New Restrictions For Adur Dog Owners

Dog owners could have to keep their pets on a lead on footpaths near the Adur after residents backed plans for new restrictions.

Anyone walking their dogs on the Adur Ferry Bridge footpath, and on the riverbank footpath between Brighton Road and Riverside in Shoreham Beach, would have to keep them on a leash under the proposals.

Adur District Council will also vote to ban dogs entirely from the play area and skate park at Lancing Beach Green and from an area of The Meads recreation ground that is leased to West Sussex County Council and shared with Swiss Gardens Primary School.

The Meads was not originally intended to be part of the restrictions but a significant number of people requested the ban to protect children from the health risks caused by coming into contact with dog mess.

The restrictions are part of an extension to a public space protection order that limits when and where dogs can be walked, after a consultation run this summer showed strong support for the move. Breaching the order is a criminal offence for which a fixed penalty notice of £100 can be given.

The proposals are recommended to be approved at a meeting of the full Council on 20 October.

Cllr Emma Evans, Adur’s Cabinet Member for the Environment and Leisure, said:

“Our open spaces are an asset for the whole community and we have a responsibility to protect them for everyone. 

“These changes are about putting some fair restrictions in place to allow as many people as possible to enjoy the beauty of the district in safety.”

The order would replace and expand upon an existing public space protection order that expires on December 18. 

The original order bans dog fouling, sets a limit of six on the number of dogs that can be walked by one person, bans them from recreation areas where dog exclusion orders are on display, and directs dog owners to keep their pets on a lead on roads, pavements and grass verges as well as cemeteries, allotments, car parks and Widewater Lagoon. 

That would be in place for a further three years, along with the additional restrictions agreed by the council. At the end of that period they would be reviewed to decide if they are still needed or should be amended or dropped.

The order also requires that anyone who is stopped by a police officer or designated authorised officer from the council because they are suspected to have breached the rules, must provide their full name, address and date of birth. Failure to do so will be an offence in itself.

Separately, the council is also looking into complaints from some residents about dogs not having to be on a lead at Widewater local nature reserve and on the intertidal mudflats on the banks of the Adur in Shoreham, which is a protected area as a site of special scientific interest.

Officers will consider if further action is necessary to protect local wildlife.