Summary: The Ombudsman will not investigate Mrs X’s complaint that the Council refused her application for a blue badge for her child. It is unlikely we would find fault.

The complaint

1. The complainant, whom I shall call Mrs X, says the Council wrongly refused an application for a blue badge for her child, Y.

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The Ombudsman’s role and powers

2. We cannot investigate complaints about what happens in schools. (Local Government Act 1974, Schedule 5, paragraph 5(b), as amended)
3. We investigate complaints about ‘maladministration’ and ‘service failure’. In this statement, I have used the word 'fault' to refer to these. We must also consider whether any fault has had an adverse impact on the person making the complaint. I refer to this as ‘injustice’. We provide a free service, but must use public money carefully. We may decide not to start or continue with an investigation if we believe it is unlikely we would find fault (Local Government Act 1974, section 24A(6), as amended)

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How I considered this complaint

4. I considered the information Mrs X provided with her complaint and the Council’s replies which it provided. Mrs X had the opportunity to comment on a draft version of this decision.

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What I found

5. Mrs X has a child, Y, who she says has added needs. She says she struggles to get Y to school because she is not allowed to park in the school car par. She says sometimes Y refuses to walk very far. Mrs X says Y’s school told her she cannot park in the school car park unless she has blue badge. Mrs X says she applied to the Council for one, but it refused to grant the badge.
6. The Council says it cannot grant the badge as it says Mrs X has not completed the application form. It says she needs to give evidence from the professional involved in Y’s ongoing care.

Analysis

7. The Department for Transport’s (DfT) Blue Badge Scheme is to help disabled people with severe mobility problems access goods and services by allowing them or a carer to park near their destination. The scheme provides parking concessions for Blue Badge holders. Local authorities are responsible for the day to day administration and enforcement of the scheme. This includes assessing whether people are eligible for the badge.
8. The DfT issues Guidance to councils for providing Blue Badges to disabled people with severe mobility problems. The guidance says that councils must ensure they only issue badges to residents who satisfy one or more of the criteria set out in legislation. There are two types of eligibility criteria. One is where a person is eligible without further assessment. The other is where the person is eligible subject to further assessment.
9. Those people who are eligible subject to further assessment have to fulfil one of two criteria to qualify for a badge. The person must:
• Drive a vehicle regularly, have a severe disability in both arms and cannot operate, or have considerable difficulty in operating, all or some types of parking meter; or
• Have a permanent and substantial disability that causes inability to walk or very considerable difficulty in walking.
10. Y is not eligible for a badge without further assessment. The Council’s request for information is within the government guidance on how to assess applicants such as Y’s. If the application has not been submitted properly, then we are unlikely to find fault in the Council telling Mrs X she cannot ask for an appeal of its decision to refuse her application.
11. We cannot investigate why the school decided not to allow Mrs X to park in its car park.

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Final decision

12. The Ombudsman should not and cannot investigate this complaint. This is because it is unlikely we would find fault in the Council’s decision to refuse Mrs X’s blue badge application. And we cannot investigate the school’s decision to refuse Mrs X’s access to the car park.

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Investigator's decision on behalf of the Ombudsman