Dogs on leads
Allerdale Borough Council has adopted a byelaw under The Clean
Neighbourhood and Environment Act 2005 for dogs to be kept on a
lead in designated areas. These areas are:
- Salterbeck Cemetery
- Cockermouth Cemetery
- Salterbeck Reservoir
- Moat Hill, Maryport
- St Michaels Church Yard, Workington
- Harrington Reservoir
- Memorial Gardens, Maryport
- St Kentigerns Church Yard, Aspatria
Cemeteries
We identified the cemeteries because of the
problems of indiscriminate fouling on graves. We did not want to
ban dogs altogether as they are often a comfort to the bereaved.
Both these areas have public rights of way across them so a
complete ban would not have been possible.
Salterbeck Reservoir
Salterbeck Reservoir has had a major upgrade
funded by Allerdale Borough Council and our partners to
make it a recreation area and an area for wildlife that can be
enjoyed by one and all. Unfortunately, several of the wild fowl,
including the pair of breeding swans, were killed by uncontrolled
dogs. Therefore, it was decided that this area should be covered by
a control order.
Moat Hill
Moat Hill is an area of land that is
owned by Allerdale Borough Council and let for the grazing of
livestock. The area has a public right of way across it but
there have been problems in the past with dogs chasing
livestock. This was a deciding factor in the
implementation of the byelaw in this area.
Enforcement
It is an offence under The Clean Neighbourhood
and Environment Act 2005 to fail to have your dog on a lead in any
of the above areas. Should you be caught in breach of this byelaw
then you can be issued with a Fixed Penalty Fine of £75 which you
are given 14 days to pay. If you pay within 10 days then the fine
is reduced to £60. However, re-offenders or those who fail to pay
the fixed penalty can have further action taken against them in the
Magistrates' Court with a maximum fine of £1,000 plus costs. This
legislation can also be enforced by the Police Community Support
Officers.
Reporting offenders
If you would like to report any regular offenders who are
breaching this bylaw, please contact our Environmental Warden team
via any of the methods on the left of this page.