Advice on applying for a blue badge

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Can anyone help on this please? Finally persuaded elderly mother to apply for a blue badge as elderly father has Alzheimer’s and his balance and coordination is shot to pieces. Thought this would help them get out and about a bit more - also trying to get them to consider a wheelchair for him.

Anyway I’ve looked online and the process seems straightforward if detailed and I wondered if anyone has any tips please on the right thing to say - do we need to “make a case”? I’m sure his GP will support and we have documents about his Alzheimer’s. I just don’t want to get tripped up by standard questions that don’t have a standard answer like where you can walk to. (They live rurally so don’t walk anywhere without driving there first.)

Thank you so much for any help.

The process does vary by local authority- perhaps contact local age uk for specific advice?

Thanks. I’ve looked at the online form for their Local Authority. It asks for GP details - does anyone know if we need to alert the GP to the application before we put it in?

Call your local CAB, they do this day in, day out and are brilliant at it

My dad applied online for his and I renewed it last year for him. The questions were fairly straightforward including asking if his situation was likely to improve.

I was rather blunt with the answers as it asked how long it would take for him to walk 25m when i'd just answered that he couldn't walk and was using a wheelchair.

My mum applied for her own in person as she has arthritis in her back but the council want proof from a hospital consultant and she hasn't been referred yet. They won't accept a letter from her doctor.

Like the PP suggested it's probably best to ask your local CAB to help with the application.

I have done my Mum’s.

1. Keep all the info: you have to renew it and looking u the list of meds and hospital appts / procedures, names of Dr s and consultants all over again is tiresome!

1. Will you do the application or your Mum? My Mum and Dad were always ridiculously optimistic in what they said they could do on various forms, e.g Are you able to shop for yourself? And they would say yes. Right, only if one of your Ds’s drives you there, parks right by the door, gets the trolley unlocked (arthritic fingers), remembers the list, remembers your PIN, packs the bags and carried them to the car....

Point out any issues which combine to restrict mobility; E. G lack of co ordination makes using a stick hard. About walking, it doesn’t just mean out and about, I said Mum could walk to her bins unaided but no further.

Just complete it from the POV of your parents having their most challenging day and advocating for their needs.

I seem to remember it being quite objective and just a matter of answering questions. There may have been a freestyle paragraph but if you just reinforce his inability to walk a certain distance, it will do.
Another thing to consider which a lot of people aren't aware of, is that with some conditions and circumstances people could be eligible for a 25% reduction in council tax, so look into that too.
All the best

Thanks so much everyone, that’s so helpful. I will definitely do the application for them as my mum would probably say “ooh he’s fine really” in response to all the questions!

In addition to the walking etc put if he needs to open the car door fully to get out. So if the car is parked in a normal space with a car parked next to it and he can’t open the door fully what does he do? Blue badge spaces allow for that.

And steps/stairs how does he get on with those. Does he have to use a lift if there is one? What does he do if he can’t manage steps and there’s no lift? Does that stop him from being able to go? That’s one of the things they look at when they go for an assessment.

Thank you for all the advice and extra tips. Blue badge arrived yesterday - it will make a massive difference to their quality of life.