AN elderly woman who can only walk short distances because of emphysema has lost a lengthy battle to get a disabled parking bay outside her York home.

Denise Duce complained to the Housing Ombudsman after City of York Council refused to create the bay at Spurr Court, Foxwood, but her complaint has been rejected following a saga going back to summer 2014.

The council tenant told the Ombudsman there were not enough parking spaces near her bungalow, particularly in the evenings and at weekends.

"Residents from Bellhouse Way, Herman Walk and visitors to the Martin Cheeseman old people's complex all use our parking spaces," she said.

"I cannot walk far, have hospital appointments and fear attacks and my car being vandalised."

Jillian Currey, a volunteer at OCAY (Older Citizens Advocacy York), who supported Denise in her complaint, said she had a number of health issues and a Blue Badge.

"She needs to be able to park close to her bungalow, which has no drive or garage," she said. "This is particularly true in the evenings, after she returns from her hospital appointments, as all the parking spaces then tend to be already occupied.

"The council claims that there is no space for a disabled bay. This is nonsense. I have provided measurements, which show that there is ample room for two bays."

A Housing Ombudsman official said Ms Duce's secure tenancy agreement from the council did not indicate a parking bay formed part of her property or there was allocated parking. "As such, the council had no obligation to designate a bay for Ms Duce's sole use," he said.

He said the council had said that the area was communal parking, intended to reduce general parking pressure in the area, but it had taken other steps to address her concerns about not being able to park close to her property.

It had offered her brother a garage in the vicinity, explored the possibility of installing a disabled parking bay and agreed to mark out bays to help the parking area be used more efficiently. "It is the Ombudsman's decision that the council took reasonable steps to resolve Ms Duce's complaint."