Blue Badge use in Southend, Essex

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ourcampersbeentrashed

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For blue badge holders, please be aware that Southend Council have changed their rules this year.

If your blue badge was not issued by Southend you can no longer park free in the various car parks - so make sure you check the relevant car park information boards.

Here is the link http://www.southend.gov.uk/info/200363/blue_badge/144/using_your_blue_badge

As these details do not appear in the "how to use your blue badge" books when visiting somewhere new it is always worth visiting the local council website to check :)
 
Out of season there is a lot of free parking in Southend.
 
Never been, never will....

I can park anywhere all over Europe for free and for however long and will alway find a disabled parking space because they are respected in Europe, I don’t mind paying but it needs to be uniform everywhere...
 
Have I misread this as the link provided seems fully inclusive regardless of where your badge was issued

"

Where can I park with my Blue Badge?​


You can now park in the following car parks for free and is no longer restricted to only Badge Holders using a Southend-on-Sea Borough Council issued Blue Badge. On street parking bays remain available and free of charge.


Seafront Parking​


  • Belton Gardens (North and South)
  • East Beach
  • Fairheads Green (Sea Life Adventure Aquarium)
  • Leigh Foundry
  • Leigh Marshes
  • Shoebury Common (North and South)
  • Shorefield Road

Southend Town Centre Parking​


  • Alexandra Street
  • Civic Centre (North) – only up to 2 hours
  • Clarence Road
  • Elmer Approach
  • Essex Street
  • Beecroft Upper
  • London Road North (Rear of Santander)
  • Seaway
  • Short Street
  • Warrior Square
  • Tylers Avenue
  • University Square - Barrier Controlled, fee charge as displayed on entry

Other Parking​


  • Ceylon Road
  • Elm Road
  • Hamlet Court Road
  • Ilfracombe Avenue
  • North Road
  • North Street
  • Thorpe Bay Broadway

On Street parking bays remain available and free of charge to all badge holders."
 
No blue badge exemption at all in Scarborough councils carparks.
On Street parking is unlimited time and free.
 
Parked up at s.o.s last week outside SeaWorld with blue badge free of charge.

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TheBig1 said:
surely that counts as discrimination by treating disabled people differently depending on where they live

charge all or charge none to be equal treatment
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Same in Cornwall unless car or van is modified for the blue badge holder
 
I cannot see why parking should be free because you have a Blue Badge..Being disabled does not always make you poor.BUSBY.
 
Conniedriving said:
Same in Cornwall unless car or van is modified for the blue badge holder
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I have just read this guidance the council say :-

What if I have a blue badge from another area?​


If you move to Cornwall from another area, you can continue to use your old badge until it expires. You can apply for a new badge from Cornwall Council when your old badge expires. You should tell the council that issued your old badge about your change of address.

They also say :-

All European countries recognise blue badges. This lets you make use of the same parking concessions as the country’s own citizens with disability.

Parking concessions for blue badge holders differ from country to country. It’s important to check the rules in the country you’re visiting.

Are they saying that UK nationals visiting Cornwall cannot use a blue badge but EU citizens can?

If I drive into Cornwall I have had to "move" to do it, I really doubt if this rule was enforceable. Furthermore my MoHo is modified by the installation of a mobility hoist which cannot be seen from outside when the doors are closed. Good luck to anyone who gives me a ticket for daring to park my MoHo in a disabled space.
 
busby said:
I cannot see why parking should be free because you have a Blue Badge..Being disabled does not always make you poor.BUSBY.
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You are right busby but most people with disabilities are, it is the same argument for most non means tested benefits, any disabled person can claim DLA/PIP even if they are millionaires
 
I think we are confusing benefits & Blue Badges, I also think that the info quoted from Cornwall is wrong.
Blue Badges & car parking charges - in council car parks it is up to the council - some charge, some do not, some allow you to use your Blue Badge (+any parking concessions) only in disabled bays, some allow you to benefit even if not in disabled bays. Private car parks do what they please.
People on benefit (+ Blue Badge) are likely to be poor. People not on benefit but with a blue badge probably can afford as much as others. This latter group probably want the wider bays, easier access, or parking near to an amenity. For the car park owner, especially the council, who are supposed to have some social responsibility, they cant distinguish between a blue badge holder on benefit and one who is not.
The bit on the Cornwall website about EU countries I think has been effected by Brexit. Up until then the physical Blue Badge had UK inside the european stars. It was valid in all countries that had adopted the European Communities Model blue badges, and could be used in the same way as the nationals in that country used the blue badge. Exactly the same applied to eg a German Blue Badge holder in the Netherlands.
Since Brexit, the form of our Blue Badge has changed to omit the european stars. Some EU countries accept our Blue Badges in the way they have always done, some no longer recognise them.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...e-eu/using-a-blue-badge-in-the-european-union explains the situation. Italy France Portugal were not recognising our badges, but Denmark, Netherlands & Germany were, for example.
If you are visiting an area of the UK where you are not resident, you use your Blue Badge as do the residents. The vast majority of car parks have explanatory signs. All Blue Badge holders are also supplied with a booklet which explains what you can & cant do.
If you move to a new area, you retain your badge until renewal time, then renew with your new council. There is a common set of rules about the issue of badges, but then there are local variations.
I have been a Blue Badge holder for many years because of a mobility disability (please remember than you dont have to have a mobility disability to qualify),; I have used it in the van as well as in the car (they are person specific, not vehicle specific); I first used, and renewed my badge several times in Gtr Manchester, and have renewed twice in Lincolnshire - last time just a few weeks ago. Oh, and the only benefit I receive, is my state pension.

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hja said:
I think we are confusing benefits & Blue Badges, I also think that the info quoted from Cornwall is wrong.
Blue Badges & car parking charges - in council car parks it is up to the council - some charge, some do not, some allow you to use your Blue Badge (+any parking concessions) only in disabled bays, some allow you to benefit even if not in disabled bays. Private car parks do what they please.
People on benefit (+ Blue Badge) are likely to be poor. People not on benefit but with a blue badge probably can afford as much as others. This latter group probably want the wider bays, easier access, or parking near to an amenity. For the car park owner, especially the council, who are supposed to have some social responsibility, they cant distinguish between a blue badge holder on benefit and one who is not.
The bit on the Cornwall website about EU countries I think has been effected by Brexit. Up until then the physical Blue Badge had UK inside the european stars. It was valid in all countries that had adopted the European Communities Model blue badges, and could be used in the same way as the nationals in that country used the blue badge. Exactly the same applied to eg a German Blue Badge holder in the Netherlands.
Since Brexit, the form of our Blue Badge has changed to omit the european stars. Some EU countries accept our Blue Badges in the way they have always done, some no longer recognise them.
https://www.gov.uk/government/publi...e-eu/using-a-blue-badge-in-the-european-union explains the situation. Italy France Portugal were not recognising our badges, but Denmark, Netherlands & Germany were, for example.
If you are visiting an area of the UK where you are not resident, you use your Blue Badge as do the residents. The vast majority of car parks have explanatory signs. All Blue Badge holders are also supplied with a booklet which explains what you can & cant do.
If you move to a new area, you retain your badge until renewal time, then renew with your new council. There is a common set of rules about the issue of badges, but then there are local variations.
I have been a Blue Badge holder for many years because of a mobility disability (please remember than you dont have to have a mobility disability to qualify),; I have used it in the van as well as in the car (they are person specific, not vehicle specific); I first used, and renewed my badge several times in Gtr Manchester, and have renewed twice in Lincolnshire - last time just a few weeks ago. Oh, and the only benefit I receive, is my state pension.
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I have no argument with anything you have said, I am not confusing benefits with blue badges just pointing out that

1 The argument that people with means should pay for disabled parking may be valid but there is no way to establish any cut off point or to determine who is "deserving"
2 This thread started as a result of Southend attempting to limit use of blue badges to locals (they have since changed this tack)
3 A Cornwall resident said that Cornwall was also attempting to limit the blue badge use to residents of Cornwall

In terms of the EU if you read the guidance from .gov it is totally confusing e.g they show a table that says Spain does not accept the UK blue badge but provide a link that says Spain does. In all EU countries it is the picture of the wheelchair symbol that is the determinate not the stars. Americans for example do not have the EU stars but do use the wheelchair symbol and non EU or non EEA citizens are accepted in some countries e.g. Germany
 
busby said:
I cannot see why parking should be free because you have a Blue Badge..Being disabled does not always make you poor.BUSBY.
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My wife was disabled at the age of 42 due to back injuries working for the NHS as a care assistant . We may not be poor , but we certainly are not rich so any help she gets is a thumbs up for me. Bye the way ,I gave up work at 55 to be her fulltime carer.
kip said:
Parked up at s.o.s last week outside SeaWorld with blue badge free of charge.
Click to expand...
 
kip said:
My wife was disabled at the age of 42 due to back injuries working for the NHS as a care assistant . We may not be poor , but we certainly are not rich so any help she gets is a thumbs up for me. Bye the way ,I gave up work at 55 to be her fulltime carer.
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Sorry to hear about your wife, I had to give up work to look after my daughter I was 53, now 67 it isn't easy, do you get Carers Allowance, I did but it stops at pensionable age as it has not been reviewed since the 1940's. All the best.
 
Hi, yes she gets care allowance. Thanks for your interest. 👍

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kip said:
My wife was disabled at the age of 42 due to back injuries working for the NHS as a care assistant . We may not be poor , but we certainly are not rich so any help she gets is a thumbs up for me. Bye the way ,I gave up work at 55 to be her fulltime carer.
Click to expand...
Same here ,,I was struck down with R.A. overnight at 48
,,Could not walk 10 yds,could not dress my self,could not even cut my dinner up, Struggled for many years,,could hardly drive,which was a bugger as I was a HGV owner driver..Found a medication that suited and started exercising.. Most days now I am quite mobile.Best thing I did was retire in 2000 and spend plenty of time in Spanish sunshine.If you are struggling with disability and on benefits fair enough free parking but many with a blue badge are comfortably well off.BUSBY.
 
busby said:
on benefits fair enough free parking but many with a blue badge are comfortably well off.BUSBY.
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Yes, I know a couple who simply work the system…….
 
DuxDeluxe said:
Yes, I know a couple who simply work the system…….
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Many with a Blue Badge don't receive benefit,,the Badge is issue by the local council with the input from your GP. BUSBY.
 
My GP has never been contacted re my blue badge
 

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