Competition encourages local authorities to develop Blue Badge fraud campaigns

Bids invited for up to £25K funding with PATROL's Driving Improvement Awards 2025

Local authorities could win funding worth up to £25,000 from Parking and Traffic Regulations Outside London (PATROL) to support campaigns that tackle the abuse of the Blue Badge scheme.

The competition is open to local authority parking and traffic enforcement teams, and their associated communications team.

The annual PATROL Driving Improvement Awards are focused on inspiring and recognising communications campaigns and activities that drive positive change – both in local areas and replicable nationally – in the delivery of and public engagement around parking and traffic enforcement services.

Laura Padden, director of PATROL, said: “The Driving Improvement Awards seeks bids focused on an important and pressing issue or theme each year. In 2025, this is the misuse of Blue Badges, with recent data indicating continuing rises in both badge thefts and fraudulent usage. Blue Badge abuse undermines the integrity of the disabled parking scheme and the rights of disabled motorists, so it is critical for councils to increase public awareness and education on the issue and its prevalence in their communities.”

PATROL is offering access to funding of up to £25,000 from its existing innovation and research reserves for authority bids to deliver a communications campaign or activity with objectives aimed at addressing blue badge abuse.

Activities could include, for example, new public information, marketing, branding or PR. Bids should focus on implementation locally, but with the scope for the campaign or activity to be replicated by any England and Wales authority within the PATROL Joint Committee, or to be taken forward by PATROL itself to elevate on a national scale.

The deadline for submissions is 31 March.

Bids for the Driving Improvement Awards 2025 can be submitted here: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/PATROLDIAwards2025
 
PATROL recognises that some authorities may lack the in-house expertise to deliver a campaign or activity, but may still have strong ideas to contribute to this year's theme. These authorities are still encouraged to enter a bid, making it clear in their submission that they would prefer PATROL to undertake the communications activity on their behalf.

Laura Padden adds: “This is a fantastic opportunity for authority parking and traffic teams (as well as supporting communications teams) to showcase their creativity in and commitment to addressing local challenges, while also helping to drive change nationally. Participating in the awards will not only highlight your authority’s dedication to improving community engagement, but also position parking and traffic teams as leaders in innovative problem solving.”

Shortlisted authorities will be recognised at PATROL’s Annual Reception in Westminster, Central London, on Tuesday 15 July 2025, where the winner of this year’s awards will be announced. PATROL will then support winning authorities to implement their campaign or activity ahead of the 2026 event, with the outcomes, learnings and best practice shared with the wider PATROL Joint Committee cohort.

Driving Improvement Awards 2024

The Driving Improvement Awards 2024 competition focussed on the issue of tackling aggression and violence against parking patrol officers.

The competition was jointly won by Brighton and the North Essex Parking Partnership (NEPP), who focused on humanising the role of parking civil enforcement officers and other traffic enforcement staff who experience abuse from the public.

The two authorities are currently running separate activities in their local areas under the Beyond the Uniform brand until April and will report on the campaign’s outcomes in the summer. 

PATROL will then look to coordinate a national roll-out of the campaign with member authorities.

Information on Brighton’s campaign activities, including a series of videos, can be found here

Information on NEPP’s campaign activities can be found here

Further information

Should your authority have any queries or require further information, please contact the Driving Improvement awards team at: patrolawards@patrol-uk.info