Information on Blue Badge parking permits

Who can get a Blue Badge

People who automatically get a Blue Badge

You automatically qualify for a Blue Badge if you are aged 3 or over and at least one of the following applies:

• you receive the higher rate of the mobility component of the Disability Living Allowance (DLA) 
• you receive a Personal Independence Payment (PIP) because you can't walk more than 50 metres (a score of 8 points or more under the 'moving around' activity of the mobility component)
• you are registered blind (severely sight impaired)
• you receive a War Pensioners' Mobility Supplement
• you have received a lump sum benefit within tariff levels 1 to 8 of the Armed Forces and Reserve Forces (Compensation) Scheme and have been certified as having a permanent and substantial disability that causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking
• you receive the mobility component of PIP and have obtained 10 points specifically for descriptor E under the 'planning and following journeys' activity, on the grounds that you are unable to undertake any journey because it would cause you overwhelming psychological distress

If you have any score other than 10 points under descriptor E, in the 'planning and following journeys' activity of PIP you may still be eligible for a Blue Badge, but you do not automatically qualify. This includes if you have a higher score of 12. You will have to provide evidence to demonstrate your eligibility which will be assessed as part of your application.

People who may get a Blue Badge

You may be eligible for a badge if one or more of the following applies:

• you cannot walk at all
• you cannot walk without help from someone else or using mobility aids
• you find walking very difficult due to pain, breathlessness or the time it takes
• walking is dangerous to your health and safety
• you have a terminal illness, which means you cannot walk or find walking very difficult and have a DS1500 form
• you have a severe disability in both arms and drive regularly, but cannot operate pay-and-display parking machines
• you have a child under the age of 3 with a medical condition that means the child always needs to be accompanied by bulky medical equipment
• you have a child under the age of 3 with a medical condition that means the child must always be kept near a vehicle in case they need emergency medical treatment
• you are constantly a significant risk to yourself or others near vehicles, in traffic or car parks
• you struggle severely to plan or follow a journey
• you find it difficult or impossible to control your actions and lack awareness of the impact you could have on others
• you regularly have intense and overwhelming responses to situations causing temporary loss of behavioural control

• you frequently become extremely anxious or fearful of public or open spaces

How to apply

Before making an application, you should review the eligibility criteria above to make sure you would be entitled to a Blue Badge.

Apply online for a Blue Badge

If you are unable to apply online and require an assisted service, contact us on 01642 524441. 

To complete your application, you are required to provide:

• proof of identity
• proof of address
• a recent head and shoulders digital photo
• your national insurance number (if you have one)

To prove your identity, you must provide a copy of one of the following:

• birth or adoption certificate
• passport
• driving licence
• marriage or civil partnership certificate
• divorce or dissolution certificate

To prove your address, you must provide documents dated within the last 12 months.

You can provide a copy of either:

• a recent council tax bill
• a recent letter from a government department such as Department for Work and Pensions (DWP)
• a recent prescription or medical letter
• a recent letter from a school (if you are under 16)

Blue Badges cost £10.00 and are valid for 3 years or until the date a benefit is awarded.

Providing proof of benefits

Personal Independence Payment (PIP)

You will need to know the scores from the mobility assessment and the award end date (if applicable). You will also be asked to provide proof of the PIP award. This should be the 3 pages from the letter from DWP, which clearly shows:

• entitlement to PIP (front page)
• assessment scores (second to last page)
• mobility scores (last page)

Disability Living Allowance (DLA)

You will need to know which rate of the mobility component you receive and the award end date (if applicable). You will also be asked to provide proof of the DLA award. This should be the most recent letter from DWP, which clearly shows:

• mobility rating
• certificate of entitlement to DLA
• the date of the letter

Armed Forces Compensation Scheme

You will be asked to provide proof of the benefit. This should be the most recent letter from the Ministry of Defence, which clearly shows that you:

• were injured in service on or after 6 April 2005
• have been awarded a benefit by the Armed Forces Compensation Scheme, with a lump sum payment within Tariffs 1 to 8
• are certified as having a permanent, substantial disability which causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking

War Pensioners' Mobility Scheme

You will be asked to provide proof of the benefit. This should be the most recent letter from the Ministry of Defence, which clearly shows that the applicant:

• was injured in service before 6 April 2005
• is in receipt of a War Pensioners' Mobility Supplement

Blue Badges for Organisations

An organisation may be eligible for a badge (or multiple badges), if they both:

• care for or assist people who need a Blue Badge
• transport people who need a Blue Badge

An organisational badge must only be displayed when someone who would be eligible for a Blue Badge in their own right is being transported.

Common examples of organisations that may be eligible include residential care homes, hospices or local council social services departments. It is unlikely that taxi or private hire operators and community transport operators would be eligible for an organisational Blue Badge as they are not usually concerned with the care of disabled people.

Apply for or renew a Blue Badge

If you are unable to apply online and require an assisted service, contact us on 01642 524441. 

If your application is refused

If your application has been refused, you can write to us to appeal the decision within 28 days of the date you were notified of the outcome.

Your written request must include:

• the reason why you feel the decision is incorrect
• if appropriate, any new supporting information from a health care professional not previously considered detailing your conditions and how this impact your mobility

Please email or post your reasons in writing to the Car Parking Team at carparking@stockton.gov.uk or to Kingsway House, Billingham, Stockton-on-Tees, TS23 2NX.

Your appeal will be considered by Stockton-on-Tees Borough Council.

We may ask you to attend a mobility assessment or a further mobility assessment where one has already been carried out. The re-assessment will be carried out by a different assessor that completed your original assessment.

If you applied under non-visible (hidden) disabilities, you will need to provide new supporting evidence that you wish to be considered. This must be provided by a healthcare professional involved in your care or ongoing treatment, showing that you regularly experience difficulties whilst walking and that they are unmitigated or unmanaged.

If your appeal is unsuccessful, you cannot re-apply for 6 months unless there is a significant change in your mobility.

Renewing a Blue Badge

You can renew your Blue Badge 3 months before your current badge expires.

Apply online to renew a Blue Badge

If you are unable to apply online and require an assisted service, contact us on 01642 524441. 

You will no longer be sent a reminder when your badge is due to expire.

Lost or stolen Blue Badges

Replacement badges are £10. If your badge is stolen, provide a crime number and it will be replaced free of charge.

To apply for a replacement Blue Badge please call Customer Services on 01642 524441 or complete our Contact us about blue badges form and we will call you back.

Car Parking 

Parking in Stockton town centre

Charges apply for Blue Badge holders in Stockton town centre car parks where parking charges are applicable. 

Yarm short stay

Yarm long stay

Permitted overstays

There will be a 'permitted overstay' concession for those displaying a valid Blue Badge whether in a disabled bay or a general bay. This means that you can stay in any of our short stay car parks for up to an hour after the time on your ticket if your valid Blue Badge is correctly displayed.

False use of Blue Badges

We are proactively tackling false use of Blue Badges.  

Civil Enforcement Officers have the power under the Disabled Persons Act 2013 to inspect and seize any badge that:

• is a fake
• has already been cancelled or reported lost or stolen
• should have been returned to the issuing authority because it has expired, the holder has died or is no longer disabled, the badge has become faded or damaged or has been recalled by the issuing authority
• was being misused (including by someone other than the holder when the genuine holder is not involved in the journey)