I was born disabled, but I was still denied blue badge

CHARITY CHIEF FACED DELAY AS 'EVIDENCE' WAS SOUGHT

- By GEORGE PALMER-SOADY

A CHARITY chief executive was denied a blue badge, despite her lifelong disability.

Charlotte Throssel, the CEO of Disability Support, Basford, claims that a worrying national trend is on the rise, with severely mobility-impaired people being denied a blue badge due to council red tape.

After applying for her blue badge at the start of October in her home county of Leicestershire, Charlotte was initially turned down, with the county council stating that she had to prove that she was unable to walk, experience difficulty walking, or be at risk of serious harm when walking, or pose a risk of serious harm to any other person.

Charlotte was born with phocomelia, a condition that either means her limbs are shortened or missing.

She has one arm and uses a wheelchair due to the additional disability of having an inwardly curved spine.

The council has since relented and issued her with a blue badge, but Charlotte fears she is not alone in experiencing such problems.

She said: "I sent some evidence of my conditions.