As Love Parks Week continues, Sefton Council is joining forces with Keep Britain Tidy to call on dog owners across the city to bag and bin their dogâs litter. As part of this new measures are being introduced at Crosby Seafront to help reduce dog fouling and littering.
Sefton Councilâs Green Sefton service has teamed up with Britainâs largest canine charity, the Dogs Trust, to draw up a series of dog-friendly walking routes at Crosby Coastal Park.
New maps have been installed at Hall Road in the north of the Park and by the south end of the Marine Lake showing suggested routes and highlight the position of âpoo binsâ for dog owners. This is part of the Trustâs national Walk This Way programme.
Also, the bins have been marked with âBag that pooâ stickers and helpful arrow signs highlighting the possible routes a dog walker could take around this open site.
The Park is one of the most popular sites along the coast, and home to Antony Gormleyâs globally famous âAnother Placeâ art installation.
While many dog owners visit the coast responsibly and clean up after their dogs, dog mess can still be an issue on many sites. As a result of Sefton Councilâs recently-reintroduced Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) on dog control people not picking after their pets can find themselves receiving a fixed penalty notice or fine.
The Order includes dog littering such as leaving poo bags behind, which is something more than one in ten dog owners admit to doing.
Crosby Coastal Park is one of 6 new sites participating in the Dogs Trustâs national Walk This Way programme, which is now in its third year. The Trust works with Keep Britain Tidy and local Councils to help keep public spaces clean from dog mess.
Cllr Ian Moncur Sefton Councilâs Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing said:
âCrosby Coastal Park, which is home to Antony Gormleyâs globally famous âAnother Placeâ art installation, is one the most popular sites along Seftonâs 22-mile nature coast.
âBy introducing the new Walk This Way dog walking routes around the park and highlighting the locations of bins, we want to make it easier for dog owners to work with us to keep it a beautiful spot for visitors and local residents.
âWe appreciate that most dog owners are responsible and do clear up after their pets but for those who arenât, we do have a PSPO in place and we will take action against them.â
Michelle Moat, Community Education & Engagement Officer at Dogs Trust, said:
âWalking a dog is a wonderful pastime with many health benefits for both owner and pooch.
âHowever, part of being a responsible dog owner is ensuring you pick up after your dog and suitably dispose of the waste. Previous interventions have shown that by having more bins available, clearer signposting and messaging that âAny Bin Will Doâ has dramatically improved the surrounding areas.
âWe are excited by the potential of our Walk This Way routes and canât wait to see the improvements it will make. Hopefully it will be a long-term change to the area and make the space more enjoyable for everyone.â
People can find out about Sefton Councilâs Coastal and Visitor Areas Public Space at www.sefton.gov.uk/CoastalPSPO.
Seftonâs âPride Trainâ then travelled throughout the Borough, stopping at stations including Southport, Crosby and Bootle, picking up march attendees in the special carriage. The train then stopped at Moorfields station in Liverpool before joining the march meeting point outside St Georgeâs Hall.
The LGBTQIA+ Sefton Youth Group, New Beginnings, which supports 11 to 19 year olds with sessions promoting mental health awareness, was in attendance. Several members joined the carriage and hoisted a banner throughout the march. Representatives of the Sefton at Work programme, which offers free employment advice, guidance, job preparation skills and paid work placements for Sefton residents also attended. Additionally, foster parents who have worked with Sefton Fostering joined the march, handing out leaflets to raise awareness of fostering withing the LGBTQIA+ community.
Chief Executive Dwayne Johnson said âIt was brilliant to see so many people from our youth groups come along to celebrate the day.
Across the Borough there are over 30 parks and a further 183 greenspaces with 61 childrenâs play areas ranging from Botanic Gardens in the north to the wide coastal landscape of Crosby Coastal Park and the historic Derby Park in the south. Whether itâs walking the dog, picnicking with friends, exercising and keeping fit, or pushing our little ones on a playground swing, they give our communities, our children, and our pets a vital space to play, grow, and bond.
Cllr Ian Moncur, Sefton Councilâs Cabinet Member for Health and Wellbeing, said: “Caring for our parks and greenspaces continues to be a priority for the Council and our Green Sefton team.
Residents can simply drop in to the clinic, which will be set up at a stall in the outdoor market place at The Strand Shopping Centre on Stanley Road, from 10.30am-4pm on Friday 29 July, with no need to pre-book.
Building on eight successful years, the 10 Minute Shake Up campaign aims to inspire children to build confidence in being active, develop new and longer-term physical skills and, most importantly, have fun! Children and young people need 60 minutes of physical activity a day so Better Health have chunked up activities into 10 minutes to help make getting active be easy and fun.