CALLS are being made for housing association workers to be given powers to hand out £80 on-the-spot fines for dog fouling in Worcester.

Worcester City Council said the move could increase the possibility of more irresponsible pet owners being punished.

At the moment the council’s 12 civil enforcement officers have powers to hand out penalty notices, but since 2006 only three people have been fined.

The only person caught this year was a woman at Perdiswell Park last month, after her dog urinated and fouled 10 yards away from the owner.

Councillors say if it was extended to Worcester community housing officers, there would be a better chance of catching people.

The suggestion comes after your Worcester News joined forces with the city council to highlight the city’s dog fouling problem.

Councillor Richard Boorn said: “Enforcement is a problem in this city. We’d all like to see more people on the streets able to hand out fines. In areas like Ronkswood, many of the streets are all council properties – Worcester Community Housing areas where estate managers are out and about.

“I can’t see why we should not be doing this and think it could be a win-win situation.”

The council says the main reason the tally is so low is because dog owners have got to be caught allowing the fouling to take place before handing out a fine.

Councillor Roger Knight, cabinet member for cleaner and greener, said: “It’s on the agenda for us to talk through to see if the idea is feasible because we realise dog fouling is an issue.

“Civil enforcement officers’ prime function is road management and they can also impose fixed penalty notices for dog fouling, but they’ve got to catch it actually happening.”

The £80 fine reduces to £50 if paid within a fortnight, but if ignored can lead to a prosecution and the risk of a £1,000 penalty.

Worcester Community Housing said it remained open-minded about the suggestion, but would need to consider it first and consult with staff.

Helen Scarrett, housing and customer service director, said: “We would have to be asked first, it’s really difficult for us to say anything until then because it hasn’t happened yet.

“It’s an interesting one and we’d want to know more about it before we decided.”

The council put £15,000 into the budget for 40 new dog bins across Worcester last year.

All civil enforcement officers have also been handed bikes to allow them to cover more ground.