Patients at Waters Meeting Health Centre in Astley Bridge claim Dr Nasima Sidda, GP at the Sidda Family Practice, has been parking in a disabled bay without a permit for years.
But Dr Sidda, who admits she has no disability permit, says she has no choice but to leave her white Audi A7 there because there are no designated GP bays at the surgery.
Oh, really? Is that how it works?
She claims she has raised the issue of GP parking multiple times with Bolton commercial property agent Hurstwood Holdings, which manages the building, but so far nothing has been done.
So if you don't get listened to (and why move in to the centre in the first place?) you can just do as you please? Good to know!
A patient at the surgery, aged 40, said: “I have seen this happen every time I have been to the practice and have mentioned it to security.
“She is very well known and so is her car because of the distinctive number plate – but I have never seen a disability badge displayed in her car.
“It would be understandable if there were no parking facilities, but in the morning when she arrives the car park would not be full at all.
“Several times I have seen people turn up and have to wait to get into a disabled bay. I cannot believe this is continuing.”
I can. Sadly.
Dr Sidda said she is being “picked on” – with the word ‘disabled’ etched into the dirt on her car on several occasions.
Next, if this doesn't work, the race card will come out!
Dr Sidda said no disabled patient has ever come in and asked her to move her car, and said she happily would have done so if requested to.
She added: “We have to have designated car parking spots for GPs because we are here every single day. Until that gets resolved I don’t think it is an alternative. I have been raising the parking issue repeatedly since 2011 and I don’t feel like my requests have been taken heed of.”
So if there's no designated GP spaces, where do the
other GPs park? They seem to manage. What makes
you special?
"Dr Sidda said no disabled patient has ever come in and asked her to move her car..."
ReplyDeleteQuite possibly, because.. I dunno, because they couldn't park and ended up not coming in, or parked elsewhere and asking her to move would be pointless at that point?
Or she's lying/got the memory of a goldfish and people actually have asked her to shift.
Of course, blue badges don't apply to private property - but the businesses must comply with the equality act which requires additional consideration to those with a protected characterstic.
ReplyDeleteIf you look at some of the parking forums, you'll find it is part of an on-going debate as to the effect (if any) the blue badge has - many supermarkets end up cancelling "tickets" for parking in blue badge bays when challenged with the Equality Act as they can end up in court and fined - plus the bad publicity
Well I'm at my office every single day but nobody marks out a designated parking space for me, nor do I expect or need them to.
ReplyDeleteWhat makes Mrs. Precious think she's special?
And as for "no disabled patient has ever come in and asked her to move her car...", it's odd that, because clearly any disabled person would just naturally know whose car it was and where to find her. Obviously.
"...What makes you special?.."
ReplyDeleteErr, being female, being from an ethnic minority, - and that's just for starters.
"If you look at some of the parking forums, you'll find it is part of an on-going debate as to the effect (if any) the blue badge has..."
ReplyDeleteI regularly see cars parked in disabled bays at local supermarket, sans badge. They never seem to check :/
"What makes Mrs. Precious think she's special?"
I think Ted hits the nail on the head...