How high is the threshold for blue badges?

[tobyj]

DM has had arthritis for many years, but in the last few months she's finding it harder and harder to walk far. She can still walk - but she's increasingly slow and unsteady, and it's now starting to affect her decisions (eg she didn't want to come to an event because the nearest place to park is maybe 300 yards away, and she'd struggle to walk there and back). I looked at the guidelines for blue badges, as I thought that might help, and the majority of the things on the list don't apply to her, but one of them just says something like 'if you find walking very difficult due to pain'. I've no idea what the definition of 'very difficult' would be, and whether there would be any point in her applying.

(NB she also has cognitive decline and anxiety, which doesn't help matters. She doesn't drive herself any more, so it would be a badge for my dad's car.)

Does anyone have experience?

I wouldn't think too deeply about the guidelines and simply just apply on your DM's behalf. If she is in pain then that is what you focus on. Bear in mind also that the cognitive decline, which might be dementia, is also taken into account now with blue badges as it's an invisible disability. We got my Dad's badge not on mobility, although at 91 he is slow and a bit wobbly, but because he is very deaf and doesn't hear vehicles, eg in a car park; also because he has heart failure so gets breathless and also he has Alzheimer's.

You might find that the doctor's verification for your Mum may mean she is not even called in for an in person assessment. My DF wasn't, it just went straight through. Send in evidence eg dr or consultant letters, medication lists etc.

My grandad still gets the bus on his own (can't drive) but got one recently. He walks slowly with a stick. I'd think she would qualify.

Just apply. Honestly the worst that can happen is they say no.

Fil has recently got one. He had a hip replacement 20 years ago which is now failing, just sent a copy of his medical notes. If she cannot walk more than 20m without needing to rest she should qualify.

Apply for one, sure she will get it. X

They are stricter now but worth applying, it’s not a difficult form ( compared to pip)
They will probably contact GP so I would try and get an up to date appt with them.
Point to note- the badge is for the person not the car so it could be used in any car as long as your mother is in it.

It's strict. My Foster son has a blue card. He can physically walk but can't go out on his own due to learning disabilities and he doesn't understand danger from vehicles. He scored 12 points on PIP so I applied for a blue badge for him so I can drop him in the car park at college for which you can only access with a blue card, but got turned down because he can walk 20 metres. I have to park about 1/3 of a mile away, pay to park, walk with him to college, then walk back. I just wanted to drive into the back of his college, drop him off, and drive home. I would literally be there 2 minutes walking him on to the pavement and watching him go in.

Different local authorities vary in how stringent they are- some requiring in person assessments. Check your local authority.

@caringcarer are you sure the college can’t make allowances?

When I was at uni I had an accessible parking permit that let me park in the universities disabled parking bays, it was part of reasonable adjustment for a chronic illness. I do not think I would have qualified for a blue badge. I would expect a college to do similar.

Thanks all. Yes, I do think DM has dementia, though she's only been diagnosed with MCI at this stage. It didn't occur to me that that might also be a factor in blue badges. Thanks for the encouragement - you're right, there's nothing to lose by applying. I'm instinctively someone who doesn't ask for things even if I could get them, so I need to start breaking old habits when it comes to DM!

I applied for a blue badge a couple of months ago and to my complete surprise I got one.

I have rheumatoid arthritis, I filled in the online form and uploaded copies of my prescription.

I had to describe my ability to walk, which I did honestly. Describing the pain, the pausing to straighten up and the time it took me.

I applied to the council, once accepted I paid the fee and uploaded a photograph.

@PinkPlantCase I asked the college at beginning of last year and they told me I must apply for a blue badge. I did apply but got turned down. I went back to college and asked again but was told they don't have enough spaces but if I have a blue badge they have to give me access. It's ok in the summer but if it gets slippery/snowy it's more difficult. If he didn't have learning disabilities I could drop him just before the barrier and he could walk down on his own but I can't risk he won't walk behind a reversing car or something similar. The barrier is not manned you have to wave a blue card in front of a sensor and it recognises it somehow and the barrier goes up.

@caringcarer my ds is a similar chap, talk to your MP.

Dementia can certainly be a ‘need’ factor. My Dm could still walk short distances slowly, but I could never e.g. drop her anywhere while I went to park a bit too far away for her to walk, even if it was only for 5 minutes - she’d forget within seconds that I’d soon be back and get into a complete panic.

Luckily when she was mostly at this stage there was a care home blue badge to borrow if needed. While she was still at home she didn’t have one, but then we could so rarely persuade her to leave the house at all anyway.

Definitely apply now, in my Borough there is a waiting list of a few months (hard to recruit staff and creating backlogs) so it's worth applying now.

My mom was very similar. She had arthritis, she could potter around the house, and walk short distances, but was finding it increasingly difficult to manage anything more. I helped her to apply for a blue badge, she got one with no quibbling.

I think she would qualify
The mental decline counts too
Apply anyway but get her a gp appointment as they will need proof of her recent conditions
You may need to pay for the report but it will be worth it.
On another note, she may be eligible for attendance allowance so do check that out too

My Mum had one, mobility was very restricted due to arthritis and heart disease (also, being as round as a pound, but tbh if it hurts to exercise and you've got diabetes, not always that easy not to be).
Deffo worth it, meant she could do so much more, concerts, museums etc, people were so helpful.

It’s speed and distance that count, not pain. I can’t walk very far but have no pain.

Ive got a blue badge.

Try again- he can’t walk 20m without supervision, that’s the crux.

My mum had one and the major factor in her application was that you needed the extra space round the car and proximity to the entrance as her dementia made her very unpredictable and before her badge you were searching for a space with no one next to you (but not too far as she was walking with crutches) as she'd slam the door into other cars or hit them with her crutches. Or stand in the road in front of people. Dad got one too as his heart failure made him so breathless he could walk only a tiny way before having to rest.
But mums physical restriction was the pain too, so I'd just put down how far she can walk, speed, pain levels, and MCI if it causes issues with safety.

@caringcarer there are two criteria you can apply under - one is for invisible disability which it sounds as if your foster son would be eligible for. Applying under the wrong criteria means you get rejected.

@tobyj it sounds like it would be really helpful for your mum so worth a try.

I talked to my fathers gp last year as his story was similar to you mother, also cognitive decline so no longer drives, but he has carers/family that drive him places, he has osteo arthritis in knees, and other body parts- one knee replaced over ten years ago, some days his mobility is good enough he's very slow but can hobble about for a fair distance, others very poor, that's why i thought he wouldn't be entitled to badge. The cognitive impairment means he won't use a stick , and when back sore his balance can be off, it also makes it hard to get into car if door not fully open, he got to stage of not doing any exercise which is bad for his knees and back, and if weather bad he is worried about leaves on ground or wet, he cancelled appointments like dentist,meeting friends, anyway gp said it's all about the mobility -he can't walk far enough on a bad day , that was what we should focus on not pain or other factors, and distance he could easily cover was so limited he was entitled to badge, we applied and got badge.
i'd apply worst case she doesn't get one.

I think it depends on the authority/person looking at the application. I applied online for my dad and he was given one straight away (Parkinson's).

Mum (arthritis) applied in person and was refused first time. Six months later they decided she was genuine and that they would give her one.

Did he get 12 points on the mobility component of PIP or just daily living?

If he has 12 points for mobility he would automatically qualify for a blue badge without an assessment.

I would definitely question the decision and appeal it if possible.