Parents on the school run face traffic chaos after a Halfway club made the “regrettable” decision to close its car park to the public in the near future.

In November, we reported Sheerness East Working Men’s Club was under pressure from its insurer after it warned its pothole-strewn entrance needed to be properly resurfaced.

Although privately owned, the Queenborough Road club has allowed non-members to stop there, including coach companies, people leaving their cars overnight and parents dropping off and picking up children at neighbouring Halfway Houses Primary.

However, wear and tear from as many as 100 vehicles a day had left it in a poor state.

The club is now set to spend more than £3,000 of its own money in repairs. The first stage of filling in the potholes has already been completed and the next, expected this week, will see them resurfaced.

The final step will see some sort of barrier put in to prevent the public from getting in. The club plans to give the school and nearby residents a month’s notice before it does so.

Manager Dave Smith said he had to change to a different insurance company which is satisfied with the repair plans and will cover the car park for use by club patrons but it is not prepared to extend this for public liability – to do so could cost an extra £1,000 a year.

He said: “Obviously, this is the last thing we want to do because it will cause havoc in Halfway. I have contacted KCC [Kent County Council] about it but basically they are not interested.

“It’s regrettable. It’s a decision I don’t want to take but I’m afraid KCC are leaving us no choice unless they want to contribute to the extra cost of the insurance to cover the public liability.”

As the car park is privately owned, KCC is under no obligation to pay towards its costs.