Agenda item

The Cabinet received one valid petition responding to a proposed Public Spaces Protection Order (PSPO) in relation to responsible dog ownership and dog control.

The Leader invited Mr Tom Holloway, the petition organiser, to address the Cabinet for 5 minutes.to present his petition.

Mr Holloway made the following points:

·         Some of the ‘dog exclusion’ areas should be reviewed to permit on lead well behaved dogs to have the opportunity for adequate socialization.

·         Rather than ‘dogs on leads’ blanket rules, to have the option of ‘dogs on leads by direction.’ However, there were also risks to dogs being on lead as it caused them tension and frustration, therefore enforcement officers should have specialist training on dog behavior to evaluate their request. Off lead sniff walks were particularly important to dogs.

·         They agreed with the ‘specified maximum’ of four dogs per non-qualified or assessed person or walking in smaller parks. However, in order to address more dogs needs and encourage professionals to invest in themselves so they had more skilled walkers, it should be allowed five dogs per person for qualified or assessed companies/ individuals in larger parks like Wormwood Scrubs and also allow eight dogs between two for those companies.

·         They agreed that ‘dog fouling’ should be an offence.

·         In relation to the ‘poop scoop and/or disposable bag’ order, to be less punitive and encourage good behaviour without enforcement and have more bins with free bags.

·         To invest in more training and socialisation pens to have good dogs in the borough and advertisement to promote the importance of breeding, socialisation, exercise, and training on a dog’s behaviour.

·         To look into what revenue could be sought to invest in infrastructure via advertising.

·         Not to make restrictions based on an unfortunate event or a few irresponsible dog owners or dog walkers.

Mr Holloway added that the petitioners were fully behind the Council’s proposal to introduce rules to promote responsible dog practices and offered their help in suggesting ways forward based on their experience in order to have the best chance in achieving their intended goals. With the Leader’s permission he circulated to all Cabinet Members a summary of their response to the PSPO draft.

19:21 – The Leader adjourned the meeting for 3 minutes to give Cabinet Members time to consider their written response.

19:24 – The meeting was resumed.

The Leader thanked Mr Holloway and invited questions from Cabinet Members.

Councillor Rebecca Harvey asked for the reason Mr Holloway was recommending five dogs. She stated that the RSPCA recommended that no more than four dogs were walked at any one time.

Mr Holloway said that the RSPCA were talking about the average dog walker, not necessarily assessed and trained. Based on his 15 years’ experience as a dog walker and looking at other councils, five dogs per qualified and assessed person was a sensible number in large areas such as Wormwood Scrubs as dogs tended to stick together. In addition, a lower number would not be financially viable. The number of dogs should be based on the amount of land and the density of visitors in the area.

Councillor Sanderson, as Chair of the Wormwood Scrubs Charitable Trust, slightly disagreed that five dogs per person was a sensible number in Wormwood Scrubs. They were already dealing with issues with non-trained people having far more than five dogs and it was a highly visited area, therefore she would be more comfortable with four dogs per person. Mr Holloway reiterated that they were only suggesting this number to qualified dog owners.

Councillor Sharon Holder asked whether after they had analysed the findings from the survey Mr Holloway would be willing to discuss his dog walking experience with the Council and address the issues he had raised. Mr Holloway confirmed he would be happy to open the dialogue with the Council.

Councillor Adronie Alford expressed her concerns in relation to fining those that did not clean up after their dog, especially as there were not enough bins and bags in the borough. She asked whether more bags could be provided and to ensure that enforcement officers were careful about the enforcement on people.

The Leader replied that the Law Enforcement Team had been trained and briefed not to be harsh on enforcement. He added that with the large increase in dog ownership following the pandemic people needed to be educated to clean after their dog.

Councillor Holder informed that soiled dog bags could now be disposed of in any bin in the borough, not only the dog waste bins.

The Leader thanked Mr Holloway for offering his experience to help developing this policy. He stressed that the Council had consulted widely on this issue but was always open minded to review and adapt the policy to improve the result.

AGREED UNANIMOUSLY BY THE CABINET MEMBERS:

1. To note the petition

2. To take any decisions accordingly