Blue Badge

 

Who can get a Blue Badge

 

Not all disabilities or conditions result in eligibility for a Blue Badge.

Disabilities and health conditions can be very varied, and the day-to-day impact can range from mild to very severe, occasional to constant.

A diagnosis of a particular condition on its own may not be sufficient to confirm eligibility for a Blue Badge- we may require further information about how much and how often a condition affects your ability to undertake a journey.

https://www.northnorthants.gov.uk/blue-badges/apply-blue-badge

 

www.westnorthants.gov.uk/blue-badges-individuals

 

Qualifying for a Blue Badge

 

You automatically qualify if you are Registered Severely Sight Impaired (Blind) (if you are partially sighted you will need to apply under the physical condition) or if you are in receipt of any of the following:

• 8 or more points under the ‘moving around’ descriptor for the mobility

component of Personal Independence Payment

• Personal Independence Payment with a score of 10 points under descriptor E of the “planning and following a journey” activity   of the mobility component- you will have to provide the decision letter from the Department of Work and Pensions. To be eligible for a Blue Badge without further assessment, you must receive the following descriptor: “Cannot undertake any journey because it would cause overwhelming psychological distress to the claimant” (10 points). No other descriptor will qualify.

• Higher Rate Mobility Component of Disability Living Allowance -  if you receive

• Attendance allowance you will need to apply under the physical condition

• War Pensioner’s Mobility Supplement a lump sum benefit from the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces Compensation Scheme (the lump sum awarded needs to be within tariff level 1 to 8)

 

Other ways you may qualify

 

If you cannot walk or find walking difficult. This is not an automatically qualifying criterion. You’ll need to answer some questions about your condition and provide evidence to support your application.

 

Enduring and substantial disability:

 

You may qualify if you have an enduring and substantial disability that:

• Is likely to last for the next three years

• Has been an ongoing issue

• Means you are unable to walk (you can’t take a single step) or causes you to experience very considerable difficulty whilst walking

No single factor determines eligibility, but these factors are considered together.

 

Considerable difficulty in walking is determined by considering the following:

• Excessive pain when walking or as a consequence of walking

• Breathlessness when walking or as a consequence of the effort of walking

• The speed at which you can walk

• The length of time you can walk for

• The way you walk

• Whether walking aids are used

• Your outdoor walking ability

 

Non-visible (hidden) disability

 

This is not an automatically qualifying criterion. When applying under these criteria, you’ll need to answer some questions about your condition and provide evidence to support your application.

You may qualify if you have a non-visible (hidden) disability if:

• You are constantly a significant risk to yourself or others near vehicles, in traffic or car parks

• You struggle severely to plan or follow a journey

• You find it difficult or impossible to control your actions and lack awareness of the impact you could have on others

• You regularly have intense and overwhelming responses to situations

causing temporary loss of behavioural control

• You frequently become extremely anxious or fearful of public/open spaces

 

Children under 3 years:

 

If you are the parent of a child who is less than 3 years old you may apply for a Blue Badge for your child if they have a specific medical condition, which means they:

• Always need to be accompanied by bulky medical equipment which cannot be carried around without great difficulty

• Have to be kept near a vehicle at all times, so that they can, if necessary, be treated in the vehicle, or quickly driven to a place where they can be treated, such as a hospital

 

The badge will expire on the day immediately following their third birthday.

 

http://www.gov.uk/benefits-end-of-life 

 

If you have been diagnosed with a terminal illness that seriously limits your mobility or are in receipt of an SR1 form to get benefit under special rules, you will qualify for a Blue Badge.