff retention. These valued programmes are utilised in nurturing rising stars such as Nisha to achieve their potential. In addition to our standard training and development matrices covering general management, systems, project management and financial management we tailor additional training to the discrete needs of working in parking.”

In addition to her own training, Damhar has offered internal training sessions to spread knowledge and understanding of parking, traffic enforcement and Traffic Orders. This has proven to be successful, has broadened her WSP colleagues’ skill sets and opened further opportunities for individuals to develop within the business.

“Nisha takes a mature and proactive approach to her own career development and training needs and will be looking to build on her contract management skills over the coming year with some additional training to complement her current ‘on the job’ learning. Nisha is innovative, hard working and very talented. In only five years in the parking industry, to have achieved what she has achieved is incredible. She is definitely a rising star and I look forward to seeing how far she chooses to go in her parking career,” concluded Miller.

Damhar plays a wider role in that she leads on social value delivery for the wider engineering service delivery for the Westminster City Council contract. For example, she proactively sought out a local Westminster-based charity for which WSP could fundraise and organised a team bake sale event in WSP’s Chancery Lane office. That single event raised over £550 for the Cardinal Hume Centre, a fantastic local charity helping vulnerable children and families in the City. Miller says: “Nisha used the event as an opportunity to chat informally with our junior and new colleagues, helping them feel welcome and important within WSP, which was really appreciated.”

Craig Sutherland, technical director, WSP, adds: “Nisha is an incredible talent and a great asset to WSP. I have had the pleasure or working with her and have witnessed first-hand her talent, calmness under pressure and innovative approaches to tackling complex challenges she has brought to the organisation.”

Matthew Sharples, operations officer and TMO contract manager, Westminster City Council, says: “I have the highest of respect for Nisha who conducts herself with the upmost professionalism. She is extremely knowledgeable of the service and a pleasure to work with. She always goes above and beyond and can be depended upon at all times.”

Winner’s words

Nisha Damhar: “I’ve only been in parking for a few years. In that time I’ve gone from a sleepy little seaside town to Hampshire County Council and then to WSP where I now manage that traffic audit team for WSP Liveable Space. I feel really humbled. I feel like I have come so far.”

We work well together

Parking Team of the Year ZZPS

Building a positive workplace environment that supports team work is at the heart of the way in which ZZPS works. Gary Osner, chief executive of ZZPS, says: “At ZZPS, we pride ourselves on being a dynamic, versatile, and dedicated team that swiftly adapts to the evolving parking industry. Central to our success is a continuous training scheme, regularly updated and delivered to foster professional growth and development. We are committed to delivering the highest standard of customer service to both our clients and customers.”

The company provides a range of back office services to parking operators including notice processing, DVLA enquiries and credit solutions. Over the past year ZZPS has been implementing many of the changes anticipated prior to the release of the new single code of conduct for parking on private land to ensure full compliance. “This proactive approach ensures our team is wellprepared, knowledgeable, and confident, ready to provide motorists with the exceptional service they deserve,” says Osner. “For instance, we have established clearer parameters for motorists to appeal parking charges, resulting in fairer appeals process for all.”

The company places an emphasis on developing the skills and knowledge of its team. “We offer comprehensive foundational training for our team members along with advanced and targeted training to support individual growth,” says Osner.

“Our entire team has successfully completed the British Parking Association’s mandatory training and received specialised training in subjects such as Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) to en-

Award sponsored by

hance both their personal and professional development.”

During 2023, ZZPS implemented a new organisational structure and established a team leadership group to enhance overall performance. Osner explains: “This leadership group adds an extra layer to our training and development efforts, driving our collective goals forward. At ZZPS we believe true leadership shines through actions, and this new tier underscores our commitment to providing additional support across all departments.

“Recognising the fast-paced and ever-changing nature of the parking industry, we emphasise the importance of a resilient and supportive team. We encourage optimism and a positive mental attitude, which helps everyone stay motivated in challenging situations, leading to improved mental health and wellbeing. Inclusivity and acknowledgements are paramount, and we host numerous team-building events throughout the year, such as gokarting and golf evenings.”

To acknowledge the team’s efforts, ZZPS has also implemented a company reward system using Perkbox. This allows the leadership team to reward those who go above and beyond in assisting customers, colleagues, and clients.

“Additionally, we have organised a weekend trip to Barcelona for the entire ZZPS team to celebrate our 10-year trading anniversary, recognising the hard work and dedication of everyone who has contributed to our success,” says Osner.

“Due to all the hard work and efforts from our team at ZZPS, we are extremely proud to be honoured with the recognition of The Sunday Times Best Places to Work 2024. This is a significant achievement, and it’s the second consecutive year we have had this recognition, demonstrating that by working together in a positive and concentrated setting, we consistently achieve our goals. This year we have also earned another Gold Standard from our Investors in People.”

Winner’s words

ZZPS’s Gary Osner: “I have an amazing team and without them it means nothing. This trophy is a reward for them. They are the best team to work with. They are an inspiration. And they inspire me every single day.”

The ZZPS team celebrate

Protecting the front line

Parking Partnerships Award

Marston Holdings, City of Westminster and the Metropolitan Police

Violence against parking staff is, sadly, an all too frequent occurrence. Making front line staff feel safe when they go about their work is a priority for operators such as Marston Holdings. The number of civil enforcement officers attacked both verbally and physically whilst carrying out their duties within the City of Westminster rose exponentially, especially within certain housing estates within the north of the city, from almost zero in 2020 to 15 in 2021. This, in turn, resulted in the teams unwilling to attend these areas without further support.

Paolo Orezzi, Marston service director for the Westminster contract, contacted the various Police Neighbourhood teams responsible for these areas to request joint patrols of these estates.

The objective of the partnership was to ensure that we could continue with our work improving overall parking compliance within the estates whilst reducing the number of attacks on our team. Prior to 2020, enforcement activities were carried out under contract law and therefore there was very little follow up on persistent offenders and evaders.

During 2020 the rules changed and enforcement was undertaken via the TAM (2004), which in turn aimed to improve compliance, however, this was not welcomed by a number of residents and visitors to these estates which in turn increased the levels of violence against officers.

The main task undertaken by the partnership is to enforce

vehicles that are illegally parked with particular attention paid to those obstructing access for the emergency services such as the London Fire Brigade and London Ambulance Service and for the waste teams collecting refuse from the estates.

Orezzi says: “Whilst the police support our officers carrying out patrols, they will carry out knife sweeps within the estates and talk to residents gaining intelligence on any concerns raised

“As the relationship with the police has progressed, we have also entered into data sharing agreements where we can share information amongst both parties on vehicles of interest such as untaxed vehicles and those concerned with anti-social behaviour.”

The partnership also aims to provide a visible reassurance to residents and improve the overall ambience of the estates which have been blighted by crime and anti-social behaviour. “Since the patrols have commenced, no civil enforcement officers have suffered either verbal or physical attacks,” reports Orezzi. “Also, the number of vehicles in contravention has decreased by over 50% and complaints from the emergency services and waste teams regarding access has dropped to zero.”

The partners now plan to increase the frequency of patrols across these estates each month and continue to increase the amount of data shared.

Key project managers

• Paolo Orezzi, Marston service director, Westminster

• Folorunso Adeyemi, Marston on-street supervisor, Westminster

• PC Ellis Joseph, Metropolitan Police

• PC Dylan Richards, Metropolitan Police

• Sgt Sam Wilkinson, Metropolitan Police

• PC Ellie Bowman, Metropolitan Police

• PC James Pullen, Metropolitan Police

Winner’s words

Paulo Orezzi: “The Parking Partnerships Award is a great credit to our client, City of Westminster, and the Met Police Service, and the great work of the NSL teams who go out every day ensuring that the streets are safe for our residents.”

Westminster’s Jon Rowing with Marston’s Andrea Jones and Paulo Orezzi

An exceptional professional

Ellen Tooley works for APCOA in Bishops Stortford as part of the parking services team with East Herts Council. Tooley began her career with APCOA as a civil enforcement officer (CEO) in November 2010. Her key responsibilities are to ensure the smooth flow of traffic on-street, to issue parking tickets for contraventions, and to assist customers with parkingrelated enquiries. Additionally, she works off-street to ensure that motorists comply with the rules and regulations of the car parks themselves, improving their fair and equitable use. She also takes it upon herself to add considerable value to her CEO duties by assisting members of the public and always being a notably personable, measured and approachable individual.

Tooley continuously demonstrates a strong work ethic and excellent communication skills. As an experienced CEO, she leads by example and provides constant support and guidance to all team members. She actively pursues professional development as a civil enforcement officer, completing varied training programmes to enhance her skills. She has successfully completed training in: Conflict Management Refresher; Environmental Awareness Action, Counter Terrorism and Awareness

Tooley’s dedication has resulted in several notable achievements throughout her career. These include:

• Excellence in enforcement: She consistently upholds the highest standards of enforcement, ensuring compliance with parking regulations while treating motorists with fairness and re-

spect. She displays an exceptional ability to apply regulations appropriately and fairly, striking the delicate balance between enforcement and understanding.

• Exceptional professionalism: She is an exemplary professional, always presenting herself in a courteous and respectful manner. Her interactions with the public are marked by empathy, understanding, and effective communication. She goes above and beyond to assist motorists in understanding parking regulations, offering guidance and support whenever necessary.

• Strong community engagement: She actively engages with the local community to foster positive relationships and address any concerns related to parking enforcement as well as a vast amount of local knowledge. She is well known and loved throughout Bishop’s Stortford. Her achievements are witnessed on day-today basis during her patrols, and seen through testimonials received through members of the public and clients.

Fighting with stroke

In June 2023, she had a stroke and was in hospital for approximately three months for treatment and recovery from almost complete paralysis. Throughout her hospital stay, she maintained a phenomenally strong sense of commitment and motivation and was eager to return to work. During visits from APCOA colleagues, she was very upbeat about her progress in terms of recovery and expressed her desire to return to work as soon as possible. She has worked tirelessly through her recovery from a starting point of barely being able to move her fingers and toes, to returning to normal life and her duties as a civil enforcement officer.

The most impressive part of Tooley is that she ‘doesn’t like to stay idle’ and wants to work despite going through what must have been very difficult times. She carries a stick to support herself whilst out on patrol and despite all the difficulties she has faced, she still continues to carry out her duties with the same exemplary level of professional care, attention and positivity.

Fighting against violence in the workplace

The role of a civil enforcement officer can sometimes be tough, and verbal and even physical abuse from members of the public is not uncommon even though CEOs are all just doing a job and enforcing the regulations put in place by others.

Ellen Tooley had one particularly difficult encounter with a member of public whilst carrying out her duties, one which resulted in her being physically assaulted. This was reported to the police and the perpetrator was charged. She fought and persevered through the criminal proceedings which lasted more than a year and required her to attend the hearing and face the assailant multiple times in court. At the trial, the assailant was found guilty on charges of common assault and use of threatening, abusive, insulting words and behaviour to cause harassment, alarm and distress and was sentenced as follows:

• compensation: £600

• disqualified from driving for three months

• costs to the Crown Prosecution Service: £200.

The court case outcome was released by APCOA to the local press to make it clear that these offences are unacceptable and will not go unpunished.

Winner’s words

Ellen Tooley: “I’ve always focussed on customer service for 15 years. I love dealing with the public. I’ve had a stroke. I’ve come back to work. I’m a fighter and I’ll keep working. People abuse me, and they still say you shouldn’t be back to work. I love my job. It’s amazing. To me what winning is… it’s everything. The whole world. I’ve never thought I’d get this far. It’s been the icing on the cake. To win this award. It’s just the icing on the cake. I feel like a winner of the whole world.”

The Front Line Award

Ellen Tooley

A historic partnership

The Back Office Award

Durham County Council and NSL

Durham County Council and its parking services contractor NSL have worked together for over 24 years – the Marston Holdings company has successfully retained its contract multiple times. The longevity of the relationship has seen the council and NSL build up a partnership approach to providing parking services. Durham is primarily responsible for the management of: civil parking enforcement; bus lane enforcement; moving traffic enforcement; controlled parking zones and controlled parking areas; the Durham City Road User Charge; park & ride; and Blue Badge enforcement

NSL is responsible for: employment and deployment of civil enforcement officers (CEOs); dealing with back office first line challenges and issuing permits to residents. It also operates Durham’s park & ride site, has a contract to supply nighttime security, and the cleaning of the Sands multi-storey car park.

The council’s lead officer works closely with NSL’s client account manager and enforcement manager to ensure the operation achieves set targets. Peter Broxton, Durham’s parking and transport infrastructure team leader, says: “We hold regular formal monthly meetings as well as day-to-day catch ups and problem solving. Durham holds internal regular one-to-ones and team meetings to review development opportunities, positive change, areas of concern and mentoring, performance development reviews, highlighting areas of training and support required.”

Scott Wallace, NSL client account manager, says: “The parking supervisor runs workshops for new starters and refresher training, including Traffic Regulation Orders, road markings, TSRGD and

Award sponsored by

Traffic Penalty Tribunal. The workshops look at previous case studies and have team discussions over the evidence and information required, and whether we think the appeal was allowed or dismissed.”

All new administration officers and representations officers receive on-site training from the supervisor within the city centre to give a visual overview of the parking service. This includes a walk around of car parks, CPZs, congestion charge zone, bus station, and the park & ride service. They also job shadow CEOs and visit the Parking Shop to gain a full understanding of how the council and NSL all fit together as one team.

“One of our objectives is to improve road safety and the local environment by educating drivers about the implications of their actions,” says Broxton. “The purpose of a penalty charge is to dissuade motorists from contravening restrictions, not to raise revenue. In some circumstances, we choose to cancel PCNs upon receipt of a challenge, despite a contravention occurring. For example, when we receive a challenge from a Blue Badge holder who has made a genuine error when using the badge we cancel the notice on the first occasion and explain how the badge should be displayed in future. Equally, if someone had forgotten to display a pay-and-display ticket that they purchased, or incorrectly validated a visitor permit, then we cancel on the first occasion following proof received. In 2023/24 we cancelled 1,794 PCNs for the reasons outlined above.

“We operate in accordance with County Durham Parking Policies, which is available for the public to view on our website. We are consistent with our approach and in accordance with these policies. With regards to TPT appeals, only 5% of appeals to DCC were allowed in 2023/24. This is highlighting that we are making the correct decisions. We share all decisions with NSL so that they are aware of the full PCN process from start to finish.”

Winner’s words

Peter Broxton: “Durham won this award because of the work and effort of every single member of my team. That goes for the contract that we have with NSL, all the way down to the individual people who log in and take the calls. We couldn’t have done this without every single member of staff.”

Durham City Council’s Peter Broxton and Jenny Thomas, alongside Scott Wallace of NSL

A route back into work

Parking in the Community Marston Holdings, NSL and Social Bite

Parking and enforcement services supplier Marston Holdings operates nationwide and is committed to the delivery of social value activities across its business, supporting local communities and national initiatives. The company has, in particular, been concerned about why homelessness continues to grow and can be clearly seen on the streets every day.

Over the past four years Marston has built working relationships with a number of homeless charities and third sector recruiters, helping support those furthest from the job market back into employment. It has worked with organisations including St. Mungo’s, Radical Recruit, Beam and Social Bite.

Social Bite provides the support required from the homeless community to become work ready. It is not simply the case of preparing a candidate for an interview, it is far more than this, a safe and supportive environment in a setting in which everyone can feel socially, emotionally, and physically safe and valued. It creates the framework for personal growth, leading to a more positive mindset. Creating work environments that support our three basic psychological needs for competence, autonomy, and relatedness, benefits both the employer and the employees.

Marston’s work with Social Bite was driven by Vanessa Bartie, HR and payroll manager on the NSL Edinburgh contract and Paolo Orezzi, service director on its Westminster contract.

Bartie says: “A significant catalyst for the Social Bite project was the fact that through our day to day job roles we see the increase in the numbers of individuals sleeping rough on our streets. This is only the tip of the iceberg and there are thousands

Award sponsored by

more individuals with no permanent home either sleeping in hostels, homeless shelters, emergency accommodation or sofa surfing. Without the likes of Social Bite, employers cannot work alone in supporting the homeless community back into work.”

To date, 12 candidates from Social Bite have now joined front line teams at Marston Holdings working on contracts including Edinburgh, Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea.

Marston’s Paolo Orezzi says: “The project shows Marston’s parking teams that the company is doing something practical and proactive to help reduce the high levels of homelessness in our towns and cities. It has also helped to develop the skills of those individuals the company has recruited, none of which had previously worked in parking, but have demonstrated they have the transferable skills we look for such as working in a team, working with customers and working in a sometimes stressful environment. Most importantly, they are streetwise and know what to expect based on their own experiences.”

Further benefits were derived by existing parking teams working on contracts for Edinburgh, Westminster and Kensington & Chelsea. Social Bite played an important role throughout the project by assisting with the recruitment and training of the new employees as well as providing additional ancillary support for those returning back into the workplace. This gave existing staff a personal stake in ensuring the success of this project.

Emma Colgan-Blair, programme co-ordinator at Social Bite, said: “Social Bite and Marston Holdings have been partnering on the Jobs First Programme for two years. Marstons fully embraced the programme there too, engaging their team in training so that line managers can assist employees throughout their journey. We’ve always found Marstons to be non-judgmental, compassionate and committed to helping people succeed.”

Winner’s words

Paolo Orezzi: “Every day we see the impact of homelessness across the UK. Our teams are out on-street, and we see homelessness in every town and city. Working with Social Bite, we help to place homeless people, those furthest away from the job market, back into the workplace.”

Chris Naylor of the IPC and Paul Sinha presented the award to Westminster’s Jon Rowling and Marston’s Paulo Orezzi, Dave Evans and Vanessa Bartie

Crafting a common code

The International Parking Community and British Parking Association share the honours

Special Jury Award BPA and IPC: Single Code of Practice

The trade associations serving the parking sector have worked together to devise a joint code of practice for operators managing private land. The British Parking Association (BPA) and the International Parking Community (IPC) say the new single code, which supersedes their previously separate codes, will raise standards and deliver greater transparency and consistency for the benefit of motorists.

The BPA and IPC are accredited by the DVLA to run Approved Operator Schemes that enable member companies to obtain vehicle keeper data in order to collect unpaid parking charge notices issued on private land. This procedure was set up when the use of wheel clamping on private land was banned under the Protection of Freedoms Act 2012. Until now the BPA and IPC’s approved operator schemes have had separate codes of conduct.

The new code sees a greater degree of harmonisation in areas such as the sanctions that each association will impose on member operators for breaches of the code, up to the loss of access to DVLA data. The new single code:

• introduces an ‘Appeals Charter’, creating clear parameters for motorists to appeal against a parking charge

• mandates a 10-minute grace period for motorists and provides consistent rules for private parking operators

• requires clear signage to help motorists navigate parking on private land

• maintains a cap on the parking charge at £100 reduced to £60 if paid within 14 days

• ensures the protection of the most vulnerable in society, with

Award presented by

no decrease to the deterrent for abuse of Blue Badge bays or those who choose to park selfishly, putting their own convenience above the needs or rights of others.

Private parking operators need to have implemented the new single code by 1 October 2024, with all existing sites needing to be updated by December 2026.

A Private Members Bill, proposed by Sir Greg Knight MP, that enabled the introduction of a legislation-backed code of conduct gained cross-party support and received Royal Assent in March 2019. The government drew up a code that included halving the cap on tickets for most parking offences to £50 and created a single appeals system. However, this code was withdrawn by in June 2022 following a legal challenge by parking companies.

The revised government code was set to be put out for consultation at the end of May. However, former Conservative prime minister Rishi Sunak’s decision to call a general election means consultation on the new code was postponed.

Will Hurley, IPC chief executive officer says: “The new code will create positive change across the UK, enhancing the protection of the most vulnerable in society, whilst creating consistency and clarity for motorists and continuing to elevate standards across the sector.”

Andrew Pester, BPA chief executive says: “The single sector code for the private parking sector is a key milestone as we work closely with government, consumer bodies and others to deliver fairer and more consistent parking standards for motorists.”

Winner’s words

Chris Naylor, IPC’s head of membership and relations: “This award recognises the work that both organisations have done towards bringing the Single Code of Practice effectively to a point where we can release it and launch it and implement it. It’s been something that’s been required for years, hasn’t it?

Sara Roberts, head of the BPA Approved Operator Scheme: “It’s great to see our organisations working together for the better of the motoring community, the public and the industry. We are delivering one of the government’s aims together, which is doing right by the consumer.”

‘Q’

stands for qualit y

Parking Operator of the Year

Q-Park

The Parking Operator of the Year award recognises organisations that are creating a positive experience for motorists by providing easy-to-understand, nonconfrontational and person-centric services. Q-Park is one of Europe’s leading operators of parking infrastructure, with more than 706,000 parking spaces in over 3,600 commercial parking facilities across seven Western European countries. In the UK it operates in cities including London, Birmingham, Edinburgh, Leeds and Manchester. The company mainly operates off-street parking spaces it owns, as well as parking spaces run under concessions and long-term leases from public and private landlords.

Q-Park takes the safety and security of customer vehicles seriously, implementing different measures to reduce crime ranging from regular patrols, extensive CCTV coverage, bright LED lighting and customer only entrances. As well as this, the parking bays at its sites are wider than the industry average, alleviating the risks of bumps and scratches.

Customers will sometimes need assistance. At Q-Park sites they can either speak to a parking host on-site who can assist with any queries that they may have. Having a physical presence also helps provide peace of mind to customers about the security of their vehicle. The operatives can assist the customer with most queries or can call the local response number to request that a parking host urgently attends to provide customer support.

Q-Park does not believe that simply having a parking host in the car park office 24/7 provides the best value to both customers and the wider business. Its preference is that the hosts are fully

Award sponsored by

mobile within the facility undertaking cleaning tasks and also removing any person who should not be there.

Should a customer require assistance and are not able to locate a parking host, they can press the assistance button on any barrier, pay machine or help point. This will transfer them through to our 24/7 Customer Service Centre based in Leeds.

Q-Park is currently implementing technological innovations to create a seamless customer journey. A key initiative is PaSS, which is a combination of ANPR technology and PlatePay, a digital payment solution, meaning the use of a debit/credit card while at the parking facility is no longer required. Every customer who books parking receives a customer survey the day after their booking. On the question regarding whether they would pre-book parking again at non-PaSS sites the average score was 7.38 out of 10 whereas for PaSS sites it was 9.62 out of 10.

To cater for the transition to electric vehicles. Q-Park has signed a deal with Blink Charging for the installation of over 600 EV charging points across the country.

Q-Park is also at the forefront of the European parking industry when it comes to the creation of mobility hubs. It aims to develop parking facilities into vital instruments to help support urban accessibility, sustainability and liveability. In addition to car parking, Q-Park is now providing access for shared mobility schemes, electric vehicle charging, last mile delivery and retail space all within their safe and secure parking facilities.

The Park Lane Mobility Hub in Central London is a large car park underneath Hyde Park where commercial tenants include bp, DPD, Enterprise, UFODrive and ByBox.

Q-Park demonstrates that effective regulated and paid parking can make an economic and sustainable contribution to cities and society, and that a positive parking experience impacts how people enjoy their visit, journey, shopping, commute or residence.

Winner’s words

Adam Bidder: “We are thrilled to be once again acknowledged as the top parking operator in the UK. We’ve always believed in our excellence in this field, and it’s a tremendous honour to receive this recognition from our industry peers.”

Q-Park’s John Denton, Adam Bidder and James Pollock

Creating a single point of truth

Communication Award

APCOA and London Luton Airport

APCOA manages and provides customer services for London Luton Airport (LLA). On 10 October 2023, a vehicle fire in LLA’s multi-storey Terminal Car Park 2 (TCP2) quickly spread, causing extensive damage to the building and affecting more than 14,000 vehicles. There were no injuries but alongside the customers directly affected, the airport was severely disrupted with all approaches closed and operations paused for 18 hours.

With the airport closed, flights diverted, road access routes blocked, thousands of passengers disrupted and dramatic pictures emerging from the scene, media scrutiny was instant and intense. A joint Major Incident (MI) team was immediately convened with senior personnel from APCOA and LLA’s operations, customer services, communications and public affairs, and executive management. This team played a critical role in a fast-moving situation, ensuring accurate information was shared between all departments, and providing a conduit for high-level decision-making.

Communications responsibilities were designated:

• APCOA’s Customer Service Centre (CSC) was the hub for all customer communications on behalf of LLA

• APCOA and LLA operations teams on the ground assisted airport personnel to direct traffic and manage the situation locally, supporting customers as they returned to the airport

• APCOA and LLA public affairs teams co-ordinated all communications activity and also managing interactions with the media

• APCOA’s regional managing director, Kim Challis led liaison with insurance companies.

APCOA’s CSC provides a wide range of services, internally and externally, with a total team of 110 full and part-time employees across two locations, Wigan and Inverness. The CSC’s organisational structure is designed to manage peaks and troughs of customer interactions. One of the biggest communications challenges would be for APCOA’s CSC to manage the exceptional volume of LLA-related customer enquiries (more than 16,500 incoming customer contacts in the first fortnight) without impacting service levels for other clients. The first step was to set up APCOA’s customer management system, TOPdesk and Instant Management to prioritise inbound and outbound contacts.

Phones were already set up in hunt groups, but more agents were moved to the LLA team to handle enquiries, and others transferred to manage the rapidly increasing volume of emails. APCOA also reached out to all CSC colleagues, offering overtime and asking for volunteers to surrender days off to help, which ultimately led to a 24-hour working team handling all inbound contact for 10 days.

Consistent communications were essential to avoid further confusion for customers. In the aftermath of the fire, the Major Incident team held regular calls to clarify the situation on the ground, and to share the CSC’s feedback on incoming contacts and priority questions to be answered. A decision was quickly taken to use the APCOA and LLA websites as the key channel for customer information, supported by social media posts to encourage customers to monitor the websites for updates.

An FAQ document was created as the ‘single point of truth’ across both organisations and this was continuously updated with old versions deleted. Both companies’ websites were updated every time there was a change – in the early stages, this could be many times a day – and the information was also used by the joint public affairs teams to respond to a high volume of ongoing media enquiries.

Winner’s words

Michelle Clarke: “The enormous fire at London Luton Airport was a major incident. APCOA worked in conjunction with our partners at London Luton Airport to cover all the communications. We’re really proud because there were lots of other good stories and good competitors up for the award. So we’re really chuffed.”

Award sponsored by

APCOA’s Kam Barm, Michelle Clarke and Nicola Youngs

Delivering access for all

Accessible Parking Award London Borough of Haringey

The London Borough of Haringey is focussed on providing a Blue Badge service that meets the needs of residents with disabilities. Since winning the Parking Technology Award in September 2023 for the work the council has done to tackle Blue Badge fraud, the borough has evolved its accessible parking offer by working collaboratively with residents to shape existing schemes and priorities for the future.

One of the strategic objectives highlighted in the council’s new Parking Strategy is “supporting residents with additional needs” through:

• prioritising parking for those with mobility needs and safeguarding provision and reducing fraud

• focussing on policy and programmes which adequately capture the needs and concerns of residents and other road users with additional parking

• measures required to ensure disabled parking provision is placed in the most appropriate location, of an appropriate standard (numbers and size of bays).

The work the council has done to support disabled and vulnerable residents includes introducing a new resident Care at Home Permit – a free paper permit for residents who receive care in their home. Working with residents across the borough, the council took steps to ease the pressure on individuals who need vital home support and care on a daily basis. Residents also helped to develop the application process that makes it simple for them to apply and removes the need for additional assessments or intrusive questions.

Award sponsored by

The council launched the Care at Home Permit with e-mails to specific residents and organisations as well as press releases, social media and its own newsletter, as well as attending meetings of disability and carers groups.

Cllr Seema Chandwani, Haringey Council’s cabinet member for resident services and tackling inequality said: “Residents often tell me of the stress and cost of making sure their carer has a parking permit so they can park outside their home to deliver vital care needs. We have worked hard with these residents to understand their needs and have developed this new permit to help them whilst also taking anti-fraud measures. Co-producing services and solutions with our residents is a top priority. This development is a perfect example of how working with our residents and partners in the health and care sector can lead to improved and more equitable outcomes.”

Other initiatives designed to support disabled residents include:

• promoting and prioritising dedicated disabled bays and making existing bays longer

• introducing a new Concessionary Travel Helpline

• introducing a new Blue Badge fraud reporting service

• making it easier for residents to park with the council’s virtual Blue Badge permit, further reducing the likelihood of theft.

• working with IT supplier Taranto Systems to develop an online system that makes the Blue Badge application quicker and easier, including real-time status updates and online debit and credit card payments.

• removing the £10 replacement fee for stolen paper Blue Badges

• introducing a fraud line and online form where residents can anonymously report if they have been offered a Blue Badge for sale, or if they know someone who is selling one.

Winner’s words

Abdul Sahed: “At Haringey we invested a lot in engaging with our residents to really understand their requirements and needs. We have made lots of adjustments in our policy and our on-street facilities to help them get around the borough and make life accessible.”

Anjna Patel MBE presents the trophy to the London Borough of Haringey team

Tackling pavement parking

Better Streets Award City of Edinburgh Council, Project Centre, Marston Holdings and NSL

The Transport Scotland Act (2019) introduced a pavement parking ban that aims to enhance the inclusivity and accessibility of streets. To plan for implementing the ban on pavement parking, City of Edinburgh Council approached Project Centre to assist it in developing a pavement parking enforcement methodology.

To enhance the council’s understanding of pavement parking levels across the borough and to inform the following enforcement strategy, Project Centre developed a comprehensive road study, assigning a Red/Amber/Green (RAG) categorisation for each road based on pavement parking levels as described below:

• Red: Significant levels of pavement parking currently taking place and may need consideration of mitigation measures.

• Amber: Moderate levels of pavement parking currently taking place, however pavement parking could be prohibited with minimal impact.

• Green: No pavement parking taking place and pavement parking can be prohibited.

The council and consultant adopted a collaborative approach, which helped develop an innovative methodology. The assessment covered 5,185 roads in the City of Edinburgh Council area. This required multiple teams to complete assessments on time and within budget. The involvement of different staff introduced a risk of inconsistent assessment.

The Project Centre team proactively recognised this issue and worked collaboratively to understand where the inconsistencies could occur and how to solve these.

Ensuring that the RAG methodology was clear, objective

and transferable significantly minimised subjectivity in the pavement parking assessment.

Based on Geographical Information Systems (GIS) and its granular assessment, Project Centre recommended mitigation measures to ensure roads’ accessibility (e.g. introduction of parking bays, footways widening, introduction of road markings and exemptions). Project Centre’s detailed visualisation drawings and reporting helped ensure the clear presentation of the pavement parking levels was communicated relevant stakeholders, funding bodies and the public.

The City of Edinburgh Council became the first Scottish local authority to enforce pavement parking, starting from January 2024. Parking enforcement in Edinburgh is undertaken by NSL, another Marston Holdings company. The council tasked NSL to enforce the pavement parking legislation in problematic areas identified by the assessment.

NSL communication and engagement officers worked with Project Centre and the council to develop informative flyers and public-facing letters, aimed at raising public awareness of pavement parking. The officers used Project Centre’s RAG classification to actively monitor the most affected streets, issuing 2,232 warning flyers and a further 504 targeted flyers in the prolific area.

As Edinburgh was the first local authority to enforce the ban, NSL’s officers completed a dedicated training programme designed and delivered by NSL Edinburgh’s in-house trainer, who also delivered the training to the city council parking team to provide guidance on the new legislation, as well as giving them the expertise to effectively enforce contraventions.

Winner’s words

Scott Wallace: “Winning the Better Streets award is recognition of the collaborative approach taken by City of Edinburgh Council, Marston Holdings, Project Centre and NSL and to change people’s thinking about parking on pavements. The great work we’ve done has been a team effort.”

Scott Wallace, Vanessa Bartie and Dave Evans

Bringing orders to street

Traffic Team Award

Project Centre

Project Centre is an engineering and transportation consultancy designing places for the people who use them. One of its key services is traffic design and management. The multi-disciplinary team consists of over 46 members of staff, including traffic and parking engineers, consultants, transport planners and Traffic Order specialists.

Scott Lester is technical director for the parking and traffic teams. He is supported by Mike Ager, who leads the traffic team, and Olaseni Koya, who leads the parking and traffic order teams.

The parking consultants and engineers support local authorities in resolving key issues and concerns around road safety, air quality and kerbside demand issues. The majority of the team are either members of, or working towards attaining, memberships of institutions including the Chartered Institute of Highway Technicians (CIHT), the Institute of Civil Engineers (ICE) and the British Parking Association (BPA).

Project Centre’s 25-strong parking and kerbside management team works on controlled parking zones, parking policies and strategies, kerbside management solutions such as disabled bays, parking surveys, moving traffic schemes and school street schemes.

Included among the programmes the team has delivered is the Medway Healthy and Safer Streets, which involved a rolling implementation programme of measures including school streets, moving traffic enforcement support and ‘red route’ implementation across the Kent authority’s area. The first of the schemes have been introduced around the Deptford and Catford areas with

further areas around Evelyn to be implemented later this year.

The Lewisham Sustainable Streets programme has seen the roll-out of active travel measures including controlled parking zones, tree planting, EV and car club solutions to help improve sustainable travel modes across the borough. The first of the schemes have been recently introduced around the Deptford and Catford areas with further areas be implemented.

The 25-strong traffic modelling and active travel team, overseen by Mike Ager, are experts in the design of successful and safe cycle and pedestrian improvement schemes focussed on reducing rat-running and encouraging sustainable travel. They work on drafting and preparing successful funding bids and take projects through from concept to construction. This team has been at the forefront of designing and influencing behaviour change towards active travel for over a decade. They designed active travel routes during the 2012 London Olympics and implemented the Waltham Forest Mini-Holland project, and have worked with Active Travel England on schemes.

Project Centre’s Traffic Order team provides support for various councils across the UK including London boroughs, City of Edinburgh Council and Cardiff Council. The Traffic Order team is led by Amanda Jones, who has over 35 years of experience in the Traffic Order sector and public realm changes.

The Traffic Orders team facilitated Oxford Street public realm changes which aim to improve the public realm and active travel elements in the city. The team also drafted Traffic Orders for the first bookable loading bays in Southwark.

It worked on borough-wide 20mph schemes in Waltham Forest which have introduced this speed limit to improve road safety. It has also worked with Waltham Forest and the Department for Transport to design bespoke electric vehicle bays for residents within the London borough’s controlled parking zones (CPZs).

Jury comment

Olaseni Koya: “Project Centre has delivered some really amazing schemes, from healthy streets and livable neighbourhoods to moving traffic enforcement and school streets. We help deliver some schemes which have changed lives and improve communities. The future is bright.” Award sponsored by

Project Centre’s Nikki Musson, Elena Golita, Sarah Rogers, Amanda Jones, Olaseni Koya and Sam Medhurst

Peterborough’s moving story

The Peterborough Borough Council and Imperial teams receive the Technology Award from sponsor Tap2Park’s Duane Hodges-Stubbs

Parking Technology Award

Peterborough City Council and Imperial

Managing vehicular access to sensitive zones such as school streets and pedestrian-only areas presents ongoing challenges in many urban areas. These areas are intended to promote safety, reduce congestion, and enhance the environment for pedestrians and cyclists. However, unauthorised vehicles disrupt these goals and create issues for both residents and businesses.

In Peterborough residents and businesses alike expressed concerns over the impact of unauthorised parking and traffic violations on community safety, air quality and the overall quality of life. Complaints about congestion, obstruction of pedestrian routes, and the inconsistency of enforcement had become frequent. Traditional enforcement methods, relying heavily on manual patrols and spot-checking had proven inadequate and resource intensive. Peterborough Borough Council staff faced challenges in efficiently identifying and penalising vehicles without valid permits or exemptions. Manual management of whitelists and exemption lists were prone to errors, leading to the issuing of unjustified penalty charge notices (PCNs) and unnecessary appeals from frustrated residents and businesses.

These concerns prompted the borough to explore more effective and automated solutions. This led to the council working with Imperial to implement the PermitSmarti solution.

PermitSmarti was designed to address these issues by offering motorists with a streamlined exemption application and management system and automating enforcement by integrating with real-time ANPR cameras. PermitSmarti also integrates seamlessly

Award sponsored by

with Peterborough City Council’s existing Imperial 3sixty notice processing software for the management of penalty charge notices (PCNs).

One of the most difficult and labour-intensive tasks associated with traditional ANPR enforcement is the management of whitelists. Manually managing whitelists is labour intensive due to the constant need for updates, accuracy checks, and coordination among multiple personnel, all of which require considerable time and effort. The process is prone to errors and inefficiencies, making it challenging to maintain a list’s integrity.

The Imperial solution automates this, enabling motorists to apply for and manage their exemptions electronically. When PermitSmarti grants an exemption, this is automatically communicated to the cameras without the need for council intervention. This means that the cameras can identify where a vehicle is not committing a contravention, reducing the workload for council staff by eliminating the need for manual intervention and video reviews. Peterborough has thus been able to enforce its school streets and pedestrianisation zone without having to recruit any additional staff.

In parallel to adopting PermitSmarti, Imperial has supported Peterborough’s enforcement of moving traffic regulations. On 22 July 2023, Peterborough City Council, alongside 39 other authorities across England and Wales, was granted enforcement powers under Part 6 of the Traffic Management Act 2004 by Parliament. Before this date, the police carried out this role alongside its serious competing priorities.

Peterborough has now adopted Imperial’s 3sixty Notice Processing Moving Traffic Enforcement module for the management of MTE penalty charge notices. The council has been enforcing MTE contraventions and managing exemptions using PermitSmarti since February 2024.

Jury comment

Adam Payton: “Peterborough Borough Council has been working with Imperial. We offer a seamless approach to exemptions using its permits products so that our customers can self-serve. This helps us deliver parking and moving traffic enforcement without needing additional resources.”

Connecting in Cambridge

EV Charging Award

Cambridge City Council, Connected Kerb and Stripe Consulting

Cambridge City Council has partnered with Connected Kerb, a UK provider of EV charging infrastructure, and parking specialist Stripe Consulting to establish a comprehensive public electric vehicle charging network. The phased deployment plan will see over 600 EV chargers installed throughout Cambridge.

The project aims to increase the adoption of electric vehicles locally and contribute to reducing carbon dioxide emissions. This initiative aligns with the council’s goal to reduce carbon emissions and achieve a net zero Cambridge by 2030. Cambridge, known as ‘Britain’s Cycle City,’ is also advancing its commitment to sustainable transport through the partnership.

The EV driver user group in Cambridge includes residents, business owners, and visitors who own or use electric vehicles. This project also supports the decarbonisation of the council fleet, transitioning approximately 100 light goods vehicles from internal combustion engines (ICE) to electric vehicles (EV).

The 15-year public-private sector collaboration sees Connected Kerb deploying and maintaining a fully serviced EV charging system across the city’s off-street parking facilities. The scheme is fully funded by third parties, utilising a combination of OZEV (Office for Zero Emission Vehicles) and LEVI (Local Electric Vehicle Infrastructure) funding, along with contributions from Connected Kerb. The council thus benefits from a no CAPEX/OPEX (Capital Expenditure/Operating Expenses) model.

Given Cambridge’s significant conservation heritage, the col-

Award sponsored by

laboration has focussed on designing EV charging points that blend with the environment, support future technologies like 5G and air quality sensors, and protect car park assets.

Stripe’s engineers conducted comprehensive reviews to ensure the integration of EV units did not compromise the structural integrity of the car parks. This process involved input from fire consultants, M&E consultants, and coordination with the fire brigade and insurers to ensure safety and asset protection.

Now in its second year, the project has expanded from four to 110 active EV chargers at key sites around the city centre. And the new Park Street car park will feature 225 EV charging bays, both live and passive, to meet future demand.

The delivery programme has initially targeted various central city locations to cater to different user needs with 24-hour access to charging points:

• Queen Anne Terrace (QAT) Car Park: This location serves visitors, staff, event attendees, sports enthusiasts, and business professionals. QAT has also been identified as a centralised EV hub due to its prominent city centre location.

• Grand Arcade Car Park: This car park supports shoppers, leisure visitors, and city centre tourists, facilitating easy access to charging for those visiting central shopping, leisure and historic areas.

• Grafton East and West Car Parks: These car parks are designed for those visiting the Grafton shopping centre, independent retailers, and nearby leisure facilities.

• Park Street Car Park: This location supports the charging needs of those involved in new developments, university activities and retail operations.

The second phase of installation focusses on creating equitable access to EV charging for residents in purely residential areas without driveways.

Winner’s words

Sean Cleary: “I think this is a great example of tri-partnership working to ultimately deliver a solution that will benefit local residents at Cambridge City Council – not only residents, but also supporting businesses and events that are undertaken within the city centre.”

Joe Flack, Sean Cleary and Daniel Morgan from Cambridge City Council, alongside Stripe Consulting’s Russell Simmons

Delivering a seamless experience

Connected Vehicles Award Parkopedia

Parkopedia’s In-Car Payments service is an innovative solution that provides a neutral in-car platform for transaction providers. This industry-first platform enables drivers to find and pay for on-street and off-street parking, activate and pay for ‘pay-at-thepump’ fuelling, pay for automated road and smart city tolls, and accurately locate, activate, and pay for EV charging.

Since the launch of In-car Payments, Parkopedia has the most in-car payment solutions in production globally, thanks to continued coverage improvements and strategic partnerships with the likes of Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai and Škoda.

In-car payments are transforming the future of transportation, with advanced payment systems simplifying the process of paying for vehicle-centric services from within the car. According to Precedence Research, the global in-vehicle payment services market is projected to reach $19.66 billion by 2032, growing at a CAGR of 16.2% from 2023 to 2032. Parkopedia’s 2023 Global Driver Survey revealed that 64% of motorists worldwide value in-car parking payments, highlighting that there is already strong demand for such services.

Having a seamless in-vehicle solution addresses the inconvenience of needing to rely upon multiple smartphone apps or having to find working payment meters and the associated fragmented and often frustrating user experiences.

Even many new integrated solutions have provided poor UX (user experience) and unnecessary complexity, distracting drivers and delivering subpar experiences. Parkopedia’s In-Car Payments

Award sponsored by

service addresses these issues by adding security and convenience to the driving experience.

This integrated, PCI-compliant platform is currently the only Single Sign-On multi-parking vendor solution in mass production within the automotive industry. It simplifies the aggregation of multiple suppliers and payment providers into one API, offering extensive coverage for OEMs. For drivers, the platform consolidates multiple global merchants into one account, streamlining payments for vehicle-based purchases and delivering a superior level of connected services.

The platform does not compete with transaction providers, but rather provides a neutral integration platform for payment providers to easily offer their services to drivers directly inside their vehicles as a line-fit solution – allowing the driver to pay for parking, fuelling, EV charging and tolls from the comfort of their vehicle, without the need for any additional authentication.

Deep integration also works with vehicle sensors to enable a seamless experience – which is not possible to achieve with disconnected smartphone alternatives. This allows for interaction between vehicle sensors and transactable locations, increasing driver engagement as the vehicle highlights where the driver can digitally pay for parking at specific locations where they can prebook based on ETA or range. Also, once notified of low fuel, or low charge, drivers are presented with live fuel and charging pricing and guided to their preferred stations.

When at the location, the platform activates the pump or charger, initiates transactions and manages payments from the vehicle’s head unit with any loyalty benefits automatically applied and e-receipts generated to enable expense submissions. The platform unlocks new service markets for automakers to create tailored in-car user experiences and enables improved sales performance for service providers.

Winner’s words

Lewis Johnson: “I think we’ve won this award because we’ve delivered innovative solutions at scale to millions of drivers around the world that’s made the journeys of parking and fuelling so much easier. We’re making journeys in and out of work, or to places of leisure, a lot easier.“

Parkopedia’s Ian Auty, Lewis Johnson and Vernon Botha

Parking for pleasure

Best New Car Park Blackpool Central Multi-Storey Car Park

Blackpool Central is a multi-storey car park built as part of a £300m regeneration project site in the Northern coastal resort. The vision for the former Blackpool Central Station site is for an interconnected collection of all-weather leisure attractions, hotels and public spaces, liberally interspersed with a multitude of places to eat and drink throughout the daytime and evening.

The wider brief was to develop a major leisure destination at the heart of Blackpool that is of national significance and which will provide a compelling new reason to visit the town throughout the year. The development is aiming to be a world class facility designed to minimise the impact of poor weather and offering a new, all year round reason to visit the town.

The development land will be released and supported by the construction of the new Blackpool Central MSCP.

Ballast Nedam Construction was selected to deliver this project alongside the design services of Stripe Consulting. The project brief was to redevelop an existing surface car park located over the original railway lines, sidings and site of Blackpool Central Raiway Station, to provide a 1,300-space multi-storey car park.

Following the main build, Blackpool City Council instructed Stripe Consulting to design, and Ballast Nedam Construction to deliver, client fit out items such as the on-site office spaces and installation of CCTV, variable message signs, and additional

Award sponsored by

security measures.

Stripe and Ballast Nedam Construction worked collaboratively with Blackpool Council to understand its needs and develop a solution for the site to deliver an exceptional facility that transforms the site.

The project had additional complexities due to the site’s previous use as the Blackpool Central Railway Station. The scope of works was wide and varied throughout the build consisting of:

• contaminated ground removal, reclamation and processing

• demolition of below ground railway structures such as old sidings, disused buildings, fuel tanks and buried railway turn tables, through to in depth civil engineering works to retain highway structures and create new highways

• steel and precast concrete erection with the use of specialist cranage equipment.

• mechanical and electrical (M&E) works including base build requirements and also the operating entities fit out requirements which included additional electric vehicle charging units through to parking management systems

• specialised aluminium cladding to all façades and concrete cores.

The construction budget for the car park project was circa £26m with final build costs circa £28m following additional ground works requirements. This was funded by Universities Superannuation Scheme (USS) and developed by Nikal developments. This budget included the professional fees for Ballast Nedam Construction, Stripe and the other design team members from tender stage to completion.

Winner’s words

Russell Simmons: “My team and colleagues were able to deliver what is ultimately a fantastic building project for Blackpool City Council that is part of a massive regeneration scheme. It’s been a complete joy to work on as a project for about three or four years.”

Michelle Watson, Jessica McGregor, Vaso Vaina, Russell Simmons, Cllr Paula Burdess and Jon Elliott

Architecture with a sense of place

Blackpool has a long and rich history, which provided the team at Stripe Consulting with plenty of architectural influences to draw upon when designing the Central car park. As the multistorey is part of a scheme to regenerate the area, the key was to create a clear modern ‘architecture of place’ that was recognisable as itself in the landscape, while still referring to nearby architecture without becoming a ‘poor imitation’.

The main architectural feature in the local area is the Blackpool Tower, with its clear structural geometric features. This theme has been mapped into an abstract pattern for car park’s cladding, with differing materials and gaps used to reflect the tower’s geometry. Due to the desire to create a secure car park, the cladding design needed to be a ‘full wrap’ option.

The façade’s angular patterns add 3-dimensional relief to the structure, resulting in large elevation areas that offered the opportunity to introduce exterior lighting effects. The lighting scheme will evolve as the masterplan for the car park’s locality takes shape in the years to come.

Blackpool Central MSCP

AWARDS

A green parking solution

Car Parks: Special Projects Fidelity Kingswood Multi-Storey Car Park

FIL Investment Management is a leading provider of financial services. The company headquarters are at the Kingswood Fields campus in the Borough of Reigate & Banstead, Surrey. When it came to commissioning additional parking for the campus site, a decision was taken that rather than build a new one multi-storey, an existing structure would be retained, refurbished and expanded.

The three-span, three-storey precast concrete car park was built in 1998. It was decided that a new steel and concrete deck should be built over-spanning the existing concrete structure, together with a new four-storey side extension which required excavating into the existing embankment and providing a contiguous piled retaining wall on two sides. Short bridges would link the new car park to the existing car park.

No future additional loadings were allowed for in the original precast design. meaning that the new deck needed to be supported on columns founded at ground level around the perimeter of the existing structure.

Bourne Parking’s lightweight Montex system was selected for the superstructure. The extension to the Fidelity Kingswood car park has turned out to be one of the most complex projects Bourne Parking has ever undertaken.

Adding to the complexity was the fact that the car park footprint lies within an ancient woodland and required careful management throughout the build sequence in line with the strict planning and environmental constraints.

The modular Montex frame and floor system was adapted to provide a bespoke solution that could fit in and around the existing concrete three-storey car park.

The parking layout and circulation routes follow the existing logic of internal ramps connecting the separate decks as they step down the hillside. The new upper decks and increased capacity required the addition of four new staircases, constructed with lightweight steel frames to minimize the impact on the immediate environment.

As main turnkey contractor for the project, the scope of works Bourne delivered also included heated vehicle ramps, anodised aluminium fins to the elevations, a new electrical substation to power 40 EV chargepoints and the complete strip-out and replacement of the M&E.

The scheme comprises 778 tonnes of structural steelwork and 6,800m2 of Montex floor planks.

The footprint area of the car park before works began was 3,241m2. Upon completion of works, the footprint saw an increase to 4,919m2.

There are 725 standard spaces, which include 39 electric vehicle charging bays. The existing spaces remain at 2.3 wide x 4.8m long, with the new parking deck accommodating for today’s larger vehicles at 2.4m wide x 4.8m long. The car park layout provides a simple, user-friendly circulation route with one-way traffic flow.

The shape, arrangement and colour of the cladding (anodised aluminium fins) uses a woodland colour palette which is respectful of its surroundings. The car park has a strong vertical emphasis, with a layered approach that adds depth and variety to the façades, combining openness with a homogenous overall appearance.

Bourne Parking’s Karl Butters and Clive Harding

A new steel frame wraps around the existing concrete car park

BRITISH PARKING AWARDS

The vision for the vertical fins was to blend in with the surrounding trees, to mimic the stature of tree trunks. In the original concept, they contained a woodgrain effect, but the decision was made to remain with brown, randomly placed vertical fins to resemble the natural effects of the neighbouring woodland.

The construction process

The suspended parking deck structure combines a bespoke galvanised steel frame with quality, pre-finished concrete slabs. The main clear span column grids are 6.9-metres on the external elevations and 6.9-metres on the internal spine line. Minimum clear headroom throughout the car park, including for tolerance and deflection, is 2.1-metres but vehicles are restricted to 2-metres headroom due to the existing structure.

The new structure was built with the minimum clearance of 2.1 metres to provide a more open and less claustrophobic feel. The intention to make the car park feel less enclosed, and lighter and airier. The main columns are designed to withstand vehicle impact loads without the requirement for additional protection.

The elevation treatment comprises of anodised aluminium fins. The aluminium fins are fixed to the structural frame via galvanised steel horizontal box section rails at typically 2-metre vertical centres.

The stairs are solid galvanised balustrades which provide a continuous ribbon effect from the outside.

The project uses Bourne’s Montex Clear Span precast modular frame technology, providing a modern, safe, user-friendly car park. The car park building comprises a galvanised structural steel frame with Montex concrete floor slabs.

Typically, the Montex slab is most efficient on a 2.4-metre wide module, but part of the challenge for Bourne Parking was that the existing 1998 car park was built on a 2,300mm module, that is, the parking bays were 2,300mm wide. The new car park was to be built with spaces 2,400mm wide. These two sizes do not readily modulise themselves. Further challenges were presented by needing the new ramps to line up with the existing ramps. However, the Bourne Parking Montex system is flexible enough

Award sponsored by

to adapt around all the fixed points and varying Montex widths were easily accommodated.

The Montex slabs are provided with three different surface finishes to the top of the slab (tamped, brushed and trowelled), dependent on location within the car park.

The parking floors are served by four independent flat-roofed stair towers, providing pedestrian access from the grade level to all parking decks, with steel plate treads, risers and landings.

Three sides are wrapped in bespoke precast concrete wall units, with the open face closed off with grey PPC steel mesh.

A dye was used in the precast concrete wall units, producing a bespoke colour effect in line with the surroundings.

Stairs 1 & 2 are near the existing trees and to minimise the amount of piling adjacent to tree roots. Bourne eliminated any blockwork, and the stair cores are capped with a flat steel roof.

The over-deck to the existing car park is finished with a highperformance polymer modified asphalt waterproofing system, providing a durable finish.

Winner’s Words

Karl Butters: “We won this award because of the sustainability aspects of the project. We built over an existing car park set in an ancient woodland. The team that worked on the scheme did very well. We also won a British Parking Award back in 2021 for a car park scheme at Hatfield.”

The Fidelity Kingswood car park

Retail space revival

Car Park Renovation Award

The Plaza Multi-Storey Car Park, Wokingham

Located in the heart of Wokingham Town Centre, The Plaza Shopping Centre is a fully let mixed-use retail and leisure development. The busy retail quarter is home to a large Nuffield Health and Wellbeing Gym, several restaurants, office accommodation and six residential flats.

The variety of uses at The Plaza Shopping Centre sees its multistorey car park serve all members of the local community including visitors, residents, business owners and employees. Across five levels, the car park provides direct access into the development as well as the bustling town centre. Spaces are also available with permit parking for residents.

In high demand, The Plaza Shopping Centre’s car park was in urgent need of renovation to ensure it could continue to meet the needs of the local community and businesses. Constant traffic and exposure to the elements had caused many stresses and problems, exacerbated by a failing waterproofing system throughout the structure. This was having a detrimental impact on the car park’s appearance, functionality and safety.

The environment was dark and unwelcoming with delamination prevalent throughout the entire structure. The top two decks, which served the gym, were heavily degraded and corroded with potholes creating health and safety risks. Water ingress was also plaguing the levels below. These issues required the car park’s roof deck, inter-decks, and the main entrance and exit ramp to undergo significant repairs and improvements.

Adding to the challenge, a £1.7m renovation had to be carried out while the car park remained open, requiring meticulous planning and collaboration to minimise any potential disruption.

Aviva Life and Pensions UK commissioned property agent Colliers International to oversee the refurbishment. Cemplas Wa-

terproofing & Concrete Repairs was appointed as renovation contractor, using WestWood Liquid Technologies products.

On the car park’s 3,330 square metres roof deck, the failing waterproofing system was stripped back using specialist ‘ride on’ planing machinery designed for use in muti-storey car parks. To suppress noise and dust, the plant was fitted with water drums that dampened down the deck and silencers to reduce noise, and the works were coordinated to minimise disruption to the shopping centre trade and local residents.

The preparation method ensured the existing coating could be fully removed without damaging the concrete roof slab. The process exposed a significant volume of concrete repairs, partially chloride driven, due to the failure of the existing membrane. Concrete defects were also identified on the internal decks, soffits, columns and walls throughout the structure, leading to more than 25 tonnes of defective concrete being broken out. These challenges were discovered across the whole car park and the same solutions implemented.

Once the defective concrete and coatings were removed, they were taken from the roof deck to a secure site compound area and carefully managed. Dedicated skips ensured the concrete could be separated for recycling and the coatings did not mix with recyclable materials.

Following the preparation of the concrete slab, the defective concrete areas were reinstated using specialist repair mortars. To add longevity to these defective areas and address corrosion concerns, sacrificial anodes were installed to the reinforcement.

Prior to installing the waterproofing system, trials were carried out to test the adhesion of the existing and repaired concrete substrate. This identified significant outgassing likely caused by trapped moisture and air in the existing concrete matrix.

An ultra-low viscosity substrate stabiliser from WestWood Liquid Technologies was used to seal the concrete slab, eliminating the outgassing problem at source and the risk of pin holes through the decking. Westwood’s crack-bridging waterproofing system, wearing layer with quartz sand broadcast, and coloured sealer coats were then applied to the entire roof deck.

The Plaza MSCP renovation team receive their trophy from sponsor CPT’s Ryan Williams and Paul Sinha

To address substantial ponding and remove standing water across the top deck, Cemplas also installed new drainage outlets at low points.

The waterproofing of the top deck eliminated water ingress allowing Cemplas to begin work on enhancing the lower levels. Concrete repairs and resin injection crack repairs were carried out followed by the application of anti-carbonation paint coatings.

Rigorous cross hatch testing was undertaken, followed by sample areas of adhesion enhancing primers to ensure a strong bond between the existing paint coating and new anti-carbonation coatings. These coatings protect the structure from the underside while the waterproofing system protects from the top.

The inter-decks received resin deck coating enhancements, addressing numerous defects in the existing waterproofing and achieving slip-resistance requirements.

The lower car park deck, serving as the roof to The Plaza Shopping Centre, comprised ageing asphalt which was repaired and overcoated with a WestWood liquid waterproofing system. A comprehensive electrical package added to the project providing a new lighting scheme throughout the car park and the internal stairwells. Featuring new LEDs and motion sensors, the lights optimise safety and energy efficiency.

To further enhance the car park’s appearance and make it more user-friendly, Cemplas relined every parking space, redecorated the internal stairwells to brighten the space, and installed a new floor finish to the lift lobbies. Ensuring fire and DDA compliance, windows and doors were overhauled, and nosings added to the stairs.

Award sponsored by

A waterproofing solution was provided for the main entrance and exit ramp, using a buried WestWood liquid waterproofing system finished with a tarmac wearing layer. The failing and blistering asphalt was removed and taken off site for recycling. The concrete substrate was repaired and levelled using a rapid setting repair system to speed up the process.

Cemplas kept the car park operational throughout the works by introducing a highways authority approved traffic management system from the main road into the multi-storey car park. This created a safe and efficient one-way system so vehicles could enter on one side of the ramp.

It was critical that these areas were completed promptly and returned to use within the two-week period granted by the local highways authority.

Cemplas worked closely with its supply chain, The Plaza Shopping Centre’s management team, car park operator, and local businesses to ensure the project was delivered smoothly. Close liaison with gym owners Nuffield Health was particularly important as a certain number of car parking spaces had to remain in use for its members across the two severely damaged top decks.

Cemplas liaised daily with the car park operator and sent weekly progress updates to local businesses to keep them informed of the programme and check for any concerns so these could be promptly addressed. For each phase of the works, Cemplas provided a traffic management plan showing routes for all plant manoeuvres during the work, which were supervised by a Banksman. Closures were kept to a minimum to avoid inconvenience.

Winner’s words

Mike Wood: “We did a great job of refurbishing the multi-storey car park of the Plaza Shopping Centre car park in Wokingham. We installed a new lighting scheme and a fully new waterproofing using WestWood Liquid Technologies.”