Thousands sign petition launched after council propose daytime dog beach ban on Sunderland's beaches in summer
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The city council has opened a consultation on its Public Spaces Protection orders which includes amendments to rules around dogs on beaches.
The consultation is asking people to choose between two alternatives that would cover the whole of both Roker and Seaburn beaches – with pets either banned from all beaches between 9am and 6pm but able to roam freely at other times, or allowed on the beach at all times, but only on a lead, from May 1 to September 30.
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Hide AdSome dog owners have called on the council to give the option to keep the current rules which sees dogs banned from some stretches of beaches over the summer months.
Paula Smith from Silksworth has created an online petition against the council’s proposals, saying the day-time ban could have a big impact on local businesses along the seafront.
The 40-year-old said: “We’ve got two dogs and we go to the beach a lot, in fact, we probably wouldn’t go anywhere else at the moment.
"It’s the only place that I feel comfortable letting them off the lead and we always buy food or a coffee when we are at the seafront.
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Hide Ad"No one knows how long the current lockdown restrictions will last for and I think that a lot of businesses will lose money from dog walkers if they aren’t allowed on the beach, especially during the summer.”
At the time of writing, the petition has received more than 2,000 signatures.
"In previous years there has been certain locations where dogs aren’t allowed and that is fair enough but at least they were allowed on some parts of the beach.
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Hide Ad"I’ll admit, I’m pleasantly surprised at the amount of support for the petition and I hope that an agreement can be reached the suits everyone.”
Anyone wishing to have their say on the plans can do so by visiting the council’s website at: www.sunderland.gov.uk/consultation before midnight on February 15.
You can also view Paula’s petition against the proposals by clicking here.