SIR — As has been mentioned by other correspondents, the parking concession for holders of Blue Badges in the High Street from just above the Guildhall up to Laura Ashley has recently been amended from up to 11am or after 3pm — timings which allowed a reasonable period for shopping — to up to 10am, and then not until after 4pm.

These new times make it almost impossible for many to make use of the concession. Any person with a disability who is eligible to use a Blue Badge, will very often need a carer’s assistance to get them up and dressed and so would not be able to leave home in time for the early slot. By 4pm such people are often too tired to go out, and in the winter it would also be getting dark and colder.

People with disabilities usually require longer than the average able-bodied adult to carry out their shopping — one hour is not enough, especially as they would then need to cope with the rush-hour traffic. By making this change, many of us are effectively now denied access to the centre of our own city unless we pay for the cost of taxis. Some people really do find walking from and back to the car parks or side streets absolutely impossible. Some of us wish to approach the councils (Hampshire county and Winchester city) to try to get this change reversed, and we would really like to hear from others who are suffering in the same way.

To join us in this endeavour please do contact us at BlueBadgersOfWinchester@google mail.com.

A Woodford and S Kenneally C/o Drovers Way, Crawley.