Parking at many car parks in the Basildon borough will soon be £1 all day.

A flat £1 parking charge is also set to be introduced at Wat Tyler Country Park in a bid to help support the ongoing preservation of the park.

The proposals were approved at a meeting of the Regeneration and Environment Committee last night.

The £1 charge - expected to be implemented in spring 2018 - will be effective from opening until close of the park each day.

Councillor Alan Ball, Basildon Council’s Chairman of the Regeneration and Environment Committee, said: “The council and its services, like many other Local Authorities in the United Kingdom, faces increasing financial strain amid the reduction in Central Government funding grants.

“We are proposing that the proceeds from the car parking charges will directly contribute to support the protection and preservation of the country park and its services, with any additional income contributing to reducing subsidies.”

Wat Tyler Country Park offers visitors 125 acres of country walks, wildlife spotting, adventure play zones for children and spectacular views over the Thames, as well as being an official Site of Special Scientific Interest’.

The committee also agreed to introduce new Saturday parking charges at its car parks in Wickford and Billericay. There will be a £1 flat charge for parking all day.

Visits that last up to one hour will be charged at 50p. These new charges will also be implemented next year.

Car parks affected by the new Saturday charge include:

  • High Street, Billericay
  • Radford Crescent, Billericay
  • Lake Meadows, Billericay
  • High Street, Wickford
  • Ladygate Shopping Centre, Wickford
  • Wickford Swimming Pool, Wickford