Furious mum slams 'disgusting' Yorkshire beach as 'dog ban' begins

A furious mum says she won't be returning to Scarborough this summer because of the amount of dog poo on the North Yorkshire beach and 'unsupervised' dogs not on leads.

The mum, Susan, praised Scarborough for its 'lovely, friendly people' but said she found the beach 'disgusting' because of the dog mess. She said her daughter got poo on her shoes and later started to feel unwell.

She posted a review of her experience in February and said: "This review is based on the amount of dog poo on the beach. My daughter was happily playing and we realised that her shoes where covered in dog poo. She later started to get cramps in her tummy.

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"The people in the shops are all so lovely, it's the amount of dogs running around freely unsupervised and the amount of dog poo on the beaches that lets the place down. Will not be returning in the summer."

Susan posted the one-star rating for Scarborough beach on Tripadvisor but did not specify which beach she had visited. North Bay is a Blue Flag beach for its cleanliness while South Bay, the busiest of the two, has previously been rated 'poor' for the quality of the sea water.

Earlier this month North Yorkshire Council published details of its Dog Control Public Spaces Protection Order which bans dogs from certain beaches from May 1 and grants powers of a fixed penalty notice of £100 for rule breakers. The same fine can be imposed on those who fail to pick up their dog's poo.

From May 1 to September 30, dogs are not permitted within signposted zones on sections of beaches in Filey, Scarborough South Bay and North Bay, Whitby West Cliff and Sandsend. On the smaller beach on the east side of Whitby, known as Tate Hill Beach, dogs are only allowed if they are on a lead. There are large signs marking which areas that dogs are allowed on and those with a ban.

Councillor Greg Wise, North Yorkshire Council’s executive member for managing the environment, said: "We are a nation of dog-lovers and many people who live or visit our coastal destinations do so with their four-legged friends.

"Whilst we want to accommodate dogs in as many places as possible, we want to ensure everyone can enjoy our beaches safely, especially over summer when we see an increase in people visiting them.

"We thank in advance all of the responsible dog owners who respect both the dog exclusion zones and other people on the beach during the summer season." Other visitors to Scarborough have praised the cleanliness of the beaches that they visited.

Ellie, from Birmingham, posted a five-star review on Tripadvisor and said: "Scarborough beach is lovely, there was no litter and we stood for ages watching all the different dogs have a wonderful time. It was so sweet to see them have fun and all get along. We had a relaxing walk along the front all the way to North Beach."

Tim, from Manchester, wrote: "Nice beach...even in February. Has sand so that’s brilliant and no dog poo." Angela from Cheshire said: "Spotlessly clean in fact they were litter picking when we were there. Dog friendly during winter months."

Sue posted: "Amazing beaches and friendly locals" while a family from Cumbria said: "Lovely beach which is nice and clean. My little one enjoyed a donkey ride which was £4 for a ride. Lovely beach to walk along and build sandcastles."

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