The Parish Council shares parishioners’ concerns about dog fouling in the Parish and, particularly, on the Playing Field. This is not a new problem and various actions including installing signs, waste bins and expanding CCTV coverage have been taken to prevent this. Sadly the problem persists as the result of the selfishness of a few dog owners.
What is dog fouling?
“Dog fouling is when a person permits a dog in their charge to foul in a public place and fails to clean it away immediately after. Failure to clear up dog fouling on public land is classed as a criminal offence and anyone found failing in their duty can be issued with a Fixed Penalty Notice.
A public place refers to land to which the public has access to within built up areas of the district, such as roads, gutters, footpaths, verges, pedestrian areas, parks, school playing fields, sports grounds, and cemeteries.”
Source: West Oxfordshire District Council
What should I do if I see an incident of dog fouling?
All instances of dog fouling should be reported to West Oxfordshire District Council by clicking HERE.
Any aggressive or abusive behaviour and disturbances involving dogs constitute antisocial behaviour and this should be reported to the police by clicking HERE.
Making a note of the date and time of the offence is a good starting point – it may enable the appropriate authorities to retrieve relevant CCTV footage.
If you see dog fouling taking place it is important that you are careful and consider your own safety in any actions you take. If at any time you are, or feel, threatened please seek immediate support from the police by calling 999.
Please note that the District Council is empowered to issue fixed notice fines but that the Parish Council is not.
If you let your dog foul a public space
- If you allow your dog to foul, and do not dispose of it properly, then you are liable to a £100 fixed penalty notice
- If you fail to pay the fine, then a prosecution may follow which if successful could lead to a fine of up to £1,000
- Being unaware that your dog has fouled, or not having a suitable means of removing its faeces, is not a reasonable excuse for failing to clean up
- Disposing of waste so that bins overflow, or placing waste beside bins, is fly tipping which can result in a £400 on the spot fine