Frome Town Council is launching a dog poo awareness campaign this August, reminding and encouraging Frome’s dog owners to clean up after their dogs. A series of chalk stencils will appear on footpaths in public areas, along with poo bag dispensers near bins in open spaces.
Keep Britain Tidy estimates that the UK’s 8 million pet dogs produce more than one thousand tonnes of mess every day. Despite the fact that not clearing up after a dog is illegal, and could attract a fixed penalty notice of £100, some dog owners across the UK do not do so. In rare cases, accidental contact with dog mess can have serious health consequences, such as blindness or seizures.
The issue of dog mess in Frome is often raised by residents on local forums and social media, and also came up at the June meeting of Frome Town Council. Resident Julian Quayle volunteers with the council’s ranger team and has seen firsthand the extent of the problem in Frome’s parks and green spaces. Mr Quayle said:
“I volunteer regularly with the Frome Town Council rangers and I regret to say whenever I’m helping out in Victoria Park, I’m always coming across dog mess on the lawns…which is a health hazard. I also walk about the town centre and find quite a bit of dog mess there. I’d like to see the council run an assertive campaign.”
Cllr Anita Collier said “We love our dogs in Frome but dog poo in our public spaces is not acceptable, and it causes problems for everyone. We hope this new campaign will make a difference, here in Frome. From the beginning of August, you’ll see stencils on walkways in parks and around town, a visual reminder to people that they have a responsibility to clean up after their dogs. We’ll also install poo bag points in lots of the places where the problem is happening: we know even the most responsible dog owners occasionally slip up and we want to help solve the problem, not just point it out. We want to make it easy to act and hard to ignore. It isn’t only unsightly and unhygienic; it also poses a genuine risk to health. Please get involved, whether you’re a dog owner yourself or you have a friend or family member who is. Let’s work towards a cleaner and more pleasant Frome for everyone.”
Frome Town Council’s dog poo campaign launches in August. Anyone with an interest is welcome to email info@frometowncouncil.gov.uk with feedback and suggestions for locations for signage, stencils and poo bags.
