Kingston university students that attend the Penrhyn Road campus are facing a daily parking crisis.
The price of parking and lack of spaces for Penrhyn Road students has been affecting their studies and daily life.
Third year student Carly Rendell said: “Quite often I find myself a little late for lectures due to having to find a space and the distance of the spaces.”
This can have a severe impact on her degree if she is continuously late to her classes.
Additionally, it can have other impacts on students such as their mental health.
“As someone who suffers with anxiety, it makes me feel quite anxious walking in when everybody is sat down,” Rendell said.
At other Kingston campuses parking is available on site if students pay a set fee for a permit.
However at the Penrhyn Road campus, the only permit available is an evening and weekend one.
Horizon Parking, who provide the permits at the university said: “No student parking is available at Penrhyn Road except after 4:30pm Monday to Friday and all weekend.”
This means students who have classes before this time have to look for alternatives such as car parks, street parking and even people’s driveways.
Despite the alternatives, the price of off-street parking was increased in March 2025 and has caused concern amongst not only students, but Kingston residents.
The Royal Borough of Kingston (RBK) parking services said that they “recognise the setting of pricing for parking in the Borough is a matter of concern for residents”.
When parking on a road outside the Penrhyn Road campus, drivers are paying up to £7 for only two hours.
There are a number of reasons for the changes earlier this year.
“Assisting the Council in its duties to maintain and ensure a safe and efficient road network that meets the needs of all road users. The revenue from parking charges is spent on eligible areas, including road repairs and public transport,” RBK parking services said.
As there are no future plans for the parking prices to be reduced, students will either have to accept the prices or find an alternative solution.
One alternative solution that some students have used is an app called Just Park.
Third year student Jess Turner said: “As there is no available parking at Penrhyn Road, I normally park using an app called just park where I can rent out other people’s driveways.”
Prices on this app often come at a cheaper price and students can drive to university knowing they have a parking space reserved for them.
However, Just Park hasn’t been entirely reliable for Turner.
“Only one person can park on a drive at a time and sometimes the people who rent their spaces get their dates mixed up.” Turner said.
