Parking charges plan for revamped park

Improvements works are being planned for Bouskell Park car park to "enhance the visitor experience"

A Leicestershire council is planning to introduce car parking charges as part of improvement works at a park.

Blaby District Council is due to resurface and extend the existing car park at Bouskell Park to "meet customer demand".

The works, which are expected to last 12-16 weeks, are scheduled to start in October with the car park area being closed and fenced off during the renovations, the authority said.

Once it reopens, the authority plans to bring in car parking charges to help contribute towards "the cost of maintaining and enhancing the park".

Bouskell Park features include the Victorian Manor House, Blaby Hall, and the newly-restored Ice House

The revamp will also see changes to landscaping and the installation of low-level lighting.

Opening times for the car park will be kept at 07:00-20:30 during the summer and 07:00-19:00 in winter but charges will only apply between 08:00-18:00.

A report outlining the changes will be taken to the next council's next cabinet meeting on Monday.

If the proposals are approved a statutory 21-day public consultation period will begin on 1 October.

Councillor Nigel Grundy said: "The refurbished car park at Bouskell will be a vast improvement to what is available for visitors currently and hopefully will enable us to expand facilities there.

"We realise introducing car parking charges will not be popular and we have not taken this decision lightly.

"However, the cost of maintaining the parkland itself, and now the refurbished car park, will need to be found from the council’s budget going forward."