Nottinghamshire County Council has now closed new applications to its Disabled Peoples ID Card Scheme.
The Councils scheme originally came about thanks to Arnold Resident Terry Gallagher. Mr Gallagher has hidden impairments which mean that whilst he may not look like a disabled person he does require the use of accessible facilities.
Early last year the Council met with Social Enterprise Nimbus; a disability related consultancy. Nimbus were developing a new Card for disabled people which actually addressed the individual needs of a person and could be used in conjunction with organisations that required evidence or wanted to promote special offers to Disabled People. The Access Card was warmly received by Terry and Paul McKay Service Director at Nottinghamshire County Council:
Paul said:
We were the first local authority to introduce a disabled identification card when Terry approached us with the idea back in 2008. We hope that our existing card users will take advantage of the initial offer period and will enjoy the additional benefits the new scheme will provide.”
Mr Gallagher has now replaced his Council Issued Card for the new Access Card:
Martin Austin, Managing Director of Nimbus says;
The Access Card scheme is about much more than just saying ‘I’m Disabled’. It’s a third party assessment of a persons legal protection under the equality act and a tool for quickly telling organisations about the support you need without the potential embarrassment of going into lots of detail about medical conditions.”
The cards usual cost is £15 for 3 years but Nottinghamshire County Council have negotiated a half term offer lasting until the 17th July.
You can find out more about the card by visiting the website www.credability.uk.com/access-card or coming down to the Do What You Want: Live event at Nottingham Conference Centre on the 16th July from 10am where the Access Card will be hosting a stand and can help with your application.
For more information call Disability Direct Nottingham on 0115 958 3948
