Parking permits could be awarded to parents under new proposals

Parents could be awarded special parking permits under new rule proposals outlined by a campaigner.

Samantha Drury is calling for a new parking permit scheme which will provide extra parking space for those with children under 12.

The plans would see those looking after children awarded “designated space” in car parks with bigger bays.

Samantha wants to see a similar system to the Blue Badge scheme which is successful in ensuring disabled motorists get priority at car parks across the UK.

The Parliament petition will run until next month with thousands of votes still needed to secure a Government response.

Samantha said: “Create a parking permit scheme (like the Blue Badge for disabled people), for parent and child parking bays, for people with children under 12 in the vehicle. Make it an offence to park in these designated spaces without a permit.”

Samantha said the changes were needed as parents currently “have reduced space to open doors to get the children out safely”.

She claims that mums and dads are usually forced to walk with their children on unsafe roads and across busy car parks instead of using a safe footpath.

Meanwhile, parents or childminders are also forced to “juggle shopping” while carrying their child at the same time.

A total of 10,000 signatures are needed for the Government to offer an official reply to the petition. However, 100,000 signatures are required for the poll to be considered for debate in Parliament.

Parent and child bays are already installed at most major car parks, but Samantha warned these were being abused by motorists without children.

She added: « On a regular basis, parents cannot park in designated parent and child bays because someone without a child parks in them.”

Last year, a frustrated road user took to Mumsnet to argue that parents with older children were using the designated spaces.

They claimed the parent and child bays were designed for babies and toddlers and those “struggling with pushchairs”.

User @mickitee explained: “Am I wrong to feel that these parks are designed for families with babies and younger children using pushchairs… If your child is at an age and ability level where they are capable of getting in and out of the car safely by themselves, you don’t need the space and are just making life more difficult for other parents.”

The forum quickly posted a poll on the issue with the majority of parents appearing to disagree.

A total of 65 percent of road users said the poster was “being unreasonable” compared to just 35 percent who agreed.