New parking charges being introduced at hospitals across Oxford have been labelled as ‘disgusting’ by hospital users.

The changes are being brought in by Oxford University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust and will affect the John Radcliffe Hospital, Churchill Hospital, and Nuffield Orthopaedic Centre in Oxford.

Patients and visitors parking for 30 minutes to one hour will now have to pay £2.20 from August 1, up from £1.40 currently.

READ MORE: Parking charges to INCREASE at Oxford hospitals

Anyone parking for more than six hours will be charged £15 compared to £7 under the current charges.

The trust says this brings the all-day rate in line with local Headington car parks to prevent misuse of hospital facilities.

Former Oxford City Councillor and John Radcliffe Hospital user, Mick Haines said: “I think it is disgusting.

“They are ignoring the people’s wishes.

“The parking situation there is already terrible.

“You can go around the car park for an hour and still not find anywhere to park.”

Mr Haines has set up a petition to build a multi-storey car park at the John Radcliffe Hospital to ease pressure on spaces.

He said that the campaign has already received over 6,000 signatures and that he hopes to take it to parliament if he can top 10,000 backers.

Although fees for longer stays are going up, the NHS trust is planning on reducing charges for some shorter stays.

Charges for a one-to-two-hour stay are currently set at £2.80 but this will be reduced to £2.70.

The fee for a two-to-three-hour stay is being lowered from £4.20 to £3.70.

Councillor Liam Walker who sits on Oxfordshire County Council said: “It’s always disappointing to hear when residents face higher parking charges, but I do think the hospital might have the right balance in reducing costs for those only there for a short time.

“However, I feel those who may need to use the hospital for longer are at a complete disadvantage now and for those who visit regularly will end up having to pay significantly more.

 

“I think if they want to stop non patients using the car park there has to be a better way through an ANPR system.

“The long-term solution cannot be just making patients pay more and more.”

This is the first time the Trust has increased parking charges since 2017, and the changes have been put in place following a detailed review.

Charges at the patient and visitor car parks at the Horton General Hospital in Banbury remain unchanged because they are similar to nearby public car parks.

Jason Dorsett, Chief Finance Officer at Oxford University Hospitals, said: "We have looked at all the data to ensure that the majority of people who attend our hospitals will not be charged any more, and, in fact, most will be charged slightly less.

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"With the average length of stay at our hospitals being less than three hours, we will be reducing charges for people parking for 1-3 hours, and increasing the charges for those who stay longer.

“This aims to prevent our car parks being used by people not attending the hospitals, in turn potentially freeing up spaces for those who genuinely need them.

“Our concessionary arrangements remain unchanged and are there to support patients and visitors in exceptional circumstances.

"The Trust actively encourages patients and visitors to consider other methods of transport such as public transport if possible and appropriate, and there is information on these alternatives in our appointment letters and on our website."