The government has made changes to the Blue Badge scheme in order to help prevent fraud and abuse of the scheme, which, in turn, will make it easier for genuine Blue Badge holders to access disabled parking, both in Croydon and across the UK.
From January 1st 2012, a new Badge design will be introduced, which will make it harder to forge or alter. However, a knock-on effect of this change is that the new design is more expensive to produce. Croydon Council and councils across the UK will have to either meet these costs by reducing other services currently provided, or increase the price of the Blue Badge.
Presently, Croydon Council can charge a maximum of £2 for a Blue Badge; from January 1st 2012, the government has increased this limit to £10, which will help the Council meet the increased cost of the new design.
Please note that if you are already a holder of a Blue Badge, you can continue using it until its expiry date. You will then be issued with the new style, as long as you still qualify for the scheme.
So what do you think?
Before any decision is made in regards to increasing the fee charged for the issue of a Blue Badge, Croydon Council wants to hear your thoughts.
Do you think that an increase is fair? How much would you be willing to pay? Would the increase cause you and your family financial difficulty?
These are just a few of the questions the survey asks. Please ensure that you respond before 31st December 2011 as all data will be considered throughout January 2012.
Have your say on the changes that affect you – click here to take part in the survey.
