Oldham Liberal Democrats are calling for the Council to urgently pass the review of disabled parking spaces across the borough. After no funding for the bays for the past year, resulting in a backlog of requests, the bays are now being held up by a review of the policy on who qualifies.
Liberal Democrat Councillor Sam Al-Hamdani said: “We need to be ensuring that the most vulnerable people in our community are properly looked after; and not processing any disabled parking bays for nearly 18 months is reprehensible.
“I have residents in my ward who applied in March 2019, and are still on the waiting list. They will continue to be so until this review is finished. A budget has been allocated, but it cannot be spent until the new policy is approved.”
A £15,000 pot has been put aside to get on top of the backlog of requests for disabled parking bays.
As the coronavirus pandemic appears to be easing – although a cautious approach is required – it highlights the plight of residents with mobility issues, who may struggle to get out of the house at the best of times. Residents who are shielding are still only allowed out of the house on a very limited basis.
Councillor Al-Hamdani continued: “As the lockdown is eased, it is easy to forget how restricted shielding residents have been and still are. Ensuring that they have easier access to a car is the very least that we should be doing. The council aims to ensure that our most vulnerable residents are our highest priority – getting this sorted is paramount.”