[C]OPELAND Council is asking residents and visitors for their views on a raft of measures used to counter anti-social behaviour in the borough.
A consultation has been launched in which people are invited to comment on the Council’s current restrictions on public alcohol consumption and policies on public dog control.
The consultation comes as the existing orders that cover anti-social behaviour linked to alcohol and dogs are being phased out by the Government. Copeland Council will replace these with Public Spaces Protection Orders (PSPOs) in October.
PSPOs are intended to deal with a particular nuisance by placing conditions on the use of a designated area, thereby giving extra powers to the Council and the police to deal with any breaches.
Copeland Council is NOT proposing to change any of its existing designated areas at this stage, but is using this transition period between policies to invite public feedback as to whether any changes should be considered.
Topics covered by the consultation include:
- Areas where it is not permitted to drink alcohol in public
- Areas where dogs are not permitted (currently council-owned play areas and sports pitches)
- Areas where dog owners must immediately clean up after their dog (currently all areas of Copeland to which the public has access)
- Areas where dogs must be kept on a lead (currently including some churchyards and cemeteries, beaches, parks and sports pitches)
- Areas where dog owners can be ordered by an official to place their dogs on a lead in order to prevent a nuisance
Full details of the proposed PSPOs and maps outlining the current designated areas are available at www.copeland.gov.uk/section/public-space-protection-order-consultation.
Councillor Mark Holliday, Copeland’s Portfolio Holder for Enforcement, said: “This change in legislation gives us the perfect opportunity to review our current policies on dealing with anti-social behaviour, and to ask the public what their views are.
“To be clear, we are not proposing any changes; the proposed designated areas are exactly the same as we’ve always had under the previous legislation, but times and habits change so we welcome the public’s input into this consultation.”
Details of how people can respond to the consultation, including questionnaires to download, are available at www.copeland.gov.uk/section/public-space-protection-order-consultation. For those who don’t have internet access, telephone 01946 598528 or visit Copeland Council’s office in Whitehaven (Market Hall) or Millom.
