ALMOST 50 people staged a demonstration to protest about selfish parking in roads surrounding a university campus.

The protesters outside the gates of the Oakwood Park campus, in Maidstone, told drivers to 'park off’ and warned visitors that they were causing chaos for people living nearby.

The dispute over parking places at the campus has been rumbling on for more than two years.

The Astor of Hever School, Oakwood Park Grammar School, Kent County Council’s Oakwood House, the University College for the Creative Arts (UCCA) and Mid Kent College all share the site - and since parking restrictions were introduced on the site’s main arterial roads, parking has become a real problem.

Marilyn Kershaw, of Shaftesbury Drive, said : “On a daily basis we have our drives blocked by cars being crammed into inappropriate spaces and several of my neighbours have been the subject of nasty verbal abuse from those drivers when they are asked to move their vehicles. A bus has even had to abandon its route because access has been impossible." ”

Maidstone county councillor Dan Daley (Lib Dem) said: “There simply are not enough parking spaces for students on the Oakwood Park campus. The schools and colleges need to provide more parking spaces or encourage people to use bikes or buses.”

A meeting has been called at the campus on May 21, where all nine of KCC’s Maidstone ward councillors will meet to discuss the matter.

About 250 residents are also expected to attend.

In the meantime, campus officials say they are trying to encourage more people to take greener transport and have applied for more parking spaces.

A spokeswoman for UCCA added: “We are very sympathetic to residents’ concerns about parking in the areas surrounding Oakwood Park and are working closely with the local authorities, the police, and other site users to help resolve the situation.

“Plans to increase the numbers of spaces at the site have been submitted to the local council and along with the other site users we are in talks regarding the setting up of a park and ride scheme.”

Mid Kent College’s campus director Peter Webb said he was certain it was not students from his college causing the problems.

“Mid Kent College has between 300 and 400 students attending at any one time, most of whom are not of driving age, and we have 400 parking spaces, so it’s not our students,” he said.

What do you think? Write to Kent Messenger, 6&7 Middle Row, Maidstone, ME14 1TG or email messengernews@thekmgroup.co.uk