No Fines For Dog Fouling

A councillor has blasted Oldham Council over ‘dog fouling mayhem’ after an FOI revealed zero dog owners have been issued fines so far in 2025.

Coun Howard Sykes, leader of the Oldham Liberal Democrat group, criticised the local authority for ‘neglecting’ the borough’s parks and pavements. 

Coun Sykes said: “Any resident can see that our parks, green spaces and pavements are looking neglected. The dog fouling is just one problem in a long list. It makes people feel like the Council doesn’t care about local communities. 

“I think most residents would be appalled that something as simple as dog fouling fines is too much to handle for our so-called local leaders.”

Oldham Council has a borough-wide policy against dog fouling, which allows it to issue fines of up to £100. If a person fails to pay, this can result in a court summons and a fine of up to £1,000. 

But an FOI request to the council seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service confirmed that ‘no fixed penalty notices for dog fouling have been issued from January 2024 to date’. 

That’s despite residents regularly taking to social media to air their grievances about the borough’s dog waste problem. One resident posted footage of an incident on Ripponden Road, where a man paused to let his pooch relieve itself in the middle of the high street, before nonchalantly walking off. 

“This is absolutely disgusting, you should be ashamed,” the resident wrote, anonymously addressing the man. “Will be reporting this to the council!” 
Denis, a Royton resident claimed she was ‘shocked’ to discover more than 60 poo bags tied up and discarded on a public footpath near Cavendish Way.

“Dog poo, poo bags & litter are reaching ridiculous levels, and not just Royton,” John, another local resident responded. “I really don’t know the answer or what’s wrong with people these days.”

Others mused that ‘there are laws but no one to man them’ and that ‘local councils could make money by fining the culprits’.

Responding to coun Sykes, coun Chris Goodwin, cabinet holder for Don’t Trash Oldham, said: “Dog fouling is of course a problem that no one wants in their community. However, in order to issue a fine for dog fouling then evidence needs to be produced and reported to us. If coun Sykes is seeing this happening he’s welcome to do his bit and submit a report.

“Our Environmental Enforcement team is focussed on tackling issues that generate the most complaints from residents. Last year, the team received more than 5,700 fly-tipping reports, and investigating them and issuing fines to offenders has been their main priority.

“We do of course fully understand the concerns about dog fouling and recognise its impact on our parks, streets and public spaces. Furthermore, we strongly urge the minority of dog owners who don’t pick up after their dogs to do the right and responsible thing and pick up after their dogs – it is their responsibility to do so.”