THIS ice cream van was well and truly licked by traffic wardens.

The vendor was slapped with a ticket on Belton Bridge, off the High Street in old Leigh, during the heatwave on Sunday afternoon.

Echo reader Hannah Ashton, 27, of Sedgemoor, Shoebury, was so surprised she took a picture.

She said: “There were lots of families enjoying the sunshine who wanted an ice cream and it seemed a bit mean to give a parking ticket to an ice cream van.”

But Derek Kenyon, Southend Council’s parking manager, said: “Contrary to what some people may think, our civil enforcement officers aren’t killjoys.

“It’s their job to enforce the law when motorists contravene parking restrictions, and ice cream vans are no different to any other vehicles in that respect.

“In fact, it’s all the more important they don’t park on double yellow lines because in doing so they can draw young children into areas where there are potential traffic hazards.”