Shoppers will now have the chance to park free of charge for 15 minutes in five town centres.

The new scheme set up by Enfield Borough Council will see 11 free stop and shop parking spaces introduced in a bid to get people shopping locally.

Two spaces have been set up in Enfield Town, two in Green Lanes, Winchmore Hill, three in Chase Side, Southgate, two in High Street, Ponders End, and two in Hertford Road, Enfield.

Enfield Council’s cabinet member for environment and community safety, Councillor Chris Bond, said: “As well as promoting walking, cycling and better bus services, we recognise that parking is of massive importance to our town centres and we work closely with shop owners to make sure there are enough parking spaces offered around the borough and they are affordable and near shops.

“Business owners said it would boost their trade if we introduced free parking for quarter of an hour so that people who want to pop to their local shops for a couple of items can do so without having to buy a pay and display ticket. We’ve listened to what they said and we’ll be trialling this scheme to see how successful it is."

The councillor cited research conducted by the Federation of Small Businesses that shows one pound spent with a local business is worth £1.76 to the local economy.

He added: "That figure drops to just 36p if it is spent out of the area. This initiative makes sense for the consumer, businesses, the council and the wider community and I’m very pleased we have been able to introduce this excellent initiative.”

The scheme is currently in a trial period and if successful, will expand to other parts of the borough.