A refund offered to Wycombe Leisure Centre visitors who forked out cash for a parking permit only for the car park to be shut off whenever it rains has been slammed as a “kick in the teeth”.

The car park at the Handy Cross leisure centre has to be closed for safety reasons by Wycombe District Council and centre operators Places for People Leisure whenever it gets slippery – after a pensioner fell over and later died of head injuries.

Last week, the Bucks Free Press reported that work is now getting underway to replace the slippery surface so the car park can reopen in all weathers.

But while the car park is closed, permit holders who forked out £60 to park there for a year have been offered compensation of just £14.

One regular gym user, who visits the centre every day, said Places for People Leisure initially offered only £10 – which he slammed as “disgraceful”.

He told the Bucks Free Press: “This is a disgraceful amount of compensation. A lot of members have taken ages looking for a parking space in the park and ride, sometimes in the pouring rain.

“I’ve had drivers following me to see where I'm parked so they can park there. The refund on offer is an utter kick the teeth to their members.

“Some days, I’ve been told by visitors, it can take over 20 minutes finding a parking space - especially on Tuesday and Friday mornings.

I go to the gym every weekday. When I go back to my car, some drivers actually follow me to get my vacated place.”

A spokesman for Places for People Leisure said: “Our refund is a pro rata calculation based on the number of days that the car park was unavailable.

“Free (up to 12 hours) parking is available at the Park and Ride in the interim. Work is currently underway on the leisure centre car park and should be completed by April.”

Extra measures have had to be taken to protect visitors to the leisure centre after 85-year-old Harry Carter slipped over in the car park on December 2, and later passed away at the John Radcliffe Hospital in Oxford.

A jury inquest at Buckinghamshire Coroner’s Court in Beaconsfield in June 2019 found that his death was accidental.

According to figures obtained by the BBC, there were four previous slips, falls and trips in the car park since it opened in January 2016 – before Mr Carter passed away.