Fingal should introduce hidden-disability parking spots, councillors say

Howth resident Laura Brown is a mother of four kids, aged 11, eight, six, and five.  

“Having four kids, like it is a lot of children, right?” she said on the phone Monday. “So you've got those kind of normal stressors that, you know, people with large families have.”

“But then I suppose, on top. My son, Toby, is his name. You know, he gets over-excited. You know, he has his routine.” 

Toby is her six-year-old, and he has autism. Brown said he’s pre-verbal now.

Toby loves the playground, Brown says, and he knows the route and he gets really excited when he knows he’s on the way.

So she has to be extra careful when they park the car, to make sure he doesn’t run out into traffic in his eagerness to get to the playground, she says.

Hidden-disability parking spots, she says, would be a great way to help her manage that risk. “I think it's much needed. It would really benefit our family.”

Hidden-disability parking spots don’t exist in Fingal, but the council should look at introducing them, Fianna Fáil Councillor Cathal Haughey suggested in a motion at a meeting of the Howth/Malahide Area Committee last month.  

It’s not the first time councillors have asked. For example, in December, Labour Councillor Mark Boland asked for one to be installed, “on a pilot basis”, at Ardgillan Castle.

Haughey envisages them as courtesy spots, similar to the age-friendly parking spots which aren’t legally enforceable but have been rolled out nonetheless, he said.

They would be pay-and-display spots marked with the hidden disability sunflower, his motion said.

The written response from council staff in the Operations department was that they didn’t see it as a runner. 

“Such spaces would be open to misuse and, in the absence of statutory authority, cannot be effectively enforced,” said the response, from Niamh Russell, an administrative officer, and Karen Gallagher, a senior engineer.

They did also suggest another route, though.

A good idea or not?

Brown says that Howth can be particularly tricky to take her son around because there’s a lot of traffic, and loads of visitors.

“So, like, the car parks can be full, really, from very early in the day,” she said. 

She said going out to the playgrounds there, she has to be extra aware of safety for all of her kids, and particularly Toby. “He doesn't like to hold hands or anything.”

It’s stressful, she says, and not just when they arrive, but also when they’re trying to leave. “You're having to drag him, basically, you know, kind of against his will, back to the car.”

A hidden-disability spot, closer to the playground, would help tamp down that extra stress in the day, she says.

At the council meeting in December, other councillors rowed in behind Haughey’s suggestion.

“I think somebody has asked for this before it might have even been myself,” said Social Democrats Councillor Joan Hopkins. “So I just want to thank you for raising it and say that I absolutely support it..”

Why not pilot it? she said. “There's various reasons for us not doing it, but I don't think they're strong enough.”

Fianna Fáil Councillor Eoghan O’Brien said he brought a similar motion to a past council meeting, and it was unanimously approved. 

But he thinks it was turned down because there isn’t provision in law for specific signage, he says. But that’s not a reason to not do it, he said. 

Age-friendly parking has worked for the most part even without official enforcement, said Green Party Councillor David Healy, who also supported the motion. “Feedback is universally positive.”

Age-friendly parking is parking designated for those over 55, but it relies on the honours system.

Russell, the council administrative officer, said that they have found that the age-friendly bays are misused. “Unfortunately, there are no ways for our parking wardens to enforce that because they are non-statutory.”

Another route?

In the meeting, Russell said that the blue badges that already exist are designed to help people have access to parking spaces close to amenities.

“There is legislation which extends enforcement powers around those blue parking bays,” Russell said. 

The Irish Wheelchair Association (IWA) and the Disabled Drivers Association issue permits to park legally in disabled parking spots, based on eligibility criteria.

However, the IWA website’s “Disable Persons Parking Permit Guide”, says the permits are for people with mobility issues. 

Under “Qualifying Criteria”, it says, “In order to qualify for a Parking Permit, you must have a permanent medical condition and a severe mobility problem. In 2010 a review of the scheme changed the focus of the qualifying criteria around an applicant’s mobility rather than their specific medical condition.”

The page does not mention autistic people, but does say that “To avoid any unnecessary disappointment please note that individuals with the following medical conditions may not qualify: Those with Intellectual Disabilities or behavioural conditions whose mobility is not severely restricted.”

But councillors who want special parking arrangements for people with hidden disabilities could lobby the IWA to expand who qualifies, said Russell, the council administrative officer. That might be the way to go, she said.

That’s a good idea, said Hopkins. Although, she has helped people who have had problems getting a blue badge, she says, and it might be because there aren’t enough parking spaces being planned for those.

Haughey said he agreed. They didn’t want the criteria too broad, he said, but at the moment it seems focused on somebody’s ability to walk. “People do have issues that aren’t related to that.”

The Irish Wheelchair Association declined to comment.

Elsewhere

Sinéad Lucey Brennan, the director of Hidden Disabilities Sunflower for Ireland and Northern Ireland, said that having these spots caters to a different population.

People in the early stages of MS or Parkinson's, forms of autism, people who struggle to find their car, she said.

Brennan said they’ve assisted some councils in rolling this out, and she said they’ve  only received good feedback.

It has been well-received in Wicklow, Brennan said. “We were inundated with people in the community who have an invisible disability, and particularly parents who would have an autistic child,” she said. “It has just been an absolute game-changer for them.”

A spokesperson for Wicklow County Council said that the scheme has raised awareness and supported people with hidden disabilities. 

“However, some complaints have arisen due to a misunderstanding that these bays are exempt from parking charges,” they said. “This is not the case, and the Council is improving signage to clarify that normal parking charges apply.”

Wicklow County Council doesn’t regulate who may use hidden disability bays, so the initiative relies on public good will, respect, and compassion, they said.

Later, by phone, Haughey, the Fianna Fáil councillor in Fingal, said that he had a fair number of  negative responses when he suggested the idea on Instagram. Many said it’s not enforceable, he said. 

But is that reason enough not to do it? asked Haughey. “You know, some people acting badly, I don't know if that's reason enough to not do something that is, that will benefit people with autism and people with sensory issues.”

Funded by the Local Democracy Reporting Scheme.