It is more than 50 years since Basildon got its first ever traffic warden – and our photo archive shows many more followed across south Essex in the years since.

Betty Morriss started work as Basildon’s inaugural traffic warden on June 29, 1970.

Traffic wardens had been around in the UK since the 1960s, when the first batch of uniformed parking enforcement officers marched onto the streets of Westminster.

The first penalty charge ever issued in England was given to a doctor who was answering an emergency call to help a heart attack victim in a London hotel. He was eventually let off the £2 fine following a public outcry.

We have rediscovered some snaps of Basildon and Southend’s wardens looking for illegally parked vehicles from the 1970s through to the 1990s.

First lady - Basildon’s first traffic warden, Betty Morriss, photographed in June 1970

First lady - Basildon’s first traffic warden, Betty Morriss, photographed in June 1970

Teamwork makes the dream work - Lee Eager and Jacqueline Smith patrolling the streets of Westcliff

Teamwork makes the dream work - Lee Eager and Jacqueline Smith patrolling the streets of Westcliff

Caught - Fred Ife issues a ticket in Southend

Caught - Fred Ife issues a ticket in Southend

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Time to chat - a warden and a bus driver

Time to chat - a warden and a bus driver

In conversation - Billericay traffic warden Ben Riches

In conversation - Billericay traffic warden Ben Riches

In trouble - Santa appears to be getting a ticket after parking his sleigh illegally

In trouble - Santa appears to be getting a ticket after parking his sleigh illegally

On the lookout - Basildon traffic warden Rose Shelley in 1971

Senior Southend warden - Nora Gant in 1980

Senior Southend warden - Nora Gant in 1980

Westcliff wardens - Lee Eager and Jacqueline Smith in 1990

Westcliff wardens - Lee Eager and Jacqueline Smith in 1990