The trust which runs Royal Oldham Hospital and the Government have responded to a campaign's calls to reform the parking system at the hospital.
A campaign led by Dr Zahid Chauhan OBE, a local councillor of the Alexandra ward and former Mayor of Oldham, is calling for the Northern Care Alliance (NCA) NHS Foundation Trust and the Government to make changes to the parking system at Oldham's biggest hospital.
It comes after statistics released earlier this year through a Freedom of Information request showed Royal Oldham issued 4,040 parking fines and 2,133 warning notices in 2024.
Dr Chauhan recently wrote to the chief executive of the NCA, Dr Owen Williams OBE, and the Health Secretary Wes Streeting about abolishing the "punitive" enforcement system at Royal Oldham and instead adopting the parking model used by The Christie NHS Foundation Trust.
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The Christie, based in south Manchester, issued zero fines and zero warning notices in 2024, instead operating a system where patient and visitor parking is completely free, and staff contribute through a 0.65 per cent salary-based scheme.
Now, both the NCA and the Government have responded to the Royal Oldham Hospital Parking Campaign's call for reform.
The NCA accepted that parking at Royal Oldham can be difficult and said the trust is looking at where improvements can be made.
Nadine Armitage, director of estates, facilities and capital development at the NCA, said: "We recognise that parking can be challenging during busy periods and we are continually looking at ways to improve access for our patients, visitors and colleagues.
“Parking enforcement is in operation and vehicles in breach of parking conditions, which are shown with signage and road markings, may be issued with a parking charge notice (PCN). Any income from PCNs is used to offset the costs associated with operating and maintaining our car parks.”
"We are continuing with existing work to support staff travel and reduce congestion across our sites, including measures such as lift-sharing schemes, sustainable travel options and flexible working where appropriate."
The Government has said parking systems at hospitals are up to local trusts but should be "reasonable".
A Department of Health and Social Care spokesperson said: “Decisions on car parking provision are made locally by NHS organisations and should be consistent with NHS car parking guidance.
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"The guidance states that parking charges, where they exist, should be reasonable for the area.
"This guidance also includes the provision of free hospital parking to those most in need, such as disabled people, frequent outpatient attenders, parents of sick children staying overnight, and NHS staff working overnight.”
Dr Chauhan has said there is currently a "postcode lottery" in hospital parking, where patients, visitors and NHS staff are subject to vastly different systems depending on where they receive care.
The campaign is also calling for plans to develop a multi-storey car park at the hospital to be drawn up.
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