SCHOOLS are being urged to rent out their spare car park spaces over summer as a way of raising much needed funds.

Primary and secondary schools are potentially ‘sitting on a parking gold mine’ it was reported by online parking portal www.YourParkingSpace.co.uk

Schools, which are closed over the summer holidays, and are near to town centres, train stations and popular local amenities, are advised to rent out the spare spaces to needy motorists to help plug any funding gaps.

The advice comes from YourParkingSpace.co.uk which believes there will be thousands of car park spaces lying empty at educational establishments over July and August.

It is estimated that if each of these schools rented out just two parking spaces from Monday to Friday for six weeks for £7 a day each then that would raise £10.5-million over the school summer holidays in England by itself — equivalent to the annual salary of 467 new qualified teachers.

A Devon County Council spokesman said: ‘We would encourage all local governing bodies to consider ways of increasing their income while we continue to lobby Central Government for fairer funding for Devon Schools.

‘Governing bodies, however, would need to fully understand the implications and potential issues of any proposal.’

Harrison Woods, managing director at YourParkingSpace.co.uk, said: ‘Cash-strapped schools in the right locations are potentially sitting on a parking goldmine.

‘With budget restraints hitting hard on the public purse strings, this could be the ideal way to earn additional revenue from land that is effectively vacant for six weeks or more.

‘Many schools are located in urban areas and close to town centres, railway stations and the like, making them ideal for car owners looking for somewhere cheaper to park than a traditional car park.’

Schools interested in renting out their empty car parking spaces over the summer should visit www.yourparkingspace.co.uk for more information.