'Feeling blue about a badge? Online applications raise alarms about exclusion' - Your Letters and a burst watermain in 1969 that caused chaos in a rural village - a picture from the archives

Concerns over Sandwell Council’s online-only Blue Badge application system, a Dudley church in need of volunteers, and celebrating autumn. Here are today's readers' letters.

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Published Oct 27

We need more offline options

Feeling blue about a badge?

The UK’s push to digitise public services, exemplified by Sandwell Council’s online-only Blue Badge applications from November 10, 2025, is raising alarms about exclusion.

I and others are concerned that elderly and disabled individuals - 46 per cent of over-65s lack internet skills as per Age UK’s July 2025 data - may be cut off from vital support, with no offline alternatives offered.

This shift could breach the Equality Act 2010. Section 19 defines indirect discrimination as a practice disadvantaging those with protected characteristics (age, disability) unless justified, while Section 20 mandates "reasonable adjustments."

Without support, Sandwell’s policy risks non-compliance, a concern echoed by the government’s lagging Digital Inclusion Action Plan, where only 30 per cent of councils provide assisted digital services. While digitalisation may boost efficiency, the current approach threatens isolation. Councils must offer offline options and support hubs to align with equality duties before implementation. This council is not doing enough.

Darryl Magher, Walsall