Dog Control Legislation on Hampstead Heath

Letter dated 21st December 2009 received from the City of London:

I am responding to the petition which you delivered to the City of London Corporation on 13th September 2009 concerning dog control legislation on Hampstead Heath. This petition has been considered by the Hampstead Heath Consultative Committee and then by the Hampstead Heath Management Committee at its last meeting on 23rd November.

As a result, I am writing to let you know that the Corporation has no further dog control regulations under consideration but that there will be continued reliance on the application of the existing Byelaws in relation to dog behaviour.

I trust you will be able to continue to enjoy the use of the Heath.

Yours sincerely,

Michael Welbank
Chairman of the Hampstead Heath Management Committee

NB: The Petition referred specifically to the reported proposed Licensing of dog walkers, which had not been put to public consultation. Attempts to prise from the Management information about how many dogs constituted a "group", whether legislation would apply to private individuals,
what methods would be put in place to challenge decisions, etc. were unsuccessful and this caused considerable unease amongst the dog-walking community who were 99% satisfied with existing legislation. Hence the Petition.