Derby blue badge backlog hits thousands of disabled users

Trefor Jones, 71, has been waiting nearly five months for his blue badge to be renewed

A man has described his frustration at being forced to wait months to have his blue badge renewed.

Trefor Jones, of Littleover, Derby, is among the 2,500 disabled people waiting for a new badge with the council saying waits can reach up to 20 weeks.

The discs allow disabled people to use dedicated parking places close to shops and leisure facilities.

But Derby City Council said there was only a limited amount of applications that could be processed.

'Absolutely disgraceful'

Mr Jones, 71, said: "It's absolutely disgraceful and there must be hundreds of disabled drivers in the same position.

"It's effectively as if the council has withdrawn our disabled parking discs.

"I've got rights as a disabled person, and I would have thought a disabled driver's disc to help me get out and about would be essential."

The council has told blue badge holders on the waiting list they can still use their expired permits within city limits until the situation is resolved.

A council spokeswoman said officers were now in touch with Mr Jones

However Mr Jones argues this does not help individuals looking to leave Derby to go on holiday elsewhere.

The blue badge holder, who recently visited Brighton, added: "I went to see the Royal Pavilion - I've been wanting to see it for years - and I managed to get a disabled space right by the Pavilion.

"But of course, my disabled driver's disc was out of date and I picked up a £70 fine.

"But without that disabled driver's disc and parking where I did, I'm not sure I could have gone there because I'm not sure where I would have been able to park.

"It would have certainly been too far to walk, so I've got Derby City Council to thank for that."

Budget pressures

A Derby City Council spokeswoman said officers were now in touch with Mr Jones and were "taking steps to process his application".

On the wider issue, she added: "We recognise the impact these processing delays can have on both existing badge holders and new applicants and apologise for this situation, which is due to a number of factors.

"Budget pressures are being felt across the council, with every area working hard to reduce costs while still delivering quality services for the people of Derby.

"We currently receive an average of 600 applications a month. With our current resource level, with no leave or sickness, we can process 400 per month.

"The widening of the criteria to include people with 'hidden disabilities', although not huge in number, means these applications take longer to process as they are more complex cases."