Blue Badge scheme

The national Blue Badge Scheme helps people with severe walking difficulties that travel as drivers or passengers to park close to their destinations.

The scheme also applies to people that are registered blind and people with severe upper limb disabilities who regularly drive a vehicle but cannot turn a steering wheel by hand.

The badge is issued to the person not the vehicle so it can be used for whichever car the disabled person is travelling in. It only applies to on-street parking.

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Who is eligible for a badge

There are two types of eligibility for a blue badge:

Eligibility without further assessment

You will be entitled to a badge if you are able to provide evidence that shows that you:

• receive the Higher Rate Mobility Component of the Disability Living Allowance, unless the award is for a period of less than 12 months
• are registered severely sight impaired (blind). People who are partially sighted are not automatically entitled
• receive a War Pensioners' Mobility Supplement
• are in receipt of tariffs 1-8 under the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces (Compensation Scheme) Order 2011 and you have been assessed by the SPVA as having a permanent and substantial disability.

Eligibility subject to further assessment

You may be eligible for a badge if:

• you drive a vehicle regularly, have a severe disability in both arms and are unable to operate, or have considerable difficulty in operating, parking meters
• you are unable to walk or have very considerable difficulty in walking because of a permanent and substantial disability.

Considerations such as difficulty in carrying parcels and shopping are not taken into consideration and temporary conditions are still ineligible. There is no upper age limit to eligibility.

Children under three with specific medical conditions are eligible for a Blue Badge. If issued, the badge will expire on the day after the child's third birthday.

Further guidance is available on the Department for Transport’s website.Back to top

How to apply or renew

Download a checklist (.pdf format, 82Kb) of supporting information you'll need when making an application.

Alternatively, you can download and print off a copy of the following forms, and send the application form and supporting documentation to us at the Blue Badge Administration Team:

• application form (.pdf format, 99Kb)
• application form guidance notes (pdf format, 42Kb)

Existing badge holders will continue to receive a reminder and a postal application 6-8 weeks prior to their current badge expiring.

Supporting documentation

You will need to provide the following when you send us your application:

• Proof of your address – Please provide one of the following:
  • A utility bill dated within the last 3 months
  • A bank/credit card statement dated within the last 3 months or
  • A Council Tax bill dated within the last 12 month
  • If the applicant is under the age of 16 please give consent on the application form for us to check school records for proof of address.
• Proof of identity - Please provide a photocopy of one of the following:
  • Birth or adoption certificate
  • Marriage or divorce certificate
  • Passport
  • Civil partnership or dissolution certificate
  • Valid driving licence.

• One recent passport style photograph of the applicant.
  • The applicant (or parent/guardian if under 16) must sign the back of the photograph
  • You may send a photo from self-service booths or a digital photo.
• Badge fee - a cheque or postal order made payable to Oxfordshire County Council for £10.
• Any other relevant documentation that the application form has indicated that you should send. Depending on your personal situation, this could include:
  • People who are severely sight impaired - a copy of your ophthalmologists report / CVI / BD8 form (if you have not given us consent to check the blind register).
  • People who received the higher rate of the Mobility component of Disability Living Allowance - an original letter of entitlement for the Higher Rate of the Mobility Component of Disability Living Allowance issued within the last 12 months. If you have been awarded the benefit ‘for life’ please provide your original annual uprating letter.
  • People who receive the War Pensioner’s Mobility Supplement - an original letter of entitlement.
  • People who receive an award under the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces (Compensation) Scheme - an original award letter confirming receipt of tariffs 1-8 under the Scheme. This should also certify that you have a permanent and substantial disability which causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking.
  • Drivers with a disability in both arms - a copy of your insurance details if you drive a specially adapted vehicle.
  • Children under the age of three - a letter from a healthcare professional that has been involved in the child’s treatment. The letter should give details of the medical condition and the type of medical equipment needed.

It takes an average of two to eight weeks to process an application.Back to top

Blue badges for organisations

An organisational badge may be issued to organisations that care for and transport disabled people who would themselves meet the eligibility criteria for a blue badge should they apply individually.

However, where relatively few people meet the eligibility criteria for a badge in the organisation, it would be preferable for the disabled people themselves to apply for badges, rather than have one issued to an organisation.

Organisational badges will therefore only be issued to an organisation which both:

• cares for and transports disabled people who would meet one or more of the eligibility criteria for an individual Blue Badge; and
• has a clear need for an organisational badge rather than using the personal Blue Badges of people it is transporting.

In all circumstances, badges will be supplied to organisations or departments (for example, a Social Services Department) rather than to individual staff members.

All employees of the organisation who will be using the badge should be reminded that they must only use the badge for the purposes of transporting disabled people in their care who meet one or more of the eligibility criteria for a badge. If they use the badge to take advantage of the concessions when there are no passengers in the vehicle who are eligible for a badge they will face a fine of up to £1000.

To apply for an Organisation Blue Badge download and print off a copy of the following form and send the completed form with supporting evidence to us at the Blue Badge Administration Team.

• Application form for organisations (.pdf format, 56Kb)

It takes an average of two to eight weeks to process an application.

If you have lost your badge

Please do not complete the application form.

In order for us to issue a duplicate badge, please write to us, including the following details:

• your name
• address
• date of birth
• badge number
• a cheque or postal order for £10 payable to Oxfordshire County Council (please do not send cash)
• one passport size photograph.

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If your badge has been stolen

Please do not complete the application form.

Please contact the non-emergency police number on 101 quoting, if possible, your badge serial number to obtain a Crime Reference Number. Once you have your Crime Reference Number, please write to us, including the following details:

• your name
• address
• date of birth
• badge number
• Crime Reference Number
• one passport size photograph.

Once we have all of the above information we will be able to issue a duplicate badge.Back to top

If your badge is faded or damaged

Please do not complete this application form.

Badges issued after 1 January 2012 should not fade, however if your existing old style badge has faded or has become damaged, please return the badge to us with a covering letter and a new badge will be issued. No photograph or payment is required. Badges must be returned to us in order for this to be done.Back to top

How long a badge lasts for

Most badges will last for three years. If you receive the Disability Living Allowance for Mobility, your badge will be issued for the period you receive this. For example, if your DLA entitlement is under three years, your badge will expire when you DLA expires.

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Where you can use your badge

You can use your badge within any UK county and in EU countries. There are no current arrangements for you to use your badge outside the European Union, in countries such as the USA, Australia or Canada.

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Using your badge in a controlled parking zone

Blue Badge holders may park in all parking bays (residents, limited time, pay and display etc, except for car club bays) in Oxford's Controlled Parking Zones, and in residents' parking schemes in Abingdon, Bicester, and Henley-on-Thames. Parking in these bays is exempt from payment or time limits.

Disabled person's parking places (DPPP) can be used by any Blue Badge holder, even though it is an individual need that may lead to the provision of a parking space.

Any vehicle using a DPPP must display a current Blue Badge.

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How to display a Blue Badge

You should display the Blue Badge where it can be clearly read through the windscreen of your vehicle. The front of the badge should face upwards, showing the wheelchair symbol.

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What to do with a badge if the badge holder has died.

Please return the badge to us explaining why it is being returned and we can update our records and securely destroy the badge for you.

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I have recovered from my condition and I no longer need the badge.

If the badge is no longer required, please return the badge to us explaining why it is being returned and we can update our records and securely destroy the badge for you.

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Using a Blue Badge issued by another EU Country

You can use your badge within any other EU country. Please contact us to provide us with details of your UK address, badge number, expiry date and who issued it. Your details will then be added to our database and passed onto the Civil Enforcement Team. If possible, please send a copy of your badge.

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National and local changes

From January 2012 the Department for Transport made changes to the Blue Badge Scheme:

• You can check your eligibility and apply online on the DirectGov website.
• All Local Authorities have had to join the new national database of blue badge holders, which will assist in dealing with fraud.
• Local Authorities are no longer be permitted to produce Blue Badges themselves: badges will be produced through a new national contract and will be posted to your home address as usual. You still apply for blue badges locally through Oxfordshire County Council.
• The design of the badge has changed to make them better quality. They are now harder to copy, forge or tamper with.
• The maximum fee a local authority can charge for a Blue Badge has increased from £2 to £10. We now charge £10 for all Blue Badges.

Further information

For more information about the Blue Badge scheme and to apply online, please visit the Directgov website.