A congregation is "incensed" by Greenwich Council imposing parking restrictions outside a thriving church.

St Joseph’s Church in Pelton Road, Greenwich, is attended by more than 200 people every week.

Mick Shepard, 69, has been the minister of music for eight years at St Joseph’s and says the church is being ignored over the impact new parking rules will have.

He said: “I am outraged and think that Greenwich Council is trying to capitalise on worshippers.”

The church has set up a petition in which it calls for the council not to introduce parking restrictions and charges in Commerell Street and Pelton Road.

The petition says this will greatly affect the 200 worshippers who attend the church and will, in effect, amount to a "tax on Sunday Christian family worship".

Father Kevin Robinson and Mick have known each other for 30 years and have built St Joseph’s up from nothing.

They are asking for parking exemption on a Sunday, because it will affect many elderly parishioners, as well as parents with young children.

Both Father Kevin and Mick have been trying to contact the council for the last month but say they have had no reply, not even an acknowledgement of their letters and emails.

Father Kevin said he invited MP Matthew Pennycook and the council's head of parking Richard Cornell to join the congregation on July 8 to talk through these new restrictions, but despite sending letters via recorded delivery, they received no reply.

Mick said: “These restrictions will also affect the local primary schools, and parents will have to find somewhere else to park. It just doesn’t make sense.”

The congregation feels let down by the council and think it is "disrespectful" and "dismissive" to be ignored.

A Greenwich Council spokesman told News Shopper: "The changes to parking restrictions in this area were introduced following extensive consultation with the local community.

"There have been parking restrictions on Sunday throughout the East Greenwich CPZ (controlled parking zone) since the first permit parking controls were introduced in late 1999.

"Up until recently, however, free visitor parking was permitted for a maximum stay period of two hours without the need to display a visitor permit.

"The increasing impact of parking by non-residents to these roads on all days of the week has led to the removal of this two-hour free period. This measure was supported by the majority of responses in the consultation.

"The new arrangements still retain provisions for visitors to park without a permit for up to two hours in most of the parking places in Pelton Road, and some other local roads, albeit that a P&D (pay and display) charge is now levied for this facility."

The council has apologised for not being swifter in responding to the church and says the parking team will be writing to Father Kevin shortly.