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Almost a third of the spaces at West Rock car park in Warwick could be fenced off for residents. Warwick District Council has applied to itself for planning permission to put a 2.4-metre steel fence and locked gates around 32 of the car park’s 99 spaces for five years, so that people living in a nearby block of flats have somewhere to park. The other 67 spaces would stay open to the public.
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Why the council wants to fence off the spaces
According to the planning statement, the residents’ allocated spaces were in another council-owned town centre car park that has closed, and their leases give them a right to private parking. The council says West Rock, which it also runs, is a suitable alternative close by. The application doesn’t say which car park closed or which block the residents live in.
The fenced area would be at the southern end of the car park, which is reached from Theatre Street along Commainge Close, next to Sainsbury’s. It would measure about 36 by 28 metres, with a 7-metre vehicle gate, a pedestrian gate and a small electrical kiosk at the northern side, all painted British Racing Green. Only residents with a space and council staff would have keys. The council says the anti-climb fence is meant to deter crime and anti-social behaviour, and that lighting could be added later by condition if needed.
What it means if you park at West Rock
West Rock is one of the closest car parks to the town centre (about a four-minute walk, by the council’s estimate) and you can stay there for up to 24 hours. Prices there were frozen in the council’s 2027 fees plan, which goes to Full Council on Wednesday 28 October.
Losing public spaces at West Rock has been turned down before. In 2015 the council refused a plan for 13 homes on part of the car park, saying it was “popular and well used” and that losing it could harm the town centre. The new statement argues this case is different because the spaces go to residents rather than being built on, and lists other car parks nearby: Sainsbury’s, Barrack Street multi-storey (110 metres away), Vittle Drive (130 metres), New Street (300 metres) and West Gate (400 metres).
One thing doesn’t match: the application counts 99 spaces at West Rock, while the council’s car park pages, which our Warwick parking guide uses, list 91.
How to comment and what happens next
The application, reference W/26/1511, was received on 16 October and validated on Monday 26 October, when consultation began. You can read the plans and comment on the council’s planning website. The council aims to decide it by Monday 21 December 2026. If approved, the fence could stay for five years.
The application was first reported by Warwick Nub News.
