A REPORT into controversial parking charges will be discussed as further increases are set to take effect next week.

Babergh District Council introduced parking charges in its Hadleigh, Lavenham and Sudbury car parks in January last year after originally offering up to three hours for free.

The move proved controversial, as was a decision taken earlier this year to further increase those charges by 20 per cent, or between 20p and 50p.

On Monday, when the increases are set to take effect, a 12-month report will be discussed by the authority's overview and scrutiny committee.

Cllr Deborah Saw, the council's leader, said introducing the charges was the 'fairest thing to do' to avoid cutting other services due to the authority's financial struggles.

The council's budget forecasts, discussed in February, showed a gap of more than £8 million up to the end of the 2029/30 financial year – even after finding £2.5m in savings this year.

Cllr Saw said: "We are trying to keep the charges as low as we can – I believe it was the right decision to take."

As a result, the council managed to raise just under £890,000 from its car parks since last April.

The report also said the changes successfully managed to turn drivers who abused the system into paying customers and made enforcement much simpler.

At least 90 customers are said to have abused the system each day by obtaining multiple free stays.

On enforcement, the report showed hundreds more PCNs were issued between February and March in Sudbury and Lavenham, with 2,718 across both, up from 2,214.

Meanwhile, in Hadleigh, the number of PCNs fell from 432 to 315.

The report also stressed the findings of the University of Suffolk, discussed by councillors in January, which found no impact on footfall, dwell time and money spent in the high street.

Cllr Saw said this showed car parking was only one of many aspects contributing to the health of high streets, with the authority taking steps to improve it.

BDC report: https://baberghmidsuffolk.moderngov.co.uk/documents/s42479/BOS261%20Report.pdf