The problem of dog fouling on the pavements of Wilmslow is one that never goes away and it never ceases to amaze me that some dog owners can be so irresponsible.
In October 2011, Cheshire East Council vowed to get tough on those who do not pick up their dog's mess, saying it will "not be complacent" when it comes to tackling the problem of dog fouling and "will not hesitate to issue fixed penalty notices of £50 as part of tough action against irresponsible owners."
However, in the past twelve months Cheshire East Council has issued only eight Fixed Penalty Notices for dog fouling across the whole borough, two of which were issued in the Wilmslow area.
Community wardens can issue on the spot fixed penalty notices of £50, which can rise to £1,000 if the offender fails to pay. However, in order to issue the fine, community wardens need to witness the dog fouling, or have strong evidence linking a dog owner to the offence, which makes the issuing of fines difficult.
A spokesperson for Cheshire East Council said "The Community Wardens are tasked with visiting these two areas twice a week. A decision is made what days and at what times these visits are made. The lengths of these visits can vary as they have to collect stray dogs as well. Both areas get as much attention as anywhere else."
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Also the spokesperson for CEC says the wardens are tasked with visiting "two areas twice a week". Given the probability catching a dog / owner in the act with "strong evidence", I'm surprised they caught as many as two here in the past year