Resident Permit Zone (RPZ): Feedback March 2022
At the Full Council meeting held on the 1 March, councillors approved an increase to Resident Permit Zone (RPZ) costs. The new costs, effective on 1 April 2022, rise from £42.00 to £72.00 for the 1st permit, and from £84.00 to £144.00 for the second (including any additional permits).
Following our email to all permit holders in January 2022, we would like to provide a summary of some of the key themes from the feedback received from residents and our responses:
| Scheme member comment: | Council Response: |
|---|---|
| The increase in the permit costs is unreasonable and excessive and out of alignment with the rate of inflation. | Previously the Council has subsidised the cost of RPZ permits and only uplifted the fee in line with the council’s annual fees and charges increases, generally this is 2.5%. Following the approval of the Council’s new Fees and Charges policy in December 2021 which includes the need to recover the full cost of discretionary services to manage the council finances, the RPZ costs uplift is now proposed for implementation as the previous annual uplifts have not achieved full cost recovery. |
| The Resident Permit Zones do not provide guaranteed parking for residents. | During the assessment of an RPZ, data is gathered to ascertain whether sufficient parking spaces will be available for the affected residents. Though the parking is not guaranteed, there is a suitable number of spaces for affected residents |
| The calculation of the council’s net operating costs in delivering the service includes staff from Customer Service and Business Support departments. |
The Business Support officers process enquiries in response to correspondence such as emails, telephone calls, and also online when validating Resident Permit applications and undertaking database administration. The function includes a range of activities that allows the Resident Permit Zone schemes to operate. In summary these include:
The Customer Service function duties involve managing walk in customers at the Council’s offices. These customers are generally those that prefer not to use the online system. The team process the application end to end on behalf of the customer. In December 2021, the Council approved the fees and charges policy which includes ensuring full cost recovery of services. An assessment of costs calculated the percentage of officers’ time in “Business Support” and “Customer Services” when engaged in delivering this service to residents. As part of the Council’s policy all costs need to be recovered ensuring those who use the service pay for its full costs. |
| The RPZ service, since the schemes’ introduction, appears to have been subsidised by the council. |
Yes, the scheme has previously been subsidised by the Council. |
Short Survey
The next stage in the process will involve publicising the increase in permit costs in the press and also via the council’s website.
To assist the council in terms of improvements and future efficiencies in the service, permit holders are invited to complete a short survey.
If you have any questions in relation to the Notice you can log these via the survey.
