New move could see dogs banned from parts of Hotham Park

A bylaw which would require dogs to be on a lead in the park, apart from two areas where they will be forbidden, is to be issued for public consultation.

The blanket bans on the household pets are proposed for the park's fenced wildlife conservation area and its fenced boating lake area.

The consultation about the changes is set to take place in the spring as part of a wider overhaul of Arun District Council's dog control powers.

Cabinet members of the council agreed on Mondayto the consultation taking place.

Cllr Jim Brooks (Bognor Marine) urged them to give the public plenty of chances to give their views. "I do know there are a lot of people in Bognor with something to say about the requirement for dogs to be on leads," he said.

Cllr Paul Wotherspoon (the cabinet member for the environment) said: "This needs to be done for public safety.

"We do have breeds of vicious dogs which can run around the park which can be quite dangerous for able-bodied people, let alone young people and elderly people "

Cllr Paul Dendle (the cabinet member for finance and central services) said he had toured Hotham Park with the council's head of parks and greenspace, Philippa Dart.

He agreed with the need for more controls on the animals in the park and along Church Path which borders its western boundary.

What do you think? Click here to send a letter or leave a comment below.

Click here to go back to Chichester news

Click here to go back to Bognor Regis news

Click here to go back to Midhurst and Petworth news

To tell us where in the world you are reading this story click on the link below to add yourself to our readers' map.

MAP