Swinley Forest responsible for over half of all borough’s parking fines

The Lookout in Bracknell has issued 1,466 Penalty Charge Notices (PCN’s) over the past 12 months – 57 per cent of all fines. 

During the same period, there have been a total of 2,591 parking penalties dished out across the borough, with the next most fined area being The Avenue Car Park on Millennium Way – where just 363 were issued. 

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An overwhelming majority of PCN’s given at The Lookout, situated on Nine Mile Road, were done so for two reasons: Having parked without payment of the parking charge (822) and being parked without clearly displaying a valid pay and display ticket, voucher or parking clock (592). 

A PCN is normally required to be paid within 28 days of it being issued, but it’s usually cheaper if paid within 14 days. 

However, if not paid on time the fine could be 55 times more expensive if it is passed over to the bailiffs – potentially rising to almost £1,400. 

The council owned centre, home to over 90 educational activities for children, states that “with a picnic area and coffee shop, you can stay all day”, although some drivers may now regret having done so.  

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Fines have totaled between roughly £50,000 and £100,000 in the last 12 months, whilst a whole day’s parking ticket costs £6.20. 

The rest of the fines issued at The Lookout were for parking longer than permitted (5), parking in a restricted area (9), still parked after the expiry of paid for time (30), parking in a designated disabled person’s space without displaying a valid permit (2) and parking in a way that caused an obstruction (6). 

Local authorities issued almost £255m in PCNs last year, up from £235m in 2020. The area that generated the largest revenue from these charges was the borough of Westminster in London, which raked in an eyewatering £32.3million last year.