Carry on camping
THE majority of adults believe today’s children have less outdoor education than they did when they were at school, according to a poll.
It also suggests most believe that this type of learning, such as going camping, or on expeditions, is important for a young person’s self-development.
The poll of 1,001 adults, commissioned by Bohunt Education Trust, found more than half (59%) agreed that there is less outdoor education in schools now than during their own school years. NHS HOSPITALS made a record £174 million in the last year from charging patients, visitors and staff for car parking, an investigation has found.
Hospitals across England took £174,526,970 in parking charges in 2016/17, up 6% on the year before, according to data collected by the Press Association.
In 2015/16, £164,162,458 was raised. The Liberal Democrats have branded the charges a “tax on sickness”.
Some 120 NHS trusts across England were asked to give figures on parking charges and fines under the Freedom of Information (FOI) Act, of which 111 responded.
While NHS trusts in England continue to charge patients, visitors and staff for parking, hospital parking in Scotland and Wales remains largely free.
A total of 40 trusts provided data on parking fines, showing they made £947,568 in 2016/17 from fining patients, visitors and staff on hospital grounds. This was up 32% on the £716,385 taken by the trusts the year before.
The investigation found that more than half (56) of NHS trusts also charge disabled people for parking in some or all of their disabled spaces.
The Heart of England NHS Foundation Trust came out top when it came to parking income, making £4,865,000 across the year.
This was followed by Frimley Health NHS Foundation Trust, which raised £3,946,312 in 2016/17, including £1,524,803 from staff and £2,421,509 from patients and visitors.
Around two-thirds of trusts that responded to the FOI are making more than £1 million in car park fees every year, with some also handing hundreds of thousands of pounds to private firms to run their car parks.
Some hospitals defended their revenues, saying some or all of the money was put back into patient care or was spent on maintaining car parks and grounds.
Others claimed their sheer size and the fact that they served busy neighbourhoods meant they took more revenue.
The investigation also looked at the cost of parking for one hour. The most expensive trust in the country for a one-hour stay is the Royal Surrey County Hospital in Guildford, where patients pay £4 if they need to stay for an hour.
Shadow health secretary, Jonathan Ashworth, said: “Hospital parking charges are an entirely unfair and unnecessary burden, which disproportionately affect the most vulnerable people using our health service.
“Labour will abolish car parking charges and scrap this needless strain on already worried families.”
A Department of Health spokesman said: “Patients and families should not have to deal with the added stress of complex and unfair parking charges.
“NHS organisations are locally responsible for the methods used to charge, and we want to see them coming up with flexible options that put patients and their families first.”