Nottinghamshire County Council has sent out the message after a number of motorists contacted Chad to say they had received tickets for parking their cars on Leeming Street –– despite leaving their blue badges on show in their vehicles.

But council bosses say the area has been a restricted parking zone for some time and insist there are signs in the area warning drivers that they can only park there if they have the special green access permit.

Said a spokesman: "The signs at the entry into the pedestrianised area state clearly that only green special access permit holders, issued by the county council to those with severe mobility impairment, may access the area between Sunday and Wednesday.

"The special access scheme has been in operation for many years and is designed to ensure that pedestrianised town centres are kept clear from vehicles while still allowing those with severe mobility problems access to the shops.

"Unfortunately, as a consequence of many years of little or no enforcement, access to town centres has been abused and blue badge holders have become accustomed to parking in the centres in contravention of the restrictions."

The spokesman said the council has also been actively informing blue badge holders about the restrictions.

Kirkby woman Margaret Norman-Draper (62) and her 61-year-old disabled husband John received a parking ticket after leaving their car for a short time on Leeming Street two weeks ago.

Margaret told Chad she was unaware of the regulations surrounding the special access scheme on Leeming Street –– and claims the signs are not as clear as the council is claiming.

"Maybe they should give you a warning first because obviously no one really knows about it. We went back on Wednesday and there were two wardens on one street targeting cars with disabled badges," she said.

"Fine, they are doing their job, you can't have a go at them for that, but I do feel that the public should be warned about this."

The confusion comes just weeks after Nottinghamshire County Council took over the responsibility of enforcing parking restrictions, dishing out more than 340 fines across Mansfield and Ashfield in the first month.

And Mrs Norman-Draper's feelings were also echoed by a number of Mansfield residents, including Forest Town county councillor Helen Holt who told Chad: "My concerns are that disabled people should have been consulted on the difference between blue badge and permit holder parking. It is an odd situation because anyone who is entitled to a blue badge is entitled to apply for a permit.

"I believe there is an expectation that people understand this.