Civil Enforcement Officers (Traffic Wardens)

Our Civil Enforcement Officers (Traffic Wardens)

This page explains what Civil Enforcement Officers (traffic wardens) can enforce, what they cannot enforce, and answers some common questions about parking enforcement.

Civil Enforcement Officers use body-worn video cameras.

Our contractor, NSL/Marston Holdings, will be the data controller for the footage captured. Please see their privacy notice for details of how they will manage the data.

Our officers receive a basic wage and there are no targets for issuing PCNs. Their job is simply to get drivers to obey the parking control measures and issue a PCN where a parking offence has taken place.

Civil Enforcement Officers cannot cancel a PCN once it has been issued. If you believe a PCN was issued incorrectly, you can make an informal challenge.

Civil parking enforcement helps keep roads safe, reduce congestion and ensure parking restrictions are observed.

We administer civil parking enforcement on behalf of West Sussex County Council. More detailed information about the process can be found at Civil Parking Enforcement (CPE) - West Sussex County Council

What our Civil Enforcement Officers cannot enforce

Our Civil Enforcement Officers (traffic wardens) cannot enforce:

  • vehicles parked across a driveway unless a parking restriction is also being broken
  • pavement parking where there are no parking restrictions, such as double yellow lines
  • parking in electric vehicle (EV) charging bays
  • parking in courtesy disabled bays that are not supported by a legal parking order (these are usually in residential streets and do not have a sign next to the bay)
  • parking across a dropped kerb or near a junction where there are no enforceable parking restrictions in place
  • parking on private land or unadopted roads
  • vehicles that are double parked, unless they are also parked in contravention of an existing parking restriction
  • incidents that have already happened. We cannot issue Penalty Charge Notices (PCNs) retrospectively or solely on the basis of photographs, videos or other evidence provided by members of the public. A Civil Enforcement Officer must witness the contravention at the time it occurs.

Why some parking issues cannot be enforced

Civil Enforcement Officers can only enforce parking restrictions where legal powers exist. In some cases, responsibility may lie with the police, a private landowner or another authority.

Can Civil Enforcement Officers attend at a school?

We receive many requests for parking enforcement outside schools, particularly at drop-off and pick-up times.

Our team of eight Civil Enforcement Officers patrols 45 schools across the district, so we cannot be at every school every day. We try to visit each school as often as possible and target our resources where they are most needed.

What if parking problems continue?

If parking around a school is causing ongoing safety concerns, West Sussex County Council's Safer School Programme may be able to help.

The programme offers advice and initiatives to encourage safer parking and travel to school, including:

  • School Travel Plans
  • School Streets schemes
  • active travel improvements

For more information, email schoolstreets@westsussex.gov.uk.

Experience shows that the most effective long-term improvements come from schools, parents and local communities working together to promote safe and considerate parking.

Parking orders

View parking orders for Arun and West Sussex County Council on the Traffic Penalty Tribunal website.

We are part of the PATROL (Parking and Traffic Regulations Outside London) joint committee, and more information can be found on the PATROL website.