Montrose Crescent car park opens with national safety award

Montrose Crescent Car Park has received the prestigious Park Mark, the Safer Parking Scheme award that recognises car parks with measures in place that actively deter crime and the fear of crime in car parks.

A Park Mark is awarded to parking facilities that pass a rigorous risk assessment conducted by the police and the British Parking Association. The assessments include management and maintenance of the facility, ensuring that there are appropriate levels of surveillance, lighting, signage, and cleanliness. These criteria are known to reduce the opportunity for crime and create a safer environment for the motorist and their vehicle.

Marcell Sas, Operations Director for Bank Park said: “Receiving this prestigious award is a fantastic achievement and a credit for all involved, nevertheless the award shows our commitment and continued hard work as our primary objective is to provide a clean, secure and user friendly environment to all of our customers.”

Antony Powell, British Parking Association Area Manager said: “I am delighted that Bank Park has achieved Park Mark accreditation for the Montrose Crescent car park in Wembley. The award is a demonstration of the hard work and commitment by the company to provide a safe parking environment for its customers. All members of the Bank Park team are to be congratulated upon this achievement.”

Matt Turner, Partner & Prevention Team Inspector at the Metropolitan Police Service said: “This is a great example of a safe and secure car park. The use of tested and accredited security rated products alongside simple crime prevention measures mean this site is fully deserving of the Safer Parking Scheme ‘Park Mark Award’. The MPS Design Out Crime team look forward to working with Bank Park on other locations across London as their business grows.”

Car parks with the Park Mark award can use signage featuring the distinctive Park Mark tick, so that drivers know exactly where to go for safer parking. Early adopters of the scheme saw a dramatic drop in vehicle-related crime of over 80% showing that the initiative really does make a difference.

Personal safety and location have been cited as joint priorities when choosing where to park. There are currently over 4500 car parks with the Park Mark award throughout the UK which can be found on a designated website www.parkmark.co.uk

Could you spot a Park Mark car park? Have a go by taking this quiz www.britishparking.co.uk/parking-quiz

Photo: (left to right) Aran Johnston, Design out Crime Officer, Metropolitan Police; Matt Turner, Inspector, Metropolitan Police and Anwar Elkhamalichi, N. London Supervisor, Bank Park.