The public have been urged to help Northumberland's dog wardens after it was revealed that just 11 fixed-penalty notices were handed out for breaching public spaces protection orders in the past 12 months.
Speaking at Wednesday's meeting of Northumberland County Council, Coun Georgina Hill asked cabinet members how many fines had been handed out across Northumberland in the past 12 months.
Coun John Riddle, cabinet member for local services, said 11 had been handed out for breaching the orders in that time frame.
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According to the Government's website, some public areas in England and Wales are covered by Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs) - previously called Dog Control Orders (DCOs). In public areas with PSPOs, you may have to:
- keep your dog on a lead
- put your dog on a lead if told to by a police officer, police community support officer or someone from the council
- stop your dog going to certain places - like farmland or parts of a park
- limit the number of dogs you have with you (this applies to professional dog walkers too)
- clear up after your dog
- carry a poop scoop and disposable bags
Responding to that figure, Coun Hill said: "Do you accept that residents will say that is extremely low? It's not unusually low, it's a problem across many authorities, but would you blame residents for thinking this authority, as with many others, has given up trying to solve this problem.
Coun Riddle said: "We certainly have not given up and I would refute the fact that we are complacent. The public protection environmental enforcement team undertake regular patrols of hotspot areas, focusing on those areas with high numbers of complaints.
"We also continue to promote our green dog walking scheme, which has led to a reduction in complaints and increased responsibility from dog owners."
The green dog walkers scheme was introduced in 2017, and allows dog owners to sigh up to an agreement to clean up after their dog always and put the bag in a bin and to use a friendly approach to encourage other dog walkers to do the same.
The council will also provide a support kit to local community groups and individuals who want to get involved. Green dog walkers will be sent a green armband to wear when walking their dog to help draw attention to the scheme. They will also be sent green doggy bags and pledge leaflets.
Coun Colin Horncastle, cabinet member for community services, urged members of the public to report issues to the council.
He said: "Northumberland is a vast county and dog fouling is a problem all over. What I can say is we have such a small team, and it would really help if we had some local knowledge.
"There is nothing wrong with helping the warden - that would be a massive help to our wardens and we would see a lot more action if the public help."
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