Parking charges are set to return to normal as more people go back to work over the coming weeks.

Priority car parking for key town centre workers in King’s Lynn and Hunstanton is being phased out by west Norfolk council.

The council announced charges will come back into force on Wednesday, May 20 and signage offering free parking at Austin Fields East, upper deck Vancouver Quarter in King’s Lynn and the Central Car Park in Hunstanton will be removed.

The plans follow the government’s message on lifting some restrictions and allowing more people to return to work.

Paul Kunes, the council’s cabinet member for commercial services, said: “We wanted to acknowledge and thank those people who had to continue coming into town for their work, when many others were at home during lockdown.

“We provided priority car parks where they could park free of charge.

“Now that more people are returning to the workplace with the easing of some of the lockdown measures, we have to return to previous parking arrangements.”

The council have said a phased approach to enforcement will take place in these car parks to ensure that workers who have been parking for free have a chance to get their permits renewed or to see the message that charges now apply.

Mr Kunes added: “We want to thank all those key workers for the amazing work they have done to keep people in West Norfolk served over the crucial first few weeks of this pandemic.”

The council is providing free parking to up to 10 Royal Mail vans in its car parks, as a result of vans and staff being drafted in to help “facilitate postal Covid-19 test kits” and are unable to find room to park in the post office yard.

Parking charges in all other car parks have remained in place and on-street parking restrictions still apply across Norfolk.

Anyone with an existing permit will have any subsequent permit extended by however many days that were or are left on their current permit.

If you have a permit, email parkingpermits@west-norfolk.gov.uk to register your request including your registration number and current permit number .

Once you have applied for a new permit - email parkingpermits@west-norfolk.gov.uk with your new permit number along with your registration to ensure the new permit is extended by the amount of days left on your old one.