North Somerset Council faces legal scrutiny after an administrative error in its parking charge consultation led to a High Court challenge. The council introduced new parking fees across three Clevedon town centre car parks on June 1. Although a public consultation was conducted as required, incorrect reference details were provided, rendering responses invalid.
Local shopkeeper Daniel Adams, owner of Stationery House on the Triangle, had submitted two objections during the consultation. However, due to the council’s mistake, these objections were misattributed as comments on unrelated on-street parking proposals elsewhere in town. Representing himself in the High Court in Bristol on June 26, Adams claimed the council failed to properly consider his objections at the time they were made.
Council barrister Timothy Baldwin acknowledged the procedural breach and expressed regret but argued the council had otherwise complied with regulations. He insisted that the concerns Adams raised mirrored those of other objectors and would not have influenced the council’s decision to implement the charges.
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Adams countered that his objections were distinctly different and that the court shouldn’t assume the council’s likely response. The council’s cabinet had approved parking charges in Clevedon, Nailsea, and Portishead earlier this year, citing the need to balance financial budgets and preserve essential services.
Baldwin further stated there had been a broader consultation on the overall parking strategy prior to the specific charges, describing the latter consultation as a supplementary step. Adams questioned the council’s authority to impose charges since funds collected must be reinvested into car parks, though Baldwin maintained the charges were aimed at infrastructure investment rather than revenue generation.
The case was heard by Mrs Justice Steyn DBE, known for presiding over the high-profile ‘Wagatha Christie’ libel trial. She reserved her judgment to be delivered in writing.
This legal dispute is one of several challenges North Somerset Council has encountered over parking fees in Clevedon. The council abandoned plans for on-street parking charges in Hill Road after the local council threatened legal action. North Somerset Council leader Mike Bell criticized the prospect of court battles between councils, calling it a “scandalous waste of public money.”