Parking for Black Country hospital staff to remain despite Government ending scheme

Fees come into force on Friday for healthcare workers at hospitals across England after they were initially waived in March 2020 at the start of the pandemic.

Health Secretary Sajid Javid said the reintroduction – criticised by union bosses – of charges was because the fight against the virus had moved to a new stage.

Fees will not be reintroduced for staff working for the Royal Wolverhampton NHS Trust, which runs New Cross Hospital in the city and Cannock Chase Hospital.

And it is the same at the Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust, which runs Walsall Manor Hospital, and Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust, which runs Sandwell General Hospital and Birmingham's City Hospital.

The three trusts said they do not currently have plans to reintroduce the charges, but the situation will be kept under review.

Diane Wake, chief executive of the Dudley Group NHS Foundation Trust, which runs Russells Hall Hospital, added: "We will be reviewing this within our system and considering it in light of the new guidance, but no decision has been made as yet to reinstate parking charges."

And a spokesman for the University Hospitals of North Midlands NHS Trust (UHNM), which runs Stafford's County Hospital and the Royal Stoke University Hospital, said: "Free parking was introduced to all staff at UHNM at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, prior to the government providing funding to NHS Trusts to cover this.

"Free parking will temporarily continue for staff working at Royal Stoke and County Hospitals, funded by the trust, with parking arrangements and costs to be re-introduced from July 1. Free parking will continue to be offered for night shift workers in accordance with new national guidance from this date."

Meanwhile, the GMB union warned NHS staff would be facing a multi-million pound car parking bill. Official figures for the 2019/2020 financial year, the last year before charges were lifted for the pandemic, showed that health workers paid £90.1 million in car parking fees.

Workers in the Midlands paid out the most, forking out £18 million in the year, followed by the North West (£17 million), the North East and Yorkshire (£16 million), said the union.

Rachel Harrison, GMB national officer, said: "It's almost like the Health Secretary has a personal vendetta against NHS staff. During the worst cost of living crisis in a generation he's hell-bent on forcing them to swallow yet another real terms pay cut.

"Now follows the real insult to injury, he's making them pay to park at work. Health workers are on their knees following a two-year pandemic - they need help and support, not being repeatedly kicked when they are down by the Government.

"GMB calls on the Government to restore this funding and on employers to do the right thing and scrap the reintroduction of local parking charges."

TUC general secretary Frances O'Grady said scrapping free parking in the middle of a cost-of-living crisis was a "lousy way to repay" staff who had put their lives on the line through the pandemic, adding: "The Government should be giving health staff a proper pay rise, not adding to their bills.

"It should be funding our NHS properly so that hospitals don't have to rely on car parks for income."