"Fracture clinic appointment and comment of parking"

Good morning

My name is Michelle O`Halloran and I have responsibility for Belfast Trust carparking. Please accept my apologies on behalf of Patient & Client Support Services (PCSS) for your recent carparking experience on the RVH site.

The Belfast Trust encourages staff to commute to work by public transport, walking, cycling, by motorbike or to car share. Despite this, the demand for carparking by staff exceeds the limited amount of carparking available – particularly on the RVH site. Allocated carparking for staff reached capacity a number of years ago. As a consequence, staff often park in the public carparks and pay the daily tariff and this impacts on spaces. This can add to the anxiety that many patients and their families may already be experiencing and leads to understandable levels of frustration. The Belfast Trust is in the process of trying to secure some offsite parking spaces for staff to free up spaces for patients and their families. PCSS have also changed an area on site to disabled staff parking only in an attempt to free up blue badge spaces for patient/visitor use on the RVH site.

To ensure that available staff parking provision is targeted towards those in greatest need, the Trust recently agreed to apply carpark access criteria for staff. This will result in more spaces being available for patients and their families. The Trust also operates a free Park N Ride from Blacks Road to the RVH for staff to try to alleviate some of the pressures of carparking on this site. The Trust is also preparing for the Hospital Parking Charges Act coming into effect in May 2026. This Bill will result in tighter controls around access to carparks and will alleviate the current carparking queues. We have also been informed that 60 to 70 spaces in the Main Visitors Carpark will be returned for use in January 2025 due to the completion of necessary Estates work).

As the demand for blue badges spaces on our sites are increasing, we changed the set down area (to the left as you enter via the Broadway entrance) to a waiting area. If patients can be dropped off (we appreciate this will only be an option if accompanied by family members) then family members can wait here in the vehicle until their relative can be collected.

I hope the above explains some of the measures being taken to improve parking for patients and their families. Please feel free to contact me if you have any further issues relating to car parking and my apologies again for your recent experience.

Kind regards

Michelle O`Halloran

Patient & Client Support Services

Dear Ccanne;

Thank you for your wonderful response regarding your experience here in Fracture Clinic; I will share your feedback on during my morning safety briefing. Your kind words are very much appreciated. Cark Park Services should respond to your concerns re parking.

Kind regards

Cecilia Devlin

Fracture Clinic Outpatient Sister

RVH