Councillors call for clampdown on dog fouling and irresponsible ownership amid concerns

The comments came at the latest authority-wide meeting of South Tyneside Council as an updated general enforcement policy for the council’s public protection services was approved.

This included the introduction of five supplementary service-specific enforcement policies, one of which is for the control of dogs.

Council chiefs noted the management of dog-related incidents requires a multi-agency, collaborative approach.

They added the policy supplements the work carried out under public spaces protection order (PSPO) legislation to promote responsible dog ownership,

Five dog control offences are covered in the borough by PSPOs, which include ensuring residents pick up after their dogs.

They are enforceable by a fixed penalty notice of £100 which can be issued by the police, police community support officers, or any authorised officer of the council.

At the latest borough council meeting (on Thursday, September 5) numerous councillors stressed the importance of ensuring action is taken against irresponsible dog owners.

Councillor Chris Davies, Green group representative in the Biddick and All Saints ward, raised concerns the council does “not have a dog warden at the moment” adding it is a “skilled position”.

He said: “It does feel for a lot of residents, our bark is worse than our bite.

“We can put up more notices as a deterrent but our community enforcement officers are not the same as a dog warden.

“I would argue with the amount of dog fouling that is present across all of our streets, we are nowhere near the fixed penalty notices that our residents would ideally wish to see.”

The control of dogs enforcement policy identifies the main legal provisions governing this area of work and sets out how the council’s environmental protection and enforcement teams will work closely with Northumbria Police and other agencies to deliver effective dog control in South Tyneside.

A report which went before the meeting noted legislative changes and an “increase in anti-social behaviour incidents linked with dogs reported in South Tyneside, have prompted development of this policy”.

Councillor David Francis, Green group leader, added he welcomed the report but noted the council has “essentially an under-resourced team doing the best they can”.

He said: “The vast majority of dog owners are of course perfectly responsible, their dogs are well supervised and under control and they pick up after their dogs, it’s just the minority of people that do the wrong thing.

“There needs to be clear steps in place to tackle those people, and there needs to be a link through to our environmental health policies on dog fouling as well.

“I’m sure we all know areas in our wards that are particularly blighted and often everyone in the street or everyone in the neighbourhood knows who is responsible but it seems that the enforcement doesn’t always happen.”

Councillor Phil Brown, Horsley Hill representative, added dog waste can be a “major public health issue” and the council must take action if “there is resistance and neglect of the dog and neglect of neighbouring spaces”.

The independent councillor said: “I urge that the resources be increased to the team especially when they have to take court action.

“It is a serious problem, and there is a bland indifference with some people to risking public health by allowing their dogs to foul on a massive scale.”

Councillor John Robertson, South Tyneside Alliance Group representative, called for an update on how many fixed penalty notices had been issued in the borough for various offences, including around dog fouling.

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Councillor Jim Foreman, Labour’s cabinet member for housing and community safety, who brought forward the report, said he would look to find the information and provide an update to councillors.

He added the updated enforcement policies will “ensure a consistent and co-ordinated approach to enforcement across public protection and help provide robust justification for our enforcement direction”.

A Riverside Community Area Forum meeting in April heard in 2023/24 a total of 21 fixed penalty notices were issued for the breach of the dog control PSPO compared to just two in 2015/16, when the council had a dedicated dog warden service.