[Cherie]

Originally Posted by Toy Soldier

It has absolutely nothing to do with affordability, money, for once, Livia. Blue Badges don't cost anything more than a piece of paper and some printer ink. They just give you the right to use pre-existing spaces. It's about "invisible" disabilities being taken as seriously as the obvious ones, and that is all. I very much hope it's a scheme that's adopted UK wide because I actually think it affects even more people than the physical disability issue. Getting someone with a physical disability across a busy car park or street is hard. Getting someone like my daughter across one is dangerous, to her, to us, to other pedestrians and to road users. For now she's still small enough to be carried short distances but that won't be forever.

I would agree that blue badges should be issued to children with learning difficulties who have no physical issues, especially when they get older and more difficult to manage. I work with teenagers with autism and the strength they can exhibit if they are not in a situation they are comfortable with can put them and their parents/carers in dangerous situations.