Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:

To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, if he will take steps to extend free parking provision for all NHS staff on NHS sites.

The National Health Service car parking guidance already requires free parking to be provided for four groups: disabled people; frequent outpatient attenders; parents of sick children staying overnight; and staff working night shifts. Beyond this, NHS organisations decide how they provide parking locally, including whether staff are charged for, based on the local needs of patients, visitors, and staff, as well as environmental factors.

More widely, all NHS trusts are expected to follow the published NHS Car Parking Guidance. This states that car parking charges, where they exist, should be reasonable for the area, with further information available at the following link:

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/nhs-patient-visitor-and-staff-car-parking-principles/nhs-patient-visitor-and-staff-car-parking-principles