A DYING grandmother says Bromley Council’s refusal to give her a disabled parking badge has stopped her enjoying the short time she has left to live.

Valerie Hunt, aged 84, is dying from heart failure and needs a wheelchair because walking more than a few metres leaves her out of breath and at risk of collapsing.

However, the council has denied her a blue badge to park in disabled bays, and Mrs Hunt says this is stopping her and her 81-year-old husband Victor from making the most of their remaining time together.

Grandmother-of-three Mrs Hunt, of Fairbank Avenue in Orpington, said: “The doctors have told me there is nothing more they can do to fix my heart, so now it’s just a matter of time.

“Not being able to park in disabled bays means we can’t go out shopping or on days out, because we have to park far away and then struggle to get where we want to go in the wheelchair.”

University College London Hospital, where Mrs Hunt is a patient, has written to the council to advise them she is unable to walk distances, but this has not changed the decision.

In a letter to Mrs Hunt, the council said the badges are only given to people who “would not be able to go out and visit shops, public buildings etc without being able to park very close to the destination.”

Mrs Hunt says this description fits her exactly, so she cannot understand why the council has rejected her application.

A council spokeswoman said: “Eligibility for blue badges is set down by the Department of Transport.

“Applicants are automatically eligible if they receive certain state mobility allowances or if they are registered blind.

“Discretionary blue badges are issued under the Department of Transport criteria if there is severe mobility problems and this is assessed by a council employed occupational therapist.

“Although there is no statutory appeal process in Bromley, applicants may request a review by another occupational therapist.

“If they still wish to pursue the complaint they can request a review by a senior occupational therapist.

“There is a right to reapply after six months of the final review notification and Mr Hunt and his wife had been advised of this.”