Lincoln Council is forcing disabled people out of the city

Local man Matt Smith is urging for other disabled people in Lincoln to come forward following the Council's decision to introduce parking charges for blue badge holders in off street car parks in the city centre.

Matt, 28, who has cerebral palsy, believes that Lincoln Council is forcing disabled people to stay away from the city centre and making money at the cost of restricting disabled people's freedom.

Disabled people in Lincoln, who have the greatest barriers to mobility, are those who will be restricted in visiting the city.

Matt Smith is currently seeking legal advice from Martin Harvey, partner at Wake Smith & Tofields with help from CALL Advocacy in Lincolnshire, an organisation which provides a voice to vulnerable people.

Martin Harvey said: "Matt has done a great service to blue badge holders in Lincolnshire - by highlighting this as an issue we are not only able to query the Council's actions in respect to the Disability Discrimination Act 2005, we are also able to question the current policy under Judicial Review on the basis that it was unlawful in the first place."

Matt Smith said: "Lincolnshire is a very rural county and I feel that these new charges could have a harmful impact on disabled people accessing facilities which are only in Lincoln.

"Blue Badge holders often take longer to access facilities in the city and are being punished as a result by having to pay more to park as there are no discounted tariffs. What may take an able bodied person one hour to do may take a disabled person two or three hours to do, thus incurring higher cost. Lincoln Council needs to seriously consider the effects that this decision will have for disabled people accessing services and the shops and businesses who may suffer as a result."

The case is currently being pursued by Wake Smith & Tofields and Martin Harvey is keen to raise awareness on the issue with other disabled people in the area:

"Matt, like many disabled people, relies on a wheelchair to get around. The Council have neglected to consider that people in wheelchairs cannot physically reach the pay machines to even pay the charges, there is no Braille for blind people and the meters are very difficult to operate for anyone with special needs.

"The Council deny that there is any public interest in Matt's case because nobody else has complained. There are 18,000 blue badge holders in Lincolnshire and we need to hear from as many as possible who have been affected by these new charges.

"This decision is set only to make money with little consideration to disabled people in Lincolnshire, belittling the Council's previous efforts to provide 'fair access to goods and services'."

Commenting on the case, Debra O'Neill Chief Executive at CALL Advocacy said: "Given the current economic climate I think making such charges could only have a negative impact on the very people who are likely to suffer this recession. The Council will discourage people living in the outlying areas throughout Lincolnshire to travel to the city to access services, to the detriment of businesses and retailers who are already suffering.

"These charges could have wider repercussions for carers who manage on very limited budgets."

For more information please contact Kevin Bostock on 0114 266 6660 or email [email protected].