New signs have been put up at the Fairfield car park in Dorchester making parking cheaper on Sundays when the charity car boot sales are held.

The previous minimum had been £4, but it is now down to £2.60 for three hours – an option not previously offered.

But even at the new, lower rate, Sunday car park users will pay 60p more for the minimum period than on a Wednesday, when the commercial stall market operates. Dorset Council say it is trying to harmonise parking fees.

Highways portfolio holder councillor Ray Bryan has not acknowledge there had been a change in policy – yet. A statement from him suggests there has been no recent change in fees, although the new signs suggest otherwise.

Prior to April 1, Sunday parking had been free in all council-owned car parks in Dorchester but charges were then introduced as the authority sought to maximise its income.

Said Cllr Ray Bryan: "The current parking charges at Fairfield long stay car park are the same, except for Sundays. Sunday charging was brought in from April 1, following the roll out of the first phase of our parking transformation project.

"Fairfield continues to offer short stay prices on a Wednesday due to the market occupying the short stay car park spaces.

"We're currently working on standardising our car park charges across the whole of the Dorset Council area, as part of this we're carrying out further work on whether the charge on Sunday needs to match the Wednesday charges."

Despite this new signs are already in place, reducing the Sunday fees at Fairfield to three hours with a new, minimum, Sunday rate, of £2.60.

Our photos show a new sign last week - compared to same site photographed on April 14 when there was no option for Sunday parking other than the £4 minimum charge.

Joint markets panel chairman Cllr Molly Rennie said that last time she asked about reducing parking charges at the market she was told it was with the council's legal department. Her aim is to get the Sunday fees to the same level as on Wednesdays, at £2 for short-term parking in the long stay section, because on both days all the short-term spaces are taken up by stalls.

She feared that, until recently, having to pay a minimum of £4 to park might put people off attending the Sunday car boot sale.

Each year, until the pandemic, the car boot has raised around £10,000 a year for local charities.