South Essex Parking Partnership Joint Committee

Brentwood Borough Council is a member of the South Essex Parking Partnership, which includes the Boroughs and Districts of Basildon, Brentwood, Castle Point, Chelmsford, Maldon and Rochford.   From April 2011 the partnership adopted responsibility for the ongoing maintenance and enforcement of on-street parking restrictions throughout the south of Essex.  Since April 2012 the partnership’s responsibilities have included the implementation of parking restrictions and schemes, including ensuring that all existing signs and street lining relating to on-street parking restrictions are in place and are up to standard.   The partnership is managed via a formal joint committee agreement between Essex County Council and the various borough and district councils. The Joint Committee provides a parking service that results in a merging of services to provide a single, flexible enterprise for a large group of Partner Authorities run from a central office, with outstations for local operations.   The Joint Committee exercises the following specific functions on behalf of Brentwood Borough Council:   ·       Collection of charges for on street parking within the permitted parking area; ·       The administration of residents’ parking schemes and the collection of charges for permits; ·       Issuing Penalty Charge Notices; ·       Deal with all correspondence, appeals, adjudication and representations to the Traffic Tribunal; ·       Take steps necessary to recover payments and charges due under these functions; ·       Immobilisation, removal, recovery, storage and disposal of vehicles in connection with the above activities; ·       Procurement and maintenance of signs and lines relating to on-street enforcement; ·       Determine the levels and nature of fees and charges in respect of on street car parking provisions in South Essex; ·       Establish and manage the cost of the operation incurred under the Joint Committee; ·       Decide how any surplus is re-invested in parking services; ·       The Council shall retain responsibility, and budget, for the commissioning of traffic regulation orders during the first year of the Operational Period except for the Borough of Chelmsford; ·       The Council shall retain responsibility and budget for signs and lines backlog and ongoing maintenance during the first year of the Operational Period; ·       Provide a forum to discuss strategic issues relating to parking across South Essex; ·       Provide a forum to review at a strategic level the success of the Joint Committee; ·       Set local parking policies, ensuring that primary legislation obligations are met. This includes design of parking policies with respect to:

  a)       Traffic network; b)       Safety; c)       Environment; d)       Public transport quality and accessibility; e)       Disabled persons; f)         Kerb space demands;

  ·       The Joint Committee may make relevant traffic regulation orders as permitted under the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984, save that the Council shall retain the funds as allocated by the Council in relation to this function during the first year of the Operational Period, upon which the Joint Committee may draw down from during this time. The Joint Committee shall review this function and agree future provisions with the Council for the funding and operation to be exercised during the remainder of the Operational Period. Details of meetings of the Joint Committee can be found here - South Essex Parking Partnership Joint Committee