Concessionary travel passes

Dear Mr Eriksohn

Thank you for your Freedom of Information request below. This has been logged under reference 10025.3-259 and passed to the appropriate department. You should expect to receive a reply within 20 working days, being 27 February 2009.

PLEASE ALSO NOTE THAT THE DISCLAIMER AT THE END OF YOUR ORIGINAL "WHAT DO THEY KNOW.COM" EMAIL STATES THAT THE INFORMATION PROVIDED WILL BE PUT ON THEIR "WHAT DO THEY KNOW" WEBSITE. THIS WOULD AMOUNT TO A RE-USE OF INFORMATION AND PLEASE NOTE THAT BEFORE DOING SO, AN APPLICANT MUST SPECIFICALLY REQUEST PERMISSION FROM THE COUNCIL, IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE RELEVANT RE-USE OF PUBLIC SECTOR INFORMATION REGULATIONS 2005 AND THE COUNCIL'S OWN POLICY DOCUMENT / FORM UNDER THE PUBLICATION SCHEME (AVAILABLE VIA THE INTERNET.) SUCH A REQUEST WOULD BE CONSIDERED SEPARATELY IN ACCORDANCE WITH THE REGULATIONS AND IS NOT AUTOMATIC. SEE LINK TO COUNCIL POLICY AND GUIDANCE FORMS FOR APPLICATION: http://www.eastcambs.gov.uk/docs/publica.... THEREFORE NO PERMISSION IS IMPLIED IN THE RE-USE OF THIS INFORMATION, UNTIL SUCH REQUEST TO RE-USE IS MADE AND AGREED, SUBJECT TO ANY APPROPRIATE CONDITIONS. I HAVE ATTACHED A LINK TO THE REGULATIONS FOR EASE OF REFERENCE:http://www.opsi.gov.uk/si/si2005/2005151....

Kind Regards

Local Land Charges
East Cambridgeshire District Council
Tel:01353 665555

show quoted sections

Dear Mr Eriksohn
Thank you for your enquiry concerning concessionary bus passes and I am pleased to answer your questions as follows:

1. Does your authority provide concessionary travel passes to those
individuals registered with their local Social Services department
as disabled on the grounds of being a mental health user or
survivor?
ans- Yes, providing the disability is confirmed by the applicant's General Practitioner, who also must confirm that they would be refused a driving license. If the GP is unsure whether they would be refused a license, we ask the applicant to apply for one to the DVLA (if they do not already hold a license) or notify the DVLA of their condition, and then send us a copy of the reply from the DVLA, who will make the final decision as to whether they should be permitted to drive. If they are permitted to drive, they would not be eligible. The scheme does not extend to applicants whose condition is a result of misuse of drink or drugs. A pass is issued to eligible applicants for two years, after which the holder will need to reapply and prove they are still eligible. If a pass holder regains their license before the pass expires, they should advise us accordingly and surrender their pass.

2. If your authority does have such arrangements why was the
decision taken to extend the scheme in this way and what
arrangements are in place?
ans- East Cambs District Council policy on the matter is in line with the national guidelines from the Department of Transport and does not represent any extension of the current national scheme

3. If your authority does not have such arrangements does your
authority have some other arrangement beyond the statuary minimum
to provide passes to those with mental health issues?
ans-East Cambs District Council has no plans to extend the current scheme beyond the national guidelines

4. If your authority does not have such arrangements why was the
decision taken not to extend the scheme in this way and has
consideration been given to extending the scheme in this way in the
future?
ans-The current concessionary bus pass scheme is already costing more than was originally budgeted. We have no wish to add additional costs which would require additional funding from local council tax payers.

5. Would it be possible to provide copies of any relevant policy
documents you may have?
ans - An application form can be downloaded at http://www.eastcambs.gov.uk/docs/forms/f...
This contains the information relating to disabilities which applicants are asked to confirm the grounds for applying. Also the section to be completed by their GP.

I trust this answers your questions to your satisfaction, but if I can be of any further help please contact me.
Yours sincerely
Geoff Durrant
Concessionary Bus Passes

ECDC Private and Confidential Notice

The information contained in this e-mail is intended for the named recipients only. If you are not the intended recipient you may not copy, distribute or take any action or reliance on it.

Opinions expressed are those of the individual and do not necessarily represent the opinions of East Cambridgeshire District Council.

If you have received this e-mail in error please notify the sender immediately by using the e-mail address or by telephoning (01353 665555 Ext.6497)

Please note that this e-mail has been created in the knowledge that Internet e-mail is not a 100% secure communication medium. We advise that you understand and observe this lack of security when e-mailing us.

Although we have taken steps to ensure that this e-mail and attachments are free from any virus, we advise that in keeping with good computing practice the recipient should ensure that they are actually virus-free.