Colchester City Council won the ‘Parking in Action’ award at the British Parking Awards 2026 alongside Unity5 and the National Persistent Evader Database (NPED). This brought recognition to a project that has genuinely transformed how enforcement works across Essex.

 

Definition of the problem being tackled

Persistent evasion is one of the most damaging and entrenched issues in the UK’s parking and compliance landscape. NPED’s research shows that the UK loses £1.8 billion annually in unpaid PCNs, with over 60% of persistent evaders lacking valid VED, MOT, insurance, or keeper details. These vehicles are disproportionately linked to criminality, antisocial behaviour, and road‑safety risks.

Traditional enforcement has struggled to respond. 78% of Warrants of Control are written off, and councils have historically worked in isolation, unable to share behavioural intelligence or track cross‑border offenders. This fragmentation has allowed high‑risk vehicles to circulate unchecked, draining public resources and placing communities at risk. The sector needed a national, intelligence‑led solution capable of identifying persistent evaders, reducing wasted enforcement expenditure, and improving public safety.

 

 

 

A Collaboration of Pioneers in Parking

Unity5 became the first technology provider in the UK to adopt NPED, enabling their clients, NEPP (North Essex Parking Partnership) and SEPP (South Essex Parking Partnership), to become the first operational users of the national persistent evader database. This marks the moment the sector moved from isolated enforcement to unified behavioural intelligence.

Another pioneer fundamental to the project is NPED ambassador Richard Walker, who has been involved since the inception. NPED has been built with the input of councils firmly in mind.

 

 

NEPP and SEPP became the first authorities in the UK to access NPED’s national intelligence

NPED is the UK’s first national behavioural‑intelligence engine for vehicle compliance. It blends millions of unpaid PCN records with DVLA, DVSA and (soon) insurance data to create real‑time behavioural profiles of every vehicle, revealing persistent evaders, high‑risk vehicles, and patterns of non‑compliance previously invisible. Unity5’s early adoption meant NEPP and SEPP became the first authorities in the UK to access NPED’s national intelligence directly through their operational systems – creating a seamless, real‑time decision‑making environment that has transformed enforcement outcomes.

Key Actions Delivered

First national-scale identification of Persistent Evaders

Unity5 enabled NEPP and SEPP to access NPED’s instant A–E behavioural scoring, cross‑authority tracking, and real‑time identification of high‑risk vehicles. Councils can now stop futile PCN progression and focus resources where they matter most.

First operational use of behavioural intelligence

to Reduce Antisocial and unauthorised vehicle activity by surfacing vehicles linked to criminality or compliance failures, Unity5’s integration supports the Government’s Road Safety Strategy and Safer Streets Mission.

First joined‑up parking–policing intelligence flow

NPED is being integrated into police patrol vehicles through MAV Mobile, giving officers real‑time visibility of dangerous or high‑risk vehicles. This is the first time parking‑derived behavioural intelligence has been available directly to frontline policing.

First national framework for proportionate, early‑stage interventions

Unity5’s clients are the first to deploy NPED’s soft‑touch, early‑engagement model, warning notices, behavioural nudges, and early communication long before escalation. This ensures fair, proportionate enforcement and reduces unnecessary conflict.

 

 

Delivering Measurable Operational Savings

NPED’s behavioural scoring prevents low‑yield, high‑risk cases from entering costly processing stages. These savings are real, evidenced, and repeatable – proving that intelligence‑led enforcement is fairer and significantly more efficient. Unity5’s early adoption has demonstrated that national behavioural intelligence is not theoretical: it is operational, effective, and transformative.

Supporting National Policy and Reform

NPED is the evidence base for the proposed Vehicle Compliance Management Act (VCMA), supported by MPs and peers. It strengthens the Government’s Road Safety Strategy and Safer Streets Mission and provides the data foundation for a unified national framework to tackle vehicle‑based offending. Through confidential engagement with the National Roads Policing Coordination Centre, NPED is recognised as a national behavioural‑intelligence asset, shaping frontline policy, enforcement, and future legislation.

Unity5’s leadership in adopting NPED has accelerated the sector’s shift toward unified national compliance.

 

 

 

Enhancing Public Fairness and Trust

NPED shifts enforcement away from minor mistakes and towards deliberate, repeat evasion – reframing parking as a protector of communities rather than a processor of paperwork. Unity5’s clients are the first to demonstrate this new model in practice. Authorities gain the intelligence to focus on the right vehicles, at the right time, for the right reasons, reducing unnecessary enforcement and prioritising genuine risk.

 

 

 

Key Outcomes

1. Reduced processing costs

2. Improved targeting of enforcement resources

3. Reliable identification of high‑risk offenders

4. Seamless integration with existing systems

NEPP and SEPP are now national exemplars of intelligence‑led enforcement.

 

Evidence of Success

NPED has already surfaced vehicle behaviour linked to serious criminality, including patterns associated with county‑lines activity. Intelligence has been passed directly to policing for investigation. Unity5’s early adoption means Essex became the first region in the UK where parking intelligence is actively supporting frontline policing with real‑time visibility of high‑risk vehicles, compliance failures, and behavioural anomalies.

An Award Winning Project! Recognition At the British Parking Awards

Colchester City Council won the ‘Parking in Action’ award at the British Parking Awards 2026, alongside partners Unity5 and NPED, recognising how this project has genuinely transformed how enforcement works across Essex.

 

 

Sector Transformation

NPED is formally endorsed by the BPA and IPC and described by a senior police officer as:

“The vehicle behavioural utopia.”

Unity5’s pioneering adoption has accelerated NPED’s national rollout and demonstrated how technology and behavioural intelligence can reshape compliance, policing, and public safety. NPED is reshaping national thinking, informing policy, underpinning legislation, and creating a shared intelligence environment bridging policing, parking, compliance, and public safety.

 

Community Impact

Unity5’s clients are the first to deliver NPED’s community‑focused outcomes:

• Fairer, more proportionate enforcement
• Protection of lawful motorists
• Improved public perception of parking teams
• Safer streets and more confident communities

NPED delivers visible community impact: fairer outcomes, safer streets, and a sector recognised as part of the solution.

 

 

 

Professional Standard and Good Practice

NPED is built on:

• Founder Alan Wood’s standing as a Fellow of the British Parking Association since 2015
• Endorsement by the BPA and IPC
• GDPR‑compliant data‑sharing agreements
• Law‑enforcement‑grade security
• Integration with Zatpark and Case Manager
• Robust testing with early adopters
• Transparent A–E scoring frameworks

Unity5’s integration ensures every authority receives the same high‑quality intelligence, support, and governance.

 

 

Richard Walker – Service Director (Strategic Parking Lead), Colchester City Council and NPED Ambassador said:
“I’ve been involved with NPED since its inception – it has been a long road so far – and my role has gone far beyond that of an Ambassador. Having spent years working in parking roles for councils, dealing with persistent evasion first-hand, I understood exactly where traditional enforcement was failing – and I’ve been able to bring that operational reality directly into how NPED has been built and deployed. This isn’t technology designed in isolation; it’s shaped by people, like me, who’ve actually done the job. Seeing NEPP and SEPP become the first authorities in the country to put national behavioural intelligence into live use, gaining results, is first-hand proof that this approach is both sound, and works.”

Tim Ashman, Director TJA Associates and Consultant representing the interests of national roads policing adds:
“My experience across policing has shown how valuable community‑generated intelligence is in identifying risk and criminality. NPED opens up a data source policing has never be able to utilise: behavioural insight from the parking sector. By securely linking local authority vehicle behavioural intelligence with policing systems, NPED provides fresh, actionable information on vehicles connected to evasion, risk and organised crime. This directly strengthens neighbourhood policing, enhances national intelligence capability and supports the Government’s Road Safety Strategy and Safer Streets Mission by giving officers clearer visibility of high‑risk vehicles on our roads. NPED is a modern, practical tool that will materially benefit policing at both local and national levels, and I’m pleased to have supported its development.”

Conclusion: Parking Action at its most powerful

Unity5 has been instrumental in supporting NPED Services Ltd on its journey to transform how the UK understands, manages, and protects its vehicle community. By becoming the first adopter of the national persistent evader database, Unity5 embraced the principle that data can and should influence policy, operational decision‑making, and even policing.

Their commitment enabled NEPP and SEPP to become the first operational users of NPED, proving that behavioural intelligence can reshape enforcement, strengthen public safety, and deliver fairer outcomes at scale.

Together, Unity5 and NPED have delivered the UK’s first real‑world demonstration of national behavioural intelligence in parking – saving money, improving safety, elevating fairness, and rebuilding public trust.

This is Parking in Action at its most powerful: smarter decisions, safer streets, and a sector leading with purpose.

 

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