Passengers with hidden disabilities are being invited to wear ‘please offer me a seat’ badges in a new trial to increase awareness of ‘invisible’ conditions or illnesses on London’s public transport.

Research suggests that people with less obvious disabilities find it difficult to get a seat when they need one. In a bid to rectify this, Transport for London (TfL) is recruiting 1,000 people to wear these new blue badges as part of a Europe-first trial from Monday 12 September.

After the six-week pilot, TfL will assess the badges’ effectiveness and how other passengers react upon noticing them.

Social media and customer information signage will be used to promote the scheme and encourage other passengers to offer their seat if necessary.

The trial is similar to the successful ‘baby on board’ badges launched in 2005 to help pregnant women get a seat during bus and rail journeys.

TfL has similarly high hopes for this scheme, which would be developed and fine-tuned with the help of older and disabled people's organisations if successful.