Dog ban School welcomes move after owners fail to clean up mess
DOGS have been completely banned from a Bristol park, and owners will be fined £100 for taking their pets through the gates.
The main field at South Street Park in Bedminster is now the subject of a Public Space Protection Order issued by Bristol City Council, which came into force this month.
The council had threatened to impose the order 18 months ago, if dog owners continued to leave faeces in the park, and has now imposed the order after continued issues.
The field belongs to Gatehouse
Green Learning Trust, which runs Compass Point primary school across the road, and Bristol City Council in a partnership that dates back to the creation of the park around 40 years when the final homes were pulled down.
Compass Point’s pupils use the park as their playing field, but have not been able to for two and a half years because so many dog owners were using it instead.
One fenced off corner of South Street Park is a designated Bark Park for dogs to run freely in, and owners are being directed there.
The council consulted people living near the park about the measure, and around 80 per cent of people said they were happy to see dogs barred completely. Humans will still be allowed to use the park outside of school hours.
Headteacher Linda Brown said the school was grateful for the support of the community and was delighted the ban was now in place.
It means classes at Compass Point have free access to the field for play and for outdoor learning for the first time in two and a half years.
“We are so pleased that our children can now have games lessons on the field and teachers can take classes out there whenever they choose, without having to wait for it to be checked for dog mess,” she said.
“It is especially important now, during the pandemic, when we cannot do PE and games indoors because of Covid-19 restrictions.
“Thank you to the local community who overwhelmingly supported our application.”
We are so pleased that our children can now have games lessons on the field and teachers can take classes out there, without having to wait for it to be checked for dog mess Headteacher Linda Brown