Rutland County Council is to suspend parking charges in all Council car parks until further notice.

The Council confirmed on Monday March 23 that it would be moving to cashless-only payments in all car parks as part of its response to COVID-19.

Shortly after this announcement, the UK government confirmed it would be expanding its social distancing guidance and advising people of all ages – including those without COVID-19 symptoms – to stay at home, except for very limited purposes.

Councillor Lucy Stephenson, Cabinet Member for Transport at Rutland County Council, said: "We fully support the government's guidance encouraging everyone to stay at home and keep away from others, in order to stop COVID-19 spreading.

"Following this change, all non-essential shops are now closed, meaning only key workers and those making essential journeys will be accessing our towns.

"To assist these key workers and essential visits, we have taken a further decision to suspend parking charges until further notice."

Parking charges will be suspended from Thursday March 26onwards. All on-street parking restrictions remain in place in both Oakham and Uppingham and will continue to be enforced where necessary, to maintain public safety.

Rutland County Council continues to keep all services under review as part of its response to COVID-19 and in order to support any changes in national guidance.