We campaign on a lot of other things and you will find articles on these here.
Concessionary Travel and Blue Badge Passporting
Everyone who received PIP at any level will qualify for Concessionary Travel Card
The Scottish Government has announced its plans to managing the transition of the Blue Badge scheme through welfare reform. Both these critical benefits were linked to DLA which is starting to be replaced by Personal Independence.
The Scottish Government Welfare Reform team has committed to monitoring the implementation of PIP over the next four years. The passporting arrangements linked to PIP will be severely affected by the numbers who are able to successfully claim PIP and the full consequences will not be known for a number of years
National Concessionary Travel
189,000 people hold the concessionary travel card because of disability. The average annual value is about £250 per person.
The Passport arrangements in the future will be that all those who qualify for the Standard or Enhanced rate of PIP will qualify . So in the future all PIP claimants will get the NCTS Card.
Easy Read on demand for travel cards
Free Bus Travel for those on lower levels of DLA.
Understanding the demand for National Concessionary Cards
At the last Cross Party Group on Learning Disability, LDAS agreed to look into estimating the additional cost of the free bus pass scheme if those people on lower levels of DLA are included.
We worked out how many people there were on the lower level of DLA in Scotland
38,490
We worked out how many people with disabilities already got a bus pass
164,266
We included information on the number of people who use the special form NCT 002 which is just for people with learning disabilities or mental health problems. Lots of these people will be people with learning disabilities on lower levels of DLA.
11,459
We worked out how many people might still need a bus pass and got
12,316 with lower levels of DLA
We then looked at what the government said about the cost of each bus pass.
£150 per year
We thought about whether people with the lower levels of DLA needed to have a “Companion Card”. We thought that this wasn’t needed.
We thought the cost to the government would be a total of £1.84 million pounds per annum.
This is a lot less than the £12 million pounds originally estimated
More detail on the demand for National Concessionary Cards
Free Bus Travel for those on lower levels of DLA.
Understanding the demand for National Concessionary Cards
At a previous Cross Party Group on Learning Disability we agreed to look into estimating the additional cost of the free bus pass scheme if those people on lower levels of DLA are included.
We think
· that an additional 12,316 people would take up the bus pass
· at a cost of £150 per person per year
· Making total additional costs of £1.84 million pounds per annum.
Read more: More detail on the demand for National Concessionary Cards
Renewing Your Travel Card
We have produced a guide on how to renew your travel card. It includes advice on how to use the Form NCT002 to still qualify for a pass if you have low level DLA. You can down load it here. You can download a sample copy of the NCT 002 from by clicking here. Transport Scotland say that these forms should be available from Local Authority offices or NHS establishments in order to confirm that someone may be attending as part of an ongoing care, treatment or rehabilitation programme.
Reply from Scottish Government
Transport Directorate
Bus, Road Safety and Local Roads Policy Division
The Scottish Government
1 July 2009
Dear Mr Hood
CONCESSIONARY TRAVEL
Thank you for your letter of 2 June to Stewart Stevenson, Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Climate Change, about the review of the Scotland-wide Free Bus Travel Scheme for Older and Disabled People and how this affects people who receive the lower rate of Disability Living allowance. I have been asked to reply.
Before the introduction of the Scotland-wide scheme, each local authority ran its own concessionary bus travel scheme within its boundaries, and eligibility criteria were variable, particularly with regard to disabilities. Some local authority schemes included people in receipt of the lower rate of Disability Living Allowance (DLA) although most did not. When the national scheme was introduced on 1 April 2006, it was necessary to introduce national eligibility criteria which would apply equally across Scotland. The criteria were agreed following a national public consultation exercise and discussion with stakeholders, including local authorities, transport operators, and the Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland. As you know, the eligibility criteria agreed that the scheme should not include those in receipt of DLA.
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Subcategories
- Bus Pass Campaign
- Tougher Eligibility Criteria
- Postcode Lottery in Local Authority Spending
- Cuts in Services
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Older Families Charter
Campaign on helping older families still caring for adult sons and daughters with learning disabilities at home.
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Local Area Coordination
Local Area Coordination has been developing in Scotland for the last ten years. Some of the new developments are very worrying.
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Changing Places Toilets Campaign
There are lots of toilets designed for disabled people. But these toilets are not right for all disabled people and their carers.
They are too small and do not have the special equipment that people with profound and multiple learning disabilities need.
Toilets that are big enough and have this special equipment are called Changing Places toilets. They are needed by anyone who wears a continence pad or who needs support from a carer to get on and off the toilet.
There are very few of these toilets in Scotland. So we have launched a petition to get the Scottish Government to make sure far more Changing Places Toilets are made available.
Everyone should be able to find a toilet when they are out and about in the community.
- Fair access to day services
- Better Consultation in the Tendering Process
- Edinburgh Care And Support Tender
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Campaigns
The Learning Disability Alliance Scotland campaigns to improve the lives of people with learning disabilities within Scotland. We prioritise a range of issues that can make a difference.