Will my mum get a blue badge?

[Dudmud]

She has arthritis in her knees; never leaves the house and only walks in the garden; I think she has been outside 3 or 4 times in the car with my father. She is worried that she'll fall over as she has fallen over 3 or 4 times in the past 12 months.

However, she has thrown away most of her hospital appointments and letters, so there isn't much for me to upload in the evidence section. Also, the GP have stopped bothering, and she hasn't had a face to face appointment in 12 + months.

Do they do home visits because it will be clear to them just how unwell she is.

Some local authorities do fall clinics to help people overcome their fears and to improve their balance etc.

Have you thought about getting her a rollater so she can walk a few steps with more confidence and build up her walking? I use crutches and have done for years as a frequent faller so it is a question of mind over body.

I do have a BB - got it despite no PIP or much recent medical evidence but so much depends on your council - I phoned and spoke to someone at my authority as they accepted phone applications followed up by the photo and evidence of identity etc.

For ours it depends if they are in pain or out of breath after walking a short distance (up and down short road/path) The condition also needs to be permanent and ongoing. Being very frail or having COPD etc.

She wouldn’t get a badge from our local council. They are utterly brutal. If you don’t have an automatic entitlement with PIP/ADP/DLA/CDP then you have to have an OT assessment. The distance you have to walk is very small and if you can do it you get denied a badge. I’m still annoyed I didn’t get mine as I could barely stand after I walked it, but I wanted it! I am on high rate for both care and mobility but the council don't take it into consideration as I do t have the automatic entitlement.

The best you can do is apply and see what happens, I have heard of many other council areas who have lesser criteria

Varies. My father had MND, fell a lot, had to be moved in a wheelchair to be sure he wouldn't have more serious falls but didn't have a badge.

@Dudmud If she can walk around the garden for 2-3 minutes how can she not walk from a car to the drs surgery? Is there no car park on site or at the door to drop her off?

On another note- has she been assessed for a knee replacement? I've friends with mums who have had hip replacements in their 90s.

Fill out the form and see.
You mention mental frailty and that can also be a consideration as well as physical impairment my mum had one for dementia.
My nephew has one for autism /adhd/learning difficulties -can run off if not watched like a hawk etc so its not purely based on physical impairment.
I don't think you are unreasonable at all trying to apply. Spend some time answering the questions as fully as you can and provide lots of detail.

Yes, it differs by local authorities. The key question in our area is how far can you walk unaided.

If you speak to the GP receptionist they will print out a list of all her diagnosed conditions. Sometimes you can access this on the nhs app.

i have a BB. I had an in person OT assessment to see if I could walk and the renewals have been automatic.

Same for him. It's around 100 yards without getting breathless or needing a mobility aid.

No car park on-site, the nearest is about a 7 minute walk but involves going uphill.

Thanks

Thanks to everyone who took their time to post. I am cracking on with the application but suspect we won't get it based on the posts here, but all we can do is try.

The keywords in our assessment are if you can walk the distance SAFELY AND CONSISTENTLY which is not the same as can you walk it. My lad is wheelchair bound so makes no difference to us but maybe worth knowing.

You've probably been told this already, but we were told to describe what my late husband was like on one of his worst days.

Playing devil's advocate (which is what the LA might be thinking) can you park at the door for 2 minutes and walk her into the surgery?

Do you have access to her gp notes? Those should include copies of correspondence from hospital appointmentsand diagnoses. Alternatively submit a dsar to either gp or hospital for her notes. Fil got one by submitting his gp notes re. Hip pain and poor mobility. If they decline the application you can appeal and have a face to face assessment.