IF you visit the centre of Fowey on a busy summer’s day, you’ll be greeted by an inviting spread of pub benches complete with umbrellas and planters.

But look more closely at the pleasant scene in Trafalgar Square and you will also notice that the tables are actually positioned over an area that includes two disabled parking bays.

This situation has existed for a number of summers since temporary measures were introduced because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

People were being encouraged by the government under Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2020 to dine out to help the hospitality industry, and outdoor dining was seen as a ‘safer’ option than eating indoors.

In this environment, with the coronavirus still a real threat, the Ship Inn was able to gain a pavement licence from Cornwall Council to place benches in the square. Today, pub customers are still enjoying the outside space.

However, the fact that the two disabled parking spaces are not available from the start of May until the end of September has led to a call for the arrangement to be dropped.

Disabled driver Jacky Poskitt says the situation is unfair. The 66-year-old has just had a hip replacement and is also waiting for a new right knee and for three discs in her spine to be fixed.

She said: “I can only walk short distances, so being able to park in a disabled space in Trafalgar Square is very necessary for me. There are others who also need the disabled parking to be able to visit our town.”

Jacky wrote to the town council highlighting the issue. She argued that a disabled parking space provided at the Cornwall Council-run Albert Quay car park was not a suitable replacement for the ones lost in the summer months in Trafalgar Square.

She also pointed out that the disabled parking space in the town council pay and display car park on Town Quay is not available in the summer months when the location becomes a pedestrian-only area.

Taking the whole situation into consideration, Jacky told the town council the disabled parking provision in the summer was “a disgrace”.

Fowey mayor Cllr Lynn Simms wrote back to Jacky saying: “I understand your frustration about the unavailability of disabled parking in Trafalgar Square during the summer months.

“The spaces on Trafalgar Square are on the public highway and are controlled by Cornwall Council. The Ship applied for and was issued with a pavement licence from Cornwall Council to allow them to have seating in the square between May 1 and September 30.

“Cllr Andy Virr arranged for additional disabled parking at Albert Quay, but when he asked for extra provision he was told that this wouldn’t be possible. I am sorry that I can’t be of more help.”

Regarding Town Quay, a town council spokesperson told us: “There is no parking, either standard parking or disabled parking, on Town Quay during the summer months for safety reasons. This is because the quay is usually packed with pedestrians during the summer and clearly encouraging any vehicular movement is an identified risk factor.

“Whilst Fowey Town Council is naturally very sympathetic to the difficulties facing disabled drivers, given the geography, size and layout of the quay the council has concluded that this risk cannot be mitigated sufficiently to promote parking there during the summer months.”

When asked Cllr Virr, the Cornwall Council portfolio holder for adult social care and health, and the member for Fowey, Par, Tywardreath, Golant and Tywardreath Highway, for his views on the Trafalgar Square situation, he said: “I am supportive of the outdoor dining spaces for the Ship Inn in Trafalgar Square. In order to mitigate the loss of the disabled spaces, I arranged for an additional space in Albert Quay car park.

“There are also disabled spaces in Fowey Main Car Park and Caffa Mill. There is also a town bus between the main car park and the town centre.”

Now, following questions to Cornwall Council about disabled parking in Trafalgar Square, the authority has issued a statement which says: “Emergency legislation introduced during the covid-19 pandemic permitted outside furniture on the public highway for food and drink businesses. This legislation was a temporary measure designed to help high streets reopen. The legislation has recently been amended and made permanent going forward.

“However, pavement licences can only be issued in a place or road where vehicle access is restricted or prohibited. As there is no permanent road traffic order in place outside the Ship Inn, we will not be able to issue a pavement licence to the venue in future.”

When told of this development, Jacky said: “I’m over the moon. Let’s hope starting next spring it is all sorted out.”