Get all your news in one place.
100’s of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
Manchester Evening News
Manchester Evening News
National
Milo Clay & Stephen Topping

The quaint town near Manchester where homes sell for over half a million - but whose streets are 'lined with dog poo'

It's the market town near Manchester that's steeped in history and home to some of the north west's wealthiest residents.

Homes in Knutsford sold for an average price of over half a million pounds last year, according to Rightmove.

Visitors to the quaint Cheshire town often fall in love with its narrow lanes, characterful charm and the stunning Tatton Park on its doorstep.

READ MORE: Police statement after 'hundreds of teenagers fighting' outside Arndale sparks evacuations

But some residents in Knutsford have raised concerns about an issue which they fear is tarnishing the town's image.

Gemma Jackson says streets in the town are being 'laced in dog turd' - and the problem has only been getting worse in the past couple of months.

Dog waste pictured on King Street in Knutsford (Gemma Jackson)

After spotting dog poo on King Street, the 40-year-old questioned why some people think Knutsford is a 'dumping ground' for their pet, Cheshire Live reports.

The housing officer posted in a community group about the issue and many fellow residents agreed with her concerns.

The post read: "What a beautiful town we live in, but it's literally laced in turd.

"Would love to know who this is thinks King Street is a dumping ground for their dog. Or maybe it's just an incontinent adult?"

Gemma says that the dog waste is 'everywhere' and cannot understand the 'mentality' of people leaving the it on the streets.

She said: "It's disgusting, it's not just on the backstreets, it's in the town centre on King Street and it's absolutely everywhere now.

"I get so annoyed, it's all over where we live and it's all over Mobberley Road too.

"But it doesn't just seem to be an issue near us, it seems to be an issue all over the town.

"It could be through lack of repercussions, I've had friends challenging people and they say they don't have a bag and get aggressive.

"It's baffling, I just don't understand the mentality of it, it's either entitlement or laziness."

More dog waste pictured in Knutsford town centre (Gemma Jackson)

The mum says that when walking her children to school in the morning, she has to warn them repeatedly so they do not step in the dog waste.

"Walking my kids to school in the morning I have to say 'watch out for that poo' repeatedly, it's ridiculous," she said.

"In the town centre, in the last two months it's just been getting worse and worse.

"I think it must be people that walk their dogs early in the morning because there's no way you would do it in broad daylight when it's busy.

"But I've seen it outside Gusto, outside an Indian restaurant and on a church step.

"My mum is not from round here and she'll comment that it is a lovely town but she said we don't have this where we live, so what is it about Knutsford?"

Gemma feels that there is currently a lack of dog waste bins in the town centre and the council need to take the issue on board.

She said: "There's obviously CCTV footage in Knutsford and personally I think the council need to take this on board and do something about it.

"The area where we live, there are no dog bins and I know it's not an excuse.

"I don't know if it is through lack of bins, but that is not an excuse as you should just pick it up and take it home with you.

"They do have this 'pooper scooper' app where you can report poo and you take a picture to report it."

Cheshire Live approached Cheshire East Council for comment.

Get more news, sport and what's on straight to your email inbox by subscribing to the Manchester Evening News' free newsletters here.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100’s of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.