Healthcare E-permit

Ashford Borough Council
Healthcare Worker Parking Permit
Information, eligibility and terms & conditions

General Information

Quick summary
•    Valid within the Borough of Ashford only.
•    For NHS healthcare workers making scheduled home visits lasting up to 1 hour.
•    You must display and set the ABC time clock to show your time of arrival every time you park.
•    You can park free (up to 1 hour) in council Pay & Display car parks and in on-street limited waiting / pay         & display bays.
•    Yellow lines: up to 1 hour only when nearby parking spaces are full or none exist near the address, and         you must not cause obstruction.
•    Misuse (e.g., commuting, shopping, extending time beyond 1 hour) may result in a Penalty Charge               Notice and withdrawal of the permit.

A healthcare worker parking permit is available to assist key healthcare workers to deliver essential care.  The permit is provided to help NHS healthcare services to visit residents who need long or short-term care to continue living in their own homes and need specialist help from others to do so.
Please note, our care and healthcare worker permits can only be used in car parks and on roads within the Borough of Ashford.  Our permits are not valid if used in car parks or on roads elsewhere outside of the Borough of Ashford.  
The permit is intended for use by NHS healthcare workers who visit multiple clients or patients’ home addresses for a maximum of 1 hour during their typical working day.   

The permit is comprised of two parts, a digital permit which is valid for a year and an Ashford Borough Council (ABC) time clock to be displayed and set to show the time of arrival at the address.

The permit is only valid when the permit holder is making a scheduled visit to a resident or patient’s home address for 1 hour or less during their typical working day.   

Is my vehicle eligible for a permit?

Your vehicle must be a:
a)    Passenger vehicles not exceeding 3500 kilograms, e.g. a family car 
b)    Goods vehicles not exceeding 3500 kilograms, e.g. a light transit van.
c)    Motorcycles.

Do I qualify for a permit?

You may be entitled to a healthcare worker parking permit if you are one of the following and are delivering essential support to clients or patients living in their own homes and each visit typically lasts less than 1 hour:

•    Social worker
•    Independent living advisor 
•    Personal assistants in social care  
•    All qualified medical practitioners, chiropodists, occupational therapists, midwives and opticians             providing home visits, medical care or treatments

How do I apply for a permit?

To apply for a permit, you must create an on-line account.
If there are any outstanding penalty charge notices for your vehicle, we will not issue a permit. 
All applications must be accompanied by supporting proof confirming how you meet the criteria, see Do I qualify for a permit?
You must provide proof of what you do.  A letter from your NHS line/team manager on business header paper confirming what you do.   
We do not send you a paper permit. You will receive an email confirmation stating that you have a permit, and you will be able to use your permit to park a vehicle on receipt of your ABC time clock.
We can issue a permit for up to two vehicles, but the permit is only valid in one vehicle at a time. Only one ABC time clock will be supplied with each permit.

The permit will only be valid for use in the vehicle bearing the registration number selected in the online account.
To change the permit to another vehicle you will need to access your on-line account and follow the instructions to make a change.  You will receive an email confirmation acknowledging the change.

How do I use my permit?

Healthcare worker permits are issued digitally as permits and are valid for 12 months.   You will be issued with an ABC time clock to identify you as a Healthcare worker. You must set your time of arrival each time you park.  The time clock must be clearly displayed on your dashboard, where it can be easily seen from outside of the vehicle all the time you are parked.
By using the reference number on the permit, with your car registration details we can confirm your permits validity if we need to.
It is your responsibility to read and adhere to all conditions.

Where can I park with my permit?

Whilst displaying a healthcare worker permit, you may use your permit to park for free and for as long as your client/patients scheduled visit lasts (up to 1 hour) when:

•    Parked in any of the council’s Pay and Display car parks
•    Parked on street in areas of limited waiting
•    Parked in on street pay & display parking spaces 
•    You may also use it to park for up to 1 hour on most single or double yellow lines if all the parking spaces on the street are taken, or none exist near your client’s address.

Prohibited / unsafe parking (never park)

•    School entrances, bus stops, on a bend, or near the brow of a hill or hump bridge
•    Parking opposite or within 10 meters (32 feet) of a junction, except in an authorised parking space
•    Where it would make the road narrow, such as by a traffic island or roadworks
•    Where it would hold up traffic, such as in narrow stretches of road or blocking vehicle entrances
•    Where emergency vehicles stop or go in and out, such as hospital entrances
•    Where the kerb has been lowered or the road raised to help wheelchair users
•    On the pavement, unless signs permit it.
•    Places where a ban on loading or unloading is in force or indicated by kerb markings.
•    Parking places reserved for specific users such as disabled bays or loading bays. 
•    Pedestrian crossings (zebra, pelican, toucan and puffin crossings), including areas marked by zig-zag lines.
•    Clearways (no stopping).
•    A bus stop clearway during its hours of operation.
•    School ‘keep clear’ markings during the hours shown on a yellow no-stopping plate.
•    Bus or cycle lanes or cycle tracks. 
•    Where temporary parking restrictions are in force, as shown for example by no-waiting cones and suspended parking bays signs.
You are responsible for ensuring that you park where your vehicle will not obstruct any other vehicles using that road or be a danger to pedestrians.  Failure to park in accordance with the regulations as detailed in:
•    The council’s off-street Parking Order
•    The on-street Traffic Regulation Order
•    Signs and/or surface markings 
•    Parked without the time clock displayed or set
•    Time limit of 1 hour has exceeded
•    The current vehicle is not active on your permit account

May result in the issue of a Penalty Charge Notice. 

Misuse of the permit (you must not)

•    If you are not carrying out professional care and health worker duties in the home of a resident

•    To park in resident only spaces in privately run car parks or care homes or when you park in areas where other parking enforcements apply
•    for commuting to and attending meetings at your base office or any office working, even if this allows you easier access to your vehicle to go on home visits
•    For parking whilst out with your client/patient to attend an appointment or for other reasons, e.g. shopping, lunch etc.
•    For parking whilst collecting medicines or supplies or shopping on behalf of clients/patients, or on any personal business
•    In lieu of, or in addition to any resident parking scheme restrictions at the home of the permit user
•    Parking for longer than 1 hour at any single address or road or alter the arrival time on your clock after 1 hour to extend your period of parking further.

Terms and conditions (summary)

1.    Validity: the permit is valid for 12 months from the start date after payment is received.
2.    Refunds: any refund for an unexpired permit is at the Council’s discretion; an administration fee of £11 may be charged.
3.     No guarantee: the permit does not guarantee a parking space and does not give preferential rights over other drivers.
4. Car park opening: the permit is only valid when the car park is open.
5.     Bay restrictions: the permit allows parking in designated bays but excludes bays signed/marked for a specific use (including disabled bays, loading bays, suspended bays or permit-specific bays).
6.    Withdrawal: any breach may render the permit invalid; the permit may be withdrawn, and no refund will be given if withdrawn.
7.     Council property: the permit remains the property of Ashford Borough Council and will be cancelled when NHS employment ends or parking is no longer required.
8. Liability limits: the Council limits liability for indirect or consequential losses and for losses following loss or corruption of any data/database/software.
   

   Terms and conditions (full)

   A permit is valid for 12 months from the start date after the relevant payment has been received.  A refund for an unexpired permit may be made at the Council’s discretion.  An administration £11 fee may be charged.

   The issue of the permit does not guarantee a parking space.
   A permit does not give the holder preferential rights over any other driver.
   The permit is only valid when the car park is open.
   The permit allows a vehicle to park in the designated parking bays with the council’s pay and display car parks, but excludes bays signed or marked for a specific use (including, but not exclusively, disabled bays, loading bays, suspended bays or permit-specific bays)
   Any contravention of the above clauses will render the permit invalid, and the permit will be withdrawn.  If your permit is withdrawn no refund will be given.
   The permit remains the property of Ashford Borough Council and the permit will be cancelled on termination of your employment with the NHS or when parking is no longer required.
   In no event will we be liable to the customer for any indirect, punitive, special, incidental or consequential damage in connection with or arising out of these terms and conditions (including loss of profits, loss of revenue, loss of goodwill, loss of reputation whatsoever incurred by either party), however it arises whether for breach of these terms and conditions, including any breach of warranty, or tort (including negligence) even if the customer has been previously advised of the possibility of such damage.
   We will not be liable for any losses incurred following loss or corruptions of any data, database or software.

   Important information (data protection)

   Ashford Borough Council is the data controller for any personal information collected in this application; processing is being conducted relying upon a contractual legal basis. Your data may be shared with other departments within the council for the purpose of improving services, keeping records up-to-date and for the protection of the public fund. It may also share your data with other bodies responsible for auditing public funds for these purposes.  

   You can find further information about data sharing to identify fraud at www.ashford.gov.uk/transparency/data-protection/data-sharing-to-identify-fraud/. For more information about your data protection rights please see the Council’s data protection pages, which can be found at www.ashford.gov.uk or contact the Data Protection Officer, Ashford Borough Council, International House, Dover Place, Ashford TN23 1HU.