SHOPPERS are being asked to blow the whistle on supermarkets which fail to cater for the disabled.

Darlington Association on Disability (DAD) is joining a campaign to ensure disabled parking spaces are not used by able-bodied shoppers.

The national Baywatch Group wants to ensure that supermarkets are enforcing disabled parking bay restrictions.

Tesco, Safeway, Asda and Sainsbury's have agreed to talk to the Baywatch Group about improving the situation.

To help the campaign, Darlington Association on Disability's access interest group has written to all Darlington's supermarkets.

The stores will be asked to enforce the disabled parking restriction and DAD members will visit the stores to see if the rules are being kept.

Gordon Pybus, chairman of the Access Interest Group said: "We are going to keep checking the stores but we are not going to approach anyone who is breaking the rules.

"We will simply note which supermarket it is and what time it happened, and we are asking members of the public to make similar notes.

"It should be a matter of common sense, but with the Disability Discrimination Act it is more than common sense for supermarkets. They could be taken to court if a user thinks that disabled spaces are not being kept for them."

Mr Pybus believes supermarkets could use a variety of methods to impose the disabled bays.

He said: "It can be as extreme as clamping but it should not come to that. Members of staff could simply make regular checks on the car park. We want to make is so it's anti-social to be incorrectly parking.

"There are £48 bn in the disabled economy across the country, so you would think supermarkets would want to tap into that."

Anyone who sees someone without a disabled persons parking badge in a designated bay is asked to note the time, date and the name of the supermarket and call (01325) 489999.