Dacorum Borough Council's car parks awarded Park Mark Safer Parking Award

All 25 of Dacorum Borough Council’s car parks have attained the prestigious British Parking Association’s Park Mark Safer Parking Award for the first time.

Dacorum’s car parks have been reassessed by independent specialists from The British Parking Association and Hertfordshire Constabulary and found to meet the standards of the Safer Parking Scheme, an initiative designed to reduce crime and the fear of crime in car parks.

The assessors took into account a range of factors, including how well the car parks are managed and maintained, levels of cleanliness, and whether there is appropriate surveillance, lighting, and signage in place.

Maintaining this accreditation means that the car parks have measures in place to deter crime and anti-social behaviour, creating a safer environment for customers and their vehicles.

Steve Barnes, Dacorum Borough Council’s parking services team leader, said: “We started our journey towards Park Mark accreditation for our car parks in 2008.

"To date, the investment in our car parks has enabled the refurbishment of 18 sites with a further three in the pipeline.

"This, in conjunction with a new site inspection processes, effective maintenance, support from our Clean, Safe and Green team and our enforcement contractor, has enabled us, to follow the advice from the BPA and police assessors, to have all of our 25 Parking Services sites now Park Mark accredited.

“I hope that this achievement will demonstrate our commitment to provide customers with clean, safe and effectively enforced car parks.”

The Safer Parking Scheme is a national standard for UK car parks that have low crime and measures in place to ensure the safety of people and vehicles.

A Park Mark is awarded to each car park that achieves the challenging standards.

The distinctive Park Mark signage helps drivers find car parks where they can confidently leave their vehicle, knowing the environment is safer.

Cllr Andrew Williams, Leader of the Council and Portfolio Holder for Corporate and Contracted Services, said: "We are proud that all our car parks have now achieved this award and that our residents and visitors are able to access excellent parking facilities that are safe, clean and help to support our town centres.”