Disabled parking

Guidance notes for disabled bay application

A disabled parking bay is a space marked on the public highway indicating that it is for the use of Blue Badge holders only.

They are clearly marked as individual bays with "disabled" painted on the road alongside the bay.

Application process

  • We will only consider applications where the road is under the jurisdiction (adopted highways) of the council’s highways department for the purposes of traffic management.
  • A disabled persons parking bay will only be approved at locations where road safety will not be adversely affected by their provision.
  • The details of your application will be checked to confirm eligibility. In the event of the applicant being a disabled passenger, it is normally reasonable to expect that an able driver should "double park" if necessary to embark or set down his/her disabled passenger and then remove the vehicle afterwards to an appropriate parking space. Although, this may entail short-term obstruction of the highway - as it is not either "unnecessary" or "wilful" - it is unlikely to be considered to constitute an offence.
  • In cases where eligibility cannot be determined by the information you have provided, you may be asked to attend a face-to-face assessment with an occupational therapist.

Process for installation of a disabled bay

  • You will receive the acknowledgement of your application within five working days
  • We will write to you with a decision within six weeks
  • If your application is successful, the process of installing a disabled persons parking bay can take up to 10 weeks.

Process for renewals of disabled bays

All disabled bays are to be reviewed every three years. A letter and application form will be sent to the disabled bay holder requesting for confirmation on whether the bay is still required.

Once the application is received it will be reassessed and you will be notified of the decision in writing.

Process for removing a disabled bay

Where disabled persons parking bays are considered to be no longer necessary due to a change in circumstances or reported to be unused, they will be removed.

If you wish to apply for the removal of a disabled bay you must do so in writing. 

Further information

For more information on Blue Badges, please visit the Department for Transport's breakdown of Blue Badge rights and responsibilities.