Hundreds of people have joined a campaign against charging disabled people for essential care services.

Protesters from Mencap, the charity for people with learning disabilities, staged a city centre demonstration and won support from shoppers in Bradford.

Their backing comes as an Audit Commission report, out today, condemns the 'postcode lottery' in disabled charges for personal home care and day centres.

The Audit Commission has found that councils across the country operate radically different charging policies, with fees for similar services varying from nothing to more than £100 a week.

Six per cent of councils do not charge for services.

But Bradford Council has threatened to take disabled clients to court in a bid to recover unpaid charges from a small number of families, who have refused to pay on principle.

Tina Burke, who has cared for her son Peter on her own since the death of her husband 11 years ago, said: "I am not looking for sympathy, or handouts, simply a fair system which does not work on paying a 'tax' because my son is handicapped.

"There is no national rule on charges and things vary considerably across the country - some authorities don't charge at all for what is sometimes a better service."

She says her 42-year-old son cannot afford to pay the charges out of his state benefits.

Paul Smithson, Mencap district officer for Bradford, Calderdale and Kirklees, said: "This is a successful campaign, we have had a lot of interest from passers-by and a lot of people have signed up to the Charter against Charging."

Councillor Jeanette Sunderland, leader of the Liberal Democrat group on Bradford Council, has backed the protest.

"We shouldn't give people this extra tax burden," she said.

Andrew Foster of the Audit Commission said: "Many of the users of home care services are among the poorest and most vulnerable groups served by councils, but the current system means that some may be put off from seeking services which would improve their quality of life.

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