RECENTLY I travelled down to the south of England and had occasion to stop off in Henley-on-Thames in south Oxfordshire.

Not knowing where to park, I followed the car park signs as you do. This directed me to the Waitrose supermarket just off the High Street. My initial thoughts were that the parking was not going to be cheap as I was down in the expensive south and was about to use and 'up market' supermarket car park.

What a pleasant surprise to find that on buying the ticket on arrival, it cost just 40p per hour plus a note on the ticket which informed me: "Present this car par voucher to Waitrose or other local shops displaying the Henley Chamber of Trade Car Park Refund Scheme sign. Waitrose will refund one hour's parking to customers spending over £10. Other shops will display their own conditions".

The ticket also stated that the scheme was operated by Waitrose and Henley Chamber of Trade in partnership with South Oxfordshire District Council.

So in the end, it cost me nothing to park and the town benefited from me spending some money to buy items I needed.

Are you - Bromsgrove shoppers, retailers and the council out there - following my train of thought?

Robert Ward

Stourbridge Road

Catshill, Bromsgrove