To park in parent and child spaces if there are no disabled ones free?

[immortalbeloved]

I know I know, I'm sorry for another P&C space thread

I'm really really not trying to start the whole debate up again, I know it's been done to death

Genuine question though, AIBU to park in one if there isn't a disabled space free? Normally I use a disbled space (I have a blue badge) or sometimes P&C space if I've got one or more of the children with me. But today I needed to go somewhere and didn't have any children with me, when I got there the only space free close enough for me was P&C so I used it.

But I was given several dirty looks by mums with toddlers and one was going to approach me to 'set me straight' but her friend stopped her

So was I really out of order? Or is it an ok thing to do?

Disabled Parking is a necessity, P&C parking is a luxury

So whilst a blue badge holder can and should park in P&C when no disabled space a parent with a child should never ever ever park in a disabled bay - just park further away and walk it you lazy bastard!

YANBU

Ok, I supose I'd better speak up for myself!

Of course I agree with what most of you are saying, most wheelchair users would obviously need a wider parking space than most Mums with young children. But I can think of times when it would be the other way round. When we take fil (blue badge holder) out, he is able to get out of the car in a normal sized space, then one of us would get the chair out of the boot for him to walk to and get in. He would probably need his parking space less than a Mum with twin toddlers and a baby.

I have a friend who is paraplegic, in one of the pub/restaurants we go to he finds it easier to be in a normal parking space because of the layout of the disabled space and his van, which he just wheels straight into at the back, therefore a harrased Mummy might get more benefit out of the space than he would.

I guess I do think in the majority of cases a blue badge would trump a parent wanting to park close, but not always. It depends why people need the disabled space, is it for wider access or to be closer to whatever facility. Because sometimes, once you are in the wheelchair you are in no more need of being close to the supermarket than a Mum struggling with multiple children.

Just my random thoughts. Flame me if you like.

YANBU. if there aren't any free disabled ones.

YAsoNBU.

You have a Blue Badge and can park pretty much wherever you like. If selfish fuckers didn't park in disabled bays when they have no right to, then you wouldn't need to have this dilemma.

whether you like it or not curly mama parent and child parking spaces are a courtesy - in fact anyone can park in them because legally they are just like any other space. HOWEVER id a parent with a toddler parked in a disabled space - they would be breaking the law.

So to the OP - definitely not be unreasonable to park in parent and child with a blue badge - or a red badge for that matter.

Of course yanbu- As mentioned before parent and child spaces are a luxury whilst disability spaces are a legal requirement.
The amount of times I have seen parents with secondary school children using these spaces angers me and I would much rather there be many more disabled spaces than parent and child spaces.

Eidsvold, there is really no need for you to come across quite so agressively. Your point is of course correct, and I'm not going to argue black is white for the sake of it. Like I already said, I pretty much agree with all the other posts, it just made me think about it in a little more depth. That's all.

YADNBU! I do it too and to be honest, wouldn't think twice about it I'm afraid. 9 times out of 10 I would have one of mine with me still at the moment, but I don't feel guilty about it. I need the extra width to get in and out of the car even if I don't have the DSs with me because of the way I have to get in (no wheelchair fortunately for me) and I just can't risk a completely incompetent driver parking so close to my door that I can't get in.

I don't usually take the stick with me when I'm shopping at a supermarket as I use the shopping trolley to lean on, but if it was just a general parking place then I'd have my own Sholley to lean on instead of the stick, so I don't necessarily look 'disabled' when I'm going round.

I hate the looks too, but then I see so many people who have abused the system, that I'm not surprised at getting them as so many people seem to think that if you're disabled you must be old.

YANBU as there were no disabled spaces free.

The only time I have spoken to a blue badge holder about parking in a parent and child space was when they took the last P+C space when there were several even closer disabled spaces free. That's ok isn't it?

'Because sometimes, once you are in the wheelchair you are in no more need of being close to the supermarket than a Mum struggling with multiple children.'

How do you know this?

YANBU however you have to be prepared for someone to look for your blue badge while passing. I would look if you were parking without children but if you had a badge, I would think that perfectly OK

yanbu at all - though please accept my apology in advance for if I glare at you,

as I will if I don't have a visible disablitiy and no dc, just ignore me though because morally you are right!

(I write notes to those that park in the disabled spaces without a pass, and dobbed in a wanker that had parked across three spaces while he waited for someone to come out of asda, blocking the only spaces left .)

No,I don't think it was ok,Iwish. They may have had good reasons for parking in the P&C space that day,instead of the accessible parking spaces.

YANBU at all, disabled people should get priority in every space.

YANBU, obviously. Anybody that thinks differently either has a weird sense of entitlement to P&C spaces or doesn't understand that they're DIFFERENT THINGS.

:)

Really?

I really did think before I spoke to them, but as the disabled spaces were a) closer and b) more plentiful and they had chosen to park in the last remaining P+C space I felt that it wasn't uunreasonable to point the facts out to them.

As it was, they hadn't seen the disabled spaces and moved to one of them.

Perhaps I was wrong. I guess I'll never know.

YANBU.

Yes,really.

''Because sometimes, once you are in the wheelchair you are in no more need of being close to the supermarket than a Mum struggling with multiple children.'

How do you know this?''

Well, because I have seen it. Lots of times. And I did use the word 'sometimes'. I'm well aware that more often that's not the case.

But I do know that when we have taken fil out it's sometimes easier to park at the opposit end of the car park and just push him to the shop. Usually when we go to the pil's favourite garden centre and all the disabled spaces are taken anyway.

Or when my other friend used his motorised chair with the tiny bit of movement he has in one hand, it really makes no difference to him if he has to push the stick for 2 minutes or 10 seconds.

YANBU, disabled should always have priority.