Greater parking enforcement could be rolled out across the whole of Ipswich, following a successful six week trial at four schools.

In September last year, Ipswich Borough Council North East Area Committee approved funding of £1,260 for a six week trial which involved additional parking enforcement officers visiting four schools at peak times on a random basis.

The trial ran from October 7 to November 21, and saw the parking officers patrol outside Rushmere Hall Primary School, Sidegate Primary School, St Albans High School and Britannia Primary School.

Now, following the positive feedback of the trial, councillors have suggested that an Ipswich-wide enforcement plan was not out of the question.

Speaking at last week’s North East Area Committee meeting, Ipswich borough councillor for Bixely, John Carnall, said: “I think this is a move in the right direction, and the feedback it had is that things did improve and parents didn’t park on the yellow lines.

“I think that it is well worth us extending this experiment to continue to deter parents from parking on yellow lines and blocking the drives in the locality.”

The issue of school parking is one that has been seen around many schools in the town, and prompted the launch of the Ipswich Star’s ‘Park Smart’ campaign to highlight dangerous parking and encourage parents to think more carefully about their parking.

In the feedback for the six week trial, a spokesperson from St Albans High School said: “From a school’s point of view we have noticed that there are fewer cars parked on yellow lines, this has had a positive effect on the school at the end of the day.

“Students have been able to leave school safely without having to walk out between parked cars.”

Feedback from a spokesperson at Britannia Primary School added: “Having this resource can only be a positive addition.

“We still have residents come to us to complain about parents parking over their drives.

“We understand they are not there every day, but the fact that there is a presence on a regular basis should have a positive impact in the long term.”

However, any parking scheme will be unlikely to be proposed until the trial for the south west area of Ipswich has been completed, and feedback from both has been collated into a plan for the whole of the town.

In the meantime, the possibility of a second trial after the Easter school holidays could also be carried out in the north east area, after £460 of the trial budget remained unspent, although no firm proposal had been put in place.