People power saved Telford car park from controversial parking cameras – but residents are prepared to fight on

People who live, work and shop in Lawley Square have vowed to continue their fight for as long as is necessary.

It comes after a long battle over plans to install cameras on the area's car park ended with Morrisons getting permission to install the devices, along with a time limit on car park usage.

But just days after finally getting permission, the supermarket giant said it had no current plans to set up the scheme for the time being.

Nearly 550 people had signed up to the Facebook group dedicated to boycotting the shop, and although the protest has now been delayed, organisers say they will bring it back if necessary.

A meeting of the group after the decision was made saw organisers decide to continue to monitor the situation.

Changes would cause safety risks because of an increase in parking on roads, it would create pressure on the Grazing Cow pub because more people would park over there and would drive away footfall, they said.

Morrisons chief executive David Potts has said there are no immediate plans to go ahead with the changes.

Councillor Jayne Greenaway, who represents the area on Telford & Wrekin Council, said the group would be watching for the plans to reappear.

"Residents have decided that, in Morrison's own words, 'there are no immediate plans' for the boycott," she said.

"We know it hasn't gone away. We're hopeful that some agreement can be reached without installing the boycott."

Councillor Greenaway said Morrisons needed to look more closely at the situation.

"They need to realise the impact it would cause," she said.

"Cameras are a national thing with Morrisons, Lawley probably wasn't even on their radar.

"It took the community coming together to get them to understand the situation in Lawley. I'm sure there are others around the country that are similar, with community car parks."

A Morrisons spokeswoman said: “We have listened to the community and understand that some residents are concerned about the new parking management system at Lawley. We want to reassure drivers that we have no immediate plans to install the camera controls or limit the time allowed to park.

“However, we will continue to monitor the situation at Lawley carefully and will consider the use the ANPR system if the issues with parking gets worse.”