A COMMUNITY carer has launched a petition calling for exemptions from parking restrictions after being fined multiple times while visiting clients in a Wye Valley town.

Megan Copley has been hit with three fines, adding up to £210, in as many months while attending to elderly and vulnerable clients on her rounds. in Monmouth

Other domiciliary care colleagues, who go from house to house to carry out essential tasks from preparing meals to showering clients, have also been fined when parked in residents’ parking bays in town.

She says the expenses are “now overshadowing my earnings, turning what should be a fulfilling vocation into a financial burden.”

Megan explained: “I am a community carer in Monmouth, committed to providing essential care to vulnerable residents in their homes throughout the day.

“However, my work is increasingly challenging due to the lack of available parking spaces. More often than not, parking is either highly restricted or limited, and the suggestion to 'find alternative parking' is simply unfeasible. “Sadly, this has led to multiple parking fines, making it financially punishing to perform my caregiving duties.

She says that this issue significantly impacts hundreds of fellow carers in Monmouth who are dedicated to ensuring the wellbeing of those most in need.

She and other carers are calling on Monmouthshire County Council to implement accessible parking permits or exemptions for community carers operating within the area.

The county council has said it recognises carers provide a “vital service” and is “happy to work with them and with the residents who rely on their support” and “identify ways to resolve the problem in a way that is safe and sustainable”.

Ms Copley, who is employed by a care firm, said between February and launching her petition in April she had received three £70 fines while working. Fines are reduced to £35 for those able to pay within a fortnight.

She said: “I’m getting ticketed more than I’m getting paid and while I have been able to afford to pay within two weeks it’s another outgoing I could do without.

“It is not as if we’re there for leisure, we're there trying to do our jobs.”

The carer said some calls can last up to 90 minutes, meaning carers are parked for longer than the one hour permitted, and they can also struggle to find an unrestricted parking space which results in their calls running behind schedule.

“I’ve contacted the council and they said to find an alternative parking space. I’ve told them there are no alternatives, they are not listening and there is no sort of sympathy shown towards us.”

Her colleague Jeremy Hopkins said he had even told a parking enforcement officer he was a carer when he was recently issued a ticket in Monmouth.

Mr Hopkins said: “I explained I was a carer and he said ‘well, I’ve got to give you a ticket anyway’.”

The petition, which has attracted 150 signatures, can be found at https://www.change.org/p/introduce-accessible-parking-permits-for-community-carers-in-monmouth.