Guide Dogs’ manifesto for the 2026 local elections in England

Guide Dogs’ ambition is a future where every person with sight loss can live the life they choose. From designing accessible streets to taking a stand against illegal guide dog access refusals, local councils have a key role to play in realising this ambition.

Achieving our vision will not just benefit people with a vision impairment, but everyone in the community.

Using our local election manifesto, all candidates and councillors can make a positive difference for people living with sight loss in their area.

Please note that in areas with both county and district councils, the county council is responsible for highways and education, and the district council oversees licensing.

Read our manifesto for the Scottish Parliament election. Read our manifesto for the Senedd election.

Prioritise street safety

Being able to get out and about independently is something most people take for granted. However, a quarter of people with sight loss do not feel able to do so due to the obstacles and challenges they face on our streets and other public spaces.

Local authorities play a critical role in ensuring our public spaces are accessible for everyone, including disabled and older people.

Research by UCL and Guide Dogs investigated the challenges for disabled people travelling in areas with features such as Floating Island Bus Stops and Shared Bus Stop Boarders. The research found significant design flaws with both types of bus stop, which cause fear and distress for people with sight loss and other disabilities, and lead some to avoid using buses altogether. Following Guide Dogs’ campaign, the Government has now paused the installation of Shared Bus Stop Boarders, as well as issuing new design guidance and commissioning further research to investigate how these types of bus stop can be made safe for disabled people.

As stewards of our public spaces, local authorities must make every effort to ensure our streets are accessible, so people with sight loss can navigate public spaces confidently and independently.

We are calling on candidates, if elected, to make sure their local authority:

• Conducts an audit of their local area to establish how accessible street environments are for people with sight loss.
• Consult with a wide range of disabled people – including people with sight loss – and disability organisations when making changes to the built environment.
• Follows guidance from disability organisations on creating accessible public spaces, transport hubs, and buildings, such as Guide Dogs’ guidance ‘Making the built environment inclusive’.
• Pauses the installation of Shared Bus Stop Borders, in line with Government guidance.
• Pauses the roll out of Floating Island Bus Stops until further research into how they can be made safe for disabled people is completed.

Open doors for guide dog owners

The Equality Act makes it illegal for the vast majority of businesses and other service providers to refuse access to a guide dog or other assistance dog owner. For taxi and Private Hire Vehicle (PHV) drivers, access refusals are a criminal offence, unless the driver has a valid medical exemption certificate.

Nevertheless, refusals remain a regular part of guide dog ownership.

Access refusals have a significant impact on guide dog owners. Not only can it lead to situations where people are unable to get home or to work, but it can impact someone’s confidence to travel independently.

Many local authorities are responsible for regulating taxis and PHVs in their area, including setting policies on issuing licences and when enforcement action is taken. The stance taken against such discrimination varies greatly between local authorities, which can have a direct impact on the likelihood of a guide dog owner experiencing an illegal access refusal.

We are calling on candidates, if elected, to make sure their local authority:

• Requires all taxi and PHV drivers to undertake disability equality training as a condition of the licensing process.
• Adopts a zero-tolerance approach to any reports of taxi and PHV drivers refusing access to assistance dog owners.
• Works with local businesses and other service providers to raise awareness of the rights of assistance dog owners.

Improve support for children and young people

Ensuring children and young people with a vision impairment receive the support they need, as early as possible and for as long as needed, is crucial to their long-term development and opportunities in later life.

However, children and young people are missing out on essential specialist support too often. New research from Guide Dogs, carried out in 2025, found that more than two thirds (69%) of children in England are not receiving vital habilitation support, and nearly half (45%) have never received support from a Qualified Teacher of Children and Young People with Vision Impairment (QTVI).

Alongside this, a lack of awareness in schools about how to effectively support children and young people with a vision impairment is creating a barrier to them fully participating in their education.

We welcome the publication of the Government’s Schools White Paper and look forward to working together to ensure reforms to the SEND system meet the needs of children and their families.

Once the SEND reforms are in place, we are calling on candidates, if elected, to make sure their local authority:

• Prioritises the provision of life-changing services for children and young people with sight loss, such as habilitation and support from a Qualified Teacher of Children and Young People with Vision Impairment (QTVI).
• Ensures all schools and educational staff understand their legal obligations around the provision of reasonable adjustments for students with vision impairment, to enable them to fully access the curriculum. This is particularly important when students are transitioning between education settings or when a student with vision impairment moves to a new local authority area.

Curb pavement parking

Cars parked on pavements force pedestrians into the road, putting them in danger. This is especially hazardous for people with sight loss as they cannot see cars on the road.

Currently, local authorities have limited powers to effectively tackle pavement parking. In England (except in London) pavement parking is not a specific offence and is only prohibited in certain circumstances, for example next to dropped kerbs and controlled crossings.

Local authorities may prohibit pavement parking in designated areas through Traffic Regulation Orders, but this is an expensive and lengthy process. Outside of these instances, only the police – who are time and resource limited – can take action, where a pavement-parked car is deemed to be obstructing the highway.

That’s why, after campaigning for tougher laws on pavement parking for over a decade, Guide Dogs welcomes the Government’s announcement that local leaders will be given new powers to crack down on pavement parking. As well as traffic wardens being given the power to fine drivers who block pavements, strategic authorities and county councils will be able to decide how best to tackle pavement parking in their areas. This will include the option to introduce a general prohibition on parking on the pavement, except on streets where it is specifically allowed.

This approach has been proven to work in London and Scotland, helping reclaim pavements for pedestrians and removing dangerous obstacles for people with sight loss.

These powers need to be developed and given to councils swiftly. Until then, more can be done to tackle problem pavement parking at a local level.

We are calling on candidates, if elected, to:

• Bring forward a motion at a meeting of their full council, requiring their local authority to write to the Secretary of State for Transport. The local authority should ask them to consult on the regulatory framework on pavement parking and bring forward regulations, which will enable local authorities to enforce against pavement parking as soon as possible.
• Ensure their local authority’s parking strategy outlines how the authority will use their existing powers to tackle pavement parking.
• Work with local policing teams to identify and tackle pavement parking hotspots.
• Work with their local authority, the police, and other organisations to raise awareness of the dangers of pavement parking.

Create safer shared transport schemes

Whether it’s cycle and cargo bike hire or e-scooter rentals, shared transport schemes can be found across much of the UK. While they offer alternatives to driving, these schemes can create new obstacles for people with sight loss.

Many schemes use parking bays on pavements, which often overflow and encroach on what room is left for pedestrians to get past. Others use a free-floating model where riders can pick up and drop off their bike or e-scooter anywhere within the scheme’s area, littering pavements with abandoned vehicles.

People with sight loss rely on clear pavements to travel safely and independently but are increasingly being forced to walk in the road to avoid rental bikes and e-scooters blocking pavements.

Guide Dogs welcomes proposed new powers for Mayors and local authorities to regulate micromobility rental schemes. However, local regulation must be underpinned by a strong set of national standards, so people with sight loss do not face blocked pavements or anti-social riding, and are able to easily report issues no matter where they live.

We are calling on candidates, if elected, to ensure their local authority or transport authority:

• Mandates on-street parking bays for all forms of shared transport.
• Prevents rental cycles and e-scooters being used in pedestrian-only areas, including pavements.
• Adopts a coherent and consistent approach to tackling the anti-social use of rental cycles and e-scooters.
• Engages with disability organisations and monitors the impact on disabled pedestrians.
• Works with the Department for Transport to ensure new powers to regulate shared transport schemes are introduced as swiftly as possible.