Gareth Lightfoot

Local Democracy Reporting Service

Some hospital parking charges will rise by as much as £3 from next month.

James Cook University Hospital in Middlesbrough, the University Hospital of North Tees in Stockton, the University Hospital of Hartlepool, the Peterlee Community Hospital and the Friarage in Northallerton will be affected.

Parking will still be free for the first 20 minutes and for blue badge holders, frequent outpatient attendees and the parents of sick children admitted to hospital overnight.

Group director of estates at University Hospitals Tees (UHT) Steve Taylor said "we understand this is not welcome news," but that the cost of maintaining the car parks could not be covered by its current operating budget.

UHT is the partnership of the North Tees and Hartlepool and South Tees Hospitals NHS Foundation Trusts.

Charges for up to four hours parking will rise by between 30p and 60p across the hospitals from 2 June.

The cost of seven-day permits at James Cook and North Tees will rise by £3, a 43% increase.

Income from the car parks was used to maintain them, Mr Taylor said.

He said the increase had been kept "as low as possible".

Mr Taylor said: "Charging for parking ensures only those who need to visit our hospitals use a parking space and ensures a swift turnover of spaces."

Parking charges at Teesside hospitals have already attracted controversy this year.

New staff parking rates introduced in April for North Tees and Hartlepool and South Tees trust staff meant a 52% increase of almost £170 a year for some full-time James Cook staff, with consultants seeing a rise of £300 a year, a rise of more than 80%.

These rises prompted anger from some NHS workers and the Unite union.

The trusts said it was the first change in two years and said prices would reflect salary bandings, with some staff seeing reductions, including some South Tees staff working less than 10 hours a week having to pay £5.37 a month rather than £13.47.