The Government is responsible for legislation/regulation and local authorities are responsible for implementation and administration of the scheme. New guidance for local authorities has now been issued by the Government, with the changes due to come into effect on 30 August 2019.
Here are some of the key points from the guidance:
- The Blue Badge Digital Service includes an online eligibility checker so that members of the general public can check quickly and easily whether they may be eligible for a badge
- It is important that when making the initial application, applicants provide detailed information about their disability and how it causes them to:
Be unable to walk;
Experience very considerable difficulty whilst walking, which may include very considerable psychological distress; or
Be at risk of serious harm when walking; or pose, when walking, a risk of serious harm to any other person. - Applicants will still be able to apply through their local authority but may also apply direct through the Blue Badge Digital Service
- Local authorities may charge an application fee, but this must not exceed £10
- People who may be issued with a badge without further assessment are those who are more than two years old and fall within one or more of the following descriptions:
Receives the Higher Rate of the Mobility Component of the Disability Living Allowance (HRMCDLA); or
Receives 8 points or more under the “moving around” activity of the mobility component of Personal Independence Payment (PIP); or
Receives the mobility component of PIP and has obtained 10 points specifically for Descriptor E under the “planning and following journeys” activity, on the grounds that they are unable to undertake any journey because it would cause them overwhelming psychological distress; or
Is registered blind (severely sight impaired); or
Receives a War Pensioner's Mobility Supplement (WPMS); or
Has been both awarded a lump sum benefit at tariffs 1-8 of the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme and certified as having an enduring and substantial disability which causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking. - People who may be issued with a badge after further assessment are those who are more than two years old and may be described as one or more of the following:
A person who drives a vehicle regularly, has a severe disability in both arms and is unable to operate, or has considerable difficulty in operating, all or some types of parking meter; or
A person who has been certified* by an expert assessor as having an enduring and substantial disability which causes them, during the course of a journey, to:
Be unable to walk;
Experience very considerable difficulty whilst walking, which may include very considerable psychological distress; or
Be at risk of serious harm when walking; or pose, when walking, a risk of serious harm to any other person.
Where an applicant’s eligibility for a Blue Badge is being considered because of a ‘non-physical’ disability, such as the hidden effects of acquired brain injury, the local authority may not require an in-person assessment with the applicant. However, there may be exceptional cases where certification by an ‘expert assessor’ is considered necessary or appropriate; either in addition to, or in place of, the collation of insights from health/social care professionals such as specialist nurses of social workers.
Pages 138-143 of the guidance (link above) includes a pro forma for use by health and social care professionals when submitting a supporting statement for an application. If you are applying for a Blue Badge, for yourself, a member of your family or someone you care for, you may wish to ask for a supporting statement from staff at your local Headway or other health or care professionals who know the applicant.
The guidance in England follows similar changes to the scheme in Scotland and Wales. You can find out if you qualify for a blue badge elsewhere in the UK using the links below:
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