Dereham Meeting Point thanks donor after parking problems solved

Up until last year, Dereham Meeting Point was beset by problems caused by people parking in front of their centre in Saint Withburga Lane in the town.

The service leased three spaces from Breckland Council for service users - many of whom have poor mobility - and 'no parking' signs were in place, but were often ignored. 

After this newspaper drew attention to the issue last May, a mystery donor stepped in to fund improvements and make the parking spots more visible with freshly painted lines, better signage, and a CCTV system. 

Shonette Mooney, the centre's manager, said: “It's now a non-issue, thanks to this lovely donation.

Harry Clarke, town and district councillor, with Shonette Mooney, manager of Dereham Meeting Point, outside the centre last May (Image: Archant)

“There is still a little bit of it happening, but having the spaces painted, better signage and the camera has made people think twice before parking there.

"We used to have arguments with people about the spaces.

“We’d put notes on the car asking them not to park there, they’d come into the building and rip them up in front of us.

“One time I had someone there for three days, another time, there were two cars in the spots for almost a week.

"I had to post on social media they were 24 hours away from being towed because no one could do anything about them - they were gone the next day.”

Improvements made to Dereham Meeting Point thanks to an anonymous donation (Image: Dereham Meeting Point)

Breckland Council helped the contractors to complete the work.

Dereham Meeting Point has installed new signage around it's car park (Image: Dereham Meeting Point)

Meeting Point offers people over 55 and/or with a physical disability a place to socialise and access services. 

It provides a two-course, home-cooked lunch is provided daily for £5.

Activities and entertainment such as painting, bingo and singing are offer, and regular outings and events are organised.