Cars parked on roundabouts by heatwave beachgoers

More than 1,300 parking fines were handed out to drivers over the weekend in Bournemouth as temperatures triggered an official heatwave and visitors thronged to its beaches.

With car parks brimming and spaces on streets few and far between, many double parked, or even mounted roundabouts and abandoned their car to head to the sea and sand.

Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole (BCP) Council confirmed it removed and impounded several illegally-parked vehicles.

BCP Council said its powers to deal with the issues were limited and it had spent years calling on the government "to give us greater powers to deter this behaviour".

Penalty Charge Notice (PCN) charges in the BCP are:

• £70 (£35 if paid within 14 days) for major offences

• £50 (£25 if paid within 14 days) for minor offences

Last summer residents in the town also called for action over illegal parking near the beach when the warmer weather arrived.

Residents reported in August hundreds of cars were left abandoned on pavements and double yellow lines near the seafront.

An amber heat health alert covering England, first issued by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) on Thursday, was in place until 09:00 BST on Monday.

For a heatwave to be declared by the Met Office, a threshold temperature needs to be met for at least three consecutive days.

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