All the options in full for proposed Sunderland beach dog ban and how to vote as council extends consultation

Sunderland City Council has been holding a consultation on its Public Spaces Protection orders, which includes proposed amendments to rules around dogs on beaches during the summer months.

The consultation, which was due to finish yesterday (Monday, February 15), has been extended after a petition which received over 3,000 signatures called on the local authority to leave the rules surrounding dogs on beaches as they are.

Council bosses have agreed to extend the consultation period for another two weeks to allow as many people as possible to give their opinion on the matter.

These are the three options which you can vote for during the consultation period.

Option 1 – Dogs need to be on a lead

The first option of the consultation that members of the public can vote for is a requirement that dogs must remain on a lead at all times when on the beach.

Currently, dogs are allowed on the city’s beaches and owners can let them off their lead.

If voted for during the consultation, dogs will be allowed on the beach throughout the summer months however leads need to be used.

Option 2 – Exclusion hours

The second option would see dogs be excluded from all of the city’s beaches during certain hours, even if they are kept on a lead.

The consultation proposes that dogs would not be allowed to be walked on either Seaburn or Roker beach between 9am and 6pm from May 1 until September 30.

Option 3 – Rules on dogs remain the same

Currently there are two signposted dog exclusion zones in place between May 1 and September 30.

The exclusion zones are not a complete ban on dogs across Sunderland’s beaches and mean the dog owners can still use certain areas of the beaches.

Under the current rules, dogs are not allowed just to the left of Roker pier and on Seaburn beach, directly in front of Morrisons supermarket.

To vote on one of the options residents must fill in the online consultation at www.sunderland.gov.uk/consultation.

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