REVIEW PARKEX2013 PARKEX REVIEW Here come the girls
In the supposedly male-dominated world of parking, it was refreshing to open the Parkex brochure and see not one, not two, but three women’s faces representing the BPA. And it is a trend that is set to continue for at least the next two-and-a-half years. This year’s president Anjna Patel is well-known to readers of Parking News for her work with the charity Parasol, which supports wounded soldiers and their families, as well as her impassioned speeches at conferences and meetings.
Senior vice president – due to be inaugurated at the President’s Reception in July – is Helen Crozier, civil enforcement manager at Oxfordshire County Council, while the second vice president, who will take over the helm in July 2014 is Ashley Bijster, managing director of Imperial Civil Enforcement Solutions.
Speaking about the prevalence of women at the top of the BPA Council, Bijster said: ‘I think all three of us bring a ‘woman’s touch’ to the role, particularly communication skills and empathy – the soft skills in other words. And the other thing – although this is not solely a female characteristic – is that we are all very passionate about parking and driving the profession forward.’
PARKEX REVIEW Praise where it’s due
Norman Baker, the under secretary of state for transport, addressed Parkex delegates via a video link. He conceded that parking was a controversial issue, but said it was now very important to get it right. ‘Parking must meet needs of local residents, businesses and motorists,’ he said.
‘Civil enforcement of parking is now found in more than 90 per cent of local authorities and there is no doubt it has raised compliance and freed up police to do other things. And effective parking strategies have helped cut carbon emmissions and have improved the economy by making transport more effective. To my mind, good enforcement is invisible, but bad enforcement gets a lot of bad press.’ The minister praised the BPA for setting up the independent appeals body for the private parking profession, POPLA, and he also outlined two other policies that would
www.britishparking.co.uk MAY 2013 21
Anjna Patel
improve parking provision for disabled people; the Blue Badge Improvement Service, which launched in 2012, and the new disabled parking policy that would be put in place later this year.
Helen Crozier
Ashley Bijster
The minister has been lobbied by the parking profession since the coalition government came to power on two matters: raising the parking charge band level for local authorities outside London and having wider powers to tackle moving traffi c infringements. In response to these points, Baker said: ‘I must consider the pros and cons and consider the merits of the arguments. I will be coming back to you with an answer in the near future.’
The minister closed his address by praising
the BPA for the work it has been doing. ‘Collectively the industry is tackling bad practice and raising standards,’ he said.
PARKEX REVIEW Taking it on the chin
It was defi nitely a fi rst for Parkex when Coco, Boyo and Jonesy took to the stage for the much-awaited midday seminar on day one of the exhibition. This was not a line-up from Last of the Summer Wine, but rather a delegation from the NoTo Mob, a group of ‘disparate’ individuals who are leading a campaign for ‘fair and just parking charges.’ Coco opened the session with a brief introduction to the NoTo Mob, explaining that the various depictions of the group in the press as ‘vigilantes’,
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