Blue Badge scheme statistics, England: 2021
Published 25 January 2022
Applies to England
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About this release
Blue Badges are disabled parking cards issued by local authorities to help people with mobility issues park closer to the goods and services they need to use. In August 2019, Blue Badge scheme eligibility criteria were extended to include more people with non-visible, neurological disabilities that may affect their ability to access goods and services.
Blue Badges are issued according to need of the applicant and are not related to any specific condition. Anyone may be awarded a Blue Badge if they meet the scheme’s eligibility criteria. Badges can also be issued to organisations who transport people with disabilities. Upon issue, a Blue Badge is valid for a period of up to 3 years. Blue Badges held refers to badges on issue as at 31 March 2021.
Please refer to the quality report for more details.
Coronavirus (COVID-19) impact
The data covered by this release is for the year ending March 2021, which coincides with the measures implemented from March 2020 onward to limit the impact of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. This may have had an impact on the trends presented in this release. However, the available data on Blue Badge issuance and prosecutions for the misuse of Blue Badges is not granular enough to detect any effect of movement restrictions on the data.
Headline figures
In the year ending March 2021
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2.35 million Blue Badges held as at 31 March 2021, a decrease of 3.8% since March 2020
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824,000 Blue Badges issued, a decrease of 14.7% since March 2020
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698 prosecutions reported, a decrease of 49% since March 2020
Summary
Table 1 shows the number of badges held as at 31 March 2021 and the number of badges issued in the year ending March 2021 in each region compared with the previous year.
Table 1: Summary of Blue Badge figures year ending March 2021 compared with the previous year
| Badges issued (thousands) | Percentage change since the year ending March 2020 | Badges held as at 31 March 2021 (thousands) | Percentage change since 31 March 2020 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England | 824 | -14.7% | 2,352 | -3.8% | |
| North East | 45 | -17.1% | 131 | -4.8% | |
| North West | 119 | -16.7% | 340 | -5.8% | |
| Yorkshire and the Humber | 82 | -15.7% | 236 | -5.5% | |
| East Midlands | 80 | -16.0% | 233 | -4.7% | |
| West Midlands | 91 | -16.3% | 267 | -3.7% | |
| East of England | 91 | -14.9% | 265 | -3.7% | |
| London | 94 | -5.9% | 247 | 0.9% | |
| South East | 128 | -13.7% | 359 | -2.5% | |
| South West | 94 | -16.2% | 273 | -3.9% |
Blue Badges issued in the year ending March 2021
There were 824,000 Blue Badges issued in the year ending March 2021, a decrease of 142,000 badges (14.7%) on the previous year. Of these, 2.2% (18,000 badges) were issued under the new eligibility criteria for people with non-visible disabilities (introduced in August 2019).
Chart 1: Blue Badge issued annually: England, since the year ending March 2009 - DIS0111
Chart 1 shows that out of the 824,000 Blue Badges issued in the year ending March 2021, 455,000 (55%) were subject to further assessment, 364,000 (44%) were issued without further assessment and 6,000 (1%) to organisations. The proportion of badges issued subject to further assessment is still below the peak of 62% seen in the year ending March 2009.
Out of the badges issued without further assessment, 94% were issued to those who met the relevant criteria under Disability Living Allowance (DLA) or Personal Independence Payment (PIP). The remaining badges were issued to those registered blind (5%) and those on War Pensioner’s Mobility Supplement or Armed Forces and Reserved Forces Compensation scheme (1%).
When compared to last year, total Blue Badges issued subject to further assessment has dropped noticeably (22.2%) more than badges issued without further assessment (2.8%). The effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on citizen behaviour and local authority business practices and staffing may have contributed to the drop in badges issued subject to further assessment.
Blue Badges issued by region in the year ending March 2021
The regions with the most Blue Badges issued in the year ending March 2021 as a proportion (1.7%) of their population were North East, East Midlands and South West. The region with the lowest proportion was London (1.0%).
Blue Badges held as at 31 March 2021
There were 2.35 million valid Blue Badges held as at 31 March 2021, a decrease of 3.8% (92,000 badges) when compared with the previous year. This decrease continues the declining trend in the number of badges held since 2012, with the exception of an increase in 2020.
Chart 2: Blue Badge held: England, annually since March 1998 - DIS0101
Proportion of the population holding a Blue Badge as at 31 March 2021
On 31 March 2021, 4.2% of the population in England held a valid Blue Badge, down from 4.3% the previous year.
Chart 3: Percentage of population that hold a Blue Badge: England, annually since March 1998 - DIS0102
In the year ending March 2021, 2.26 million people (4.0% of the population in England) were entitled to a Blue Badge without further assessment (previously known as automatically entitled). Out of the 2.26 million people who were eligible for a Blue Badge without further assessment, 42% held a Blue Badge.
The number of people automatically eligible for a Blue Badge has been rising since 2015; however, the percentage of those eligible without further assessment who hold a Blue Badge (60% in 2015) has fallen over the same period.
Blue Badges held by type and region as at 31 March 2021
Of the badges held, 59% were subject to further assessment, 40% without further assessment and 1% held by organisations.
The region with the highest proportion of badges held without further assessment was the North West (47%), and the regions with the lowest were the South East (34%), South West and East of England (35%), as shown in chart 4.
Chart 4: Blue Badges held by category: English regions, March 2021 - DIS0104
Blue Badges held by region and local authority as at 31 March 2021
Map 1 shows the number of Blue Badges held as a proportion of the population in each local authority in England.
The region with the most Blue Badge holders as a proportion of their population was North East (4.9%). The region with the lowest proportion was London (2.7%), which also had the lowest regional proportion of retired people. Similarly, metropolitan areas such as Birmingham (3.4%) and Manchester (2.8%) also had comparatively low proportions of Blue Badge holders.
Map 1: Blue Badges held as a proportion of the population: England, Local Authorities, March 2021 - DIS0108
Local authority level figures used for this map are calculated from the number of badges held from BBDS data and the Office for National Statistics (ONS) 2020 mid-year population estimates.
Table 2 shows the highest and the lowest proportions of Blue Badges held by a local authority.
Table 2: Top and Bottom 5 local authorities for badges held as a proportion of the population: England, March 2021 - DIS0108
| Local authority | % | Local authority | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dorset | 6.6 | Tower Hamlets | 1.8 |
| Sunderland | 6.6 | Lambeth | 1.8 |
| St. Helens | 6.5 | Westminster | 1.7 |
| Stockton | 6.2 | Kensington and Chelsea | 1.5 |
| Derbyshire | 6.1 | City of London | 1.2 |
Lost and stolen Blue Badges in the year ending March 2021
In England, 4,396 badges in the year ending March 2021 were reported to be lost or stolen. Of these, 76% were reported to be lost, and 24% were stolen.
Blue Badge prosecutions in the year ending March 2021
The annual Blue Badge survey, completed by local authorities in England, collates data on prosecuting misuse of the Blue Badge scheme and the number of prosecutions that occurred between 1 April 2020 and 31 March 2021.
Prosecutions for misuse of the blue badge scheme were supported by specific or general policies in 74% of local authorities (110 authorities) in England. Of those without a policy, 50% are planning on implementing one in the future.
In England, there were 698 reported prosecutions in the year ending March 2021, a decrease of 49% compared to the previous year. The drop in prosecuted badges may relate to the effects of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic on citizen behaviour, local authority enforcement practices, and availability of resources.
Of the authorities which had a policy for prosecuting, 44% prosecuted individuals for misuse of Blue Badges. The remaining 56% had no prosecutions despite having a policy. There were 454 prosecutions in London (65% of the total number of prosecutions made in England). Similar to last year, the majority of prosecutions (97%) in England were targeted at a non-badge holder using another person’s badge.
Across England, the largest number of prosecutions were made by Lambeth (119).
Table 3 shows the local authorities with the highest number of prosecutions.
Table 3: Top 5 local authorities with the highest number of prosecutions: England - DIS0301
| Local authority | Number of prosecutions |
|---|---|
| Lambeth | 119 |
| Birmingham | 93 |
| Hammersmith and Fulham | 92 |
| Bromley | 70 |
| Buckinghamshire | 67 |
Blue Badge holders and Travel pattern
The National Travel Survey
The National Travel Survey (NTS) is a continuous household survey that collects detailed information on personal travel within Great Britain.
The data is collected via an interview and a 7-day travel diary on a representative sample of private households in England. It is used to look at the travel patterns of different groups and long term trends.
2020 disclaimer: Due to changes in the methodology of data collection, changes in travel behaviour and a reduction of data collected during 2020, as a result of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, care should be taken when interpreting this data and comparing it to other years, due to the small sample sizes.
Please use the sample sizes as a guide for how to interpret the statistics. Where a category makes up a small proportion of the whole, then it will be based on a small part of the sample, so caution is advised
In 2020, Blue Badge holders in England made fewer trips per person than non-Blue Badge holders across most main modes except taxi or minicab, where they made the same number of trips (6 trips per person) on average.
Blue Badge holders also made more trips on average via other private transport (including motorcycles, motorised wheelchairs, electric scooters) than non-Blue Badge holders, an average of 15 trips per person per year compared with 8 (chart 6).
Both Blue Badge holders and non-Blue Badge holders rely predominantly on car travel. They made 228 and 298 trips per person per year respectively as a driver, in addition to 123 and 134 trips per person as a passenger in 2020.
Chart 6: Trips per person per year by Blue Badge status and main mode: England, 2020 - DIS0501
Where walk and bus were the main modes of travel, non-Blue Badge holders made three times more walk trips per person per year and two times more bus trips per person per year compared to Blue Badge holders in 2020 (chart 6).
Chart 7: Trips per person per year by Blue Badge status and selected purpose: England, 2020 - DIS0502
For both Blue Badge holders and non-Blue Badge holders, shopping was the most popular trip purpose, comprising 161 and 140 trips per person per year respectively.
Chart 7 shows more trips were completed on average by Blue Badge holders for the purpose of personal business with 89 trips per person compared to 58 trips per person by non-Blue Badge holders in 2020. Personal business includes trips for medical consultations or treatments.
Blue Badge holders made fewer commuting trips on average than non-Blue Badge holders, an average of 8 trips per person per year compared with 94 trips per person in 2020. Similarly, education trips were less common amongst Blue Badge holders than non-Blue Badge holders, 3 trips per year per person compared to 47 trips per person per year respectively.
The lower number of education trips may reflect the smaller proportion of Blue Badge holders in the younger age bands. For example, of those aged 16 to 19, 0.7% are Blue Badge holders, and of those aged 60+, 10.3% are Blue Badge holders (chart 8).
Chart 8: Percentage of individuals within each age band by Blue Badge holders: England, 2020 - DIS0503
Public satisfaction with local transport
The National Highways and Transport Public Satisfaction Survey collects public perspectives on, and satisfaction with, highway and transportation services to inform performance management and local transport plans.
Chart 9: Local transport systems and road satisfaction rate by Blue Badge status, England outside of London 2020
On average, in 2020, in the areas surveyed in England outside of London, the overall satisfaction rates with transport and highways services were 49% for Blue Badge holders and 52% for non-Blue Badge holders.
When looking at local transport systems and roads satisfaction rates, Blue Badge holders were slightly more satisfied with the local bus services (61%), local taxi or mini-cab services (67%) and cycle routes (51%) but much less satisfied with pavements (44%) than non-Blue Badge holders.
Chart 10: Satisfaction rates with local public transport information by Blue Badge status, England outside of London 2020
Participants were asked about their satisfaction with different aspects of local transport information in the survey. In general, Blue Badge holders were less satisfied than non-Blue Badge holders.
Overall, 53% of Blue Badge holders were satisfied with the provision of public transport information compared to 56% of non-Blue Badge holders. This was reflected across other aspects of satisfaction with information.
The largest difference in satisfaction rates was on the information about accessible buses, with 45% of Blue Badge holders satisfied compared to 54% of non-Blue Badge holders.
Chart 11: Satisfaction rates with parking elements by Blue Badge status, England outside of London 2020
Participants were also asked about their satisfaction with restrictions of parking on busy roads and the measures to tackle illegal on-street parking locally. Both elements scored lower satisfaction rates (at 33% and 39%, respectively) by Blue Badge holders, 5 percentage points lower than non-Blue Badge holders.
Background information
Uses and users of these statistics
These statistics are collected to provide information on disabled parking badges in England. The statistics are used to monitor trends in the number of badges held and the number of badges issued in the year. Within the Department for Transport (DfT), they are used as background information in the development of Blue Badge policy and to answer public enquiries.
In recent years, the data has been used to model the impact of reforms to the system, and they are likely to be used to monitor the impacts of any changes. Outside DfT, users are likely to include local authorities and organisations representing disabled motorists.
Data source
From 2019, data about Blue Badges held were collected directly from the Blue Badge Digital Service (BBDS) rather than the previous Blue Badge Improvement Service (BBIS), which was in place from 2012 to 2019. Data covers 100% of local authorities and has done so since the year ending March 2013. BBDS (and its predecessor BBIS) have been available to all local authorities in England since 1 January 2012 and provides a number of core services, including a central database of all Blue Badges on issue. Please see the relevant guidance note.
From the year ending March 2019, the Blue Badge Production and Distribution Service was procured separately to the procurement for the Citizen-facing Online Application Service and Local Authority Manage Blue Badge Service (combined, they are referred to as the Blue Badge Digital Service). This change meant we were not able to collect consistent data on the number of badges issued. As a result, it is not possible to compare the number of badges held and issued from the year ending March 2019 onwards with figures for earlier years.
A secondary data source, completed by all local authorities in England, was collected from the annual Blue Badge Prosecution Survey. This survey collates figures on the number of prosecutions for misuse of the Blue Badge scheme. For more information, please see the survey guidance.
Validation of figures
In previous years, data about Blue Badges were collected by surveying local authorities in England. This is the seventh year that BBDS (and its predecessor BBIS) was the sole source for data on badges held. Further data validation is carried out, for example, comparing related data items and year-on-year figures for each area.
Background notes
Full guidance on the methods used to compile these statistics can be found in the quality report. These statistics were designated as National Statistics in June 2012. The continued designation was confirmed in February 2013. National Statistics are produced to high professional standards set out in the Code of Practice for Statistics. They undergo regular quality assurance reviews to ensure they meet customer needs. Details of ministers and officials who receive pre-release access to these statistics up to 24 hours before release can be found in the pre-release access list.
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Further information
The next Blue Badge scheme statistics are due to be published in Winter 2022.
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Contact details
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