Blue Badge Car Parking Campaign

Members of Fermanagh and Omagh District Council’s Access and Inclusion Advisory Group have launched a new campaign to raise awareness of the importance of Blue Badge Parking Spaces and how misuse affects people entitled to use them.

The Access & Inclusion Advisory Group consists of Elected Members and local volunteers who have a disability. The volunteers provide advice and guidance to the Elected Members and Officers on areas relating to access and disability.

The ‘Be Kind, Park with Disability in Mind’ campaign has already carried out a survey to help identify the extent of the problem within the district. Out of over 270 responses, 94% of people had experienced someone parked in a Blue Badge Car Space with no badge displayed and 86% said that this had prevented them from finding one to park in.

The misuse has a knock-on effect and the survey details how it prevents people from accessing shops, cafes and other local services. Over 60% of the survey participants had not been able to access a shop or café because someone who was not entitled to park in a blue badge space was in it.

Additionally, the misuse made 52% of people feel disrespected, 57% upset, 63% angry and 52% more tired from having to park further away from the venue.

To help combat this misuse the Group are planning to create a range of engaging social media posts and videos, as well as press releases to help residents and visitors be more aware that Blue Badges Spaces are a life-line to many.

The feedback received through the survey highlighted the situations that people face due to the abuse. This includes children with autism being put in danger from traffic in car parks, people not being able to meet friends to socialise and being verbally abused because they ‘didn’t look disabled’. One individual expressed that they actually get a sense of excitement when they get a space as most times they fail to find one.

For more information please email disability@fermanaghomagh.com