Adult Social Care Glossary, v 0.6

Blue Badges help people with disabilities or health conditions park closer to their destination. You can apply for a badge for yourself, on behalf of somebody else or an organisation that transports people that need a Blue Badge.

You automatically qualify for a Blue Badge if you are aged 3 or over and at least one of the following applies:

- you receive the higher rate of the mobility component of the Disability Living Allowance (DLA)
- you receive a Personal Independence Payment (PIP) because you can’t walk more than 50 metres (a score of 8 points or more under the ‘moving around’ activity of the mobility component)
- you are registered blind (severely sight impaired)
- you receive a War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement
- you have received a lump sum benefit within tariff levels 1 to 8 of the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces (Compensation) Scheme and have been certified as having a permanent and substantial disability that causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking
- you receive the mobility component of PIP and have obtained 10 points specifically for descriptor E under the ‘planning and following journeys’ activity, on the grounds that you are unable to undertake any journey because it would cause you overwhelming psychological distress

If you have any score other than 10 points under descriptor E, in the ‘planning and following journeys’ activity of PIP you may still be eligible for a Blue Badge, but you do not automatically qualify. This includes if you have a higher score of 12. You will have to provide evidence to demonstrate your eligibility which will be assessed as part of your application.

You may be eligible for a badge if one or more of the following applies:

- you cannot walk at all
- you cannot walk without help from someone else or using mobility aids
you find walking very difficult due to pain, breathlessness or the time it takes
- walking is dangerous to your health and safety
- you have a life limiting illness, which means you cannot walk or find walking very difficult and have a SR1 form
- you have a severe disability in both arms and drive regularly, but cannot operate pay-and-display parking machines
- you have a child under the age of 3 with a medical condition that means the child always needs to be accompanied by bulky medical equipment
- you have a child under the age of 3 with a medical condition that means the child must always be kept near a vehicle in case they need emergency medical treatment
- 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

Your local council will decide if you are eligible for a badge. They cannot start the assessment process until they have all the necessary evidence. It may take 12 weeks or longer to assess your application. If they decide that you are not eligible and you think that they did not take account of all the facts, you can ask them to consider your application again.

If you're disabled or have a health condition that affects your mobility, you can apply for a Blue Badge.

You can also apply for a badge if you care for a child with a health condition that affects their mobility.

Councils can charge for a blue badge. The most you can be charged is £10. You can find more information from your local council about the Blue Badge scheme through GOV.UK.

If you get certain benefits you'll automatically be able to get a Blue Badge. The application will be straightforward.

You don't need to be able to drive to apply for a Blue Badge, unless you're applying because of problems with your arms.

Follow the advice on this page to renew your Blue Badge, too. You can’t use an expired badge, so make sure you apply for a new one as early as possible. You can ask your council when to submit your renewal.

You can only get a Blue Badge from your local council or at GOV.UK. No one else can provide a genuine Blue Badge - if you think you’ve been scammed, you should report it.

Who can get a Blue Badge

You’re automatically eligible for a Blue Badge if you:

- are registered as blind
- get the higher rate of the mobility component of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) - check your decision letter if you're not sure
- get War Pensioners’ Mobility Supplement
- received a lump sum payment as part of the Armed Forces Compensation scheme (tariffs 1 to 8), and have been certified as having a permanent and substantial disability

If you get Personal Independence Payments (PIP) you’re automatically eligible for a Blue Badge if you either:

- scored 8 points or more in the ‘moving around’ area of your PIP assessment
- scored 10 points in the ‘planning and following journeys’ area of your PIP assessment and were put in category ‘E’ - this means your stress, anxiety or other mental health issue stops you leaving the house
- Check your PIP decision letter if you’re not sure.

If you're not automatically eligible, you can still get a badge if:

- you have long term problems walking or going to places - including problems caused by stress, anxiety or other mental health issues
- you have severe problems using both your arms
- you're applying on behalf of a child aged over 2 who has problems walking or going to places, or a child under 3 who needs to be close to a vehicle -
- because of a health condition

Applying for a Blue Badge

You can apply for or renew your Blue Badge online on GOV.UK. Some councils also let you apply on a paper form - contact your local council to check.

You have to apply through your local council - your doctor can't help you get a Blue Badge. Your local council might also arrange an appointment to visit you - they'll let you know if you need this.

Filling in the application if you're not automatically eligible

If you're not automatically eligible you'll need to fill in an extra part of the application form to explain why you need a badge.

The application is more complicated if you're not automatically eligible - you can contact your nearest Citizens Advice for help.