FRESH concern has been raised over dog mess in Worcester, with calls for "warning signs" and an enforcement crackdown on pooch owners.

Councillor Alan Amos says at least eight streets in St John's are blighted by dog poo due to the high tally of long, narrow alleyways.

Cut-throughs in streets including Bromwich Road, Sherwood Lane, Hudson Close, Foley Road and Pitmaston Road are among those named as problem areas.

"Dog fouling is now a widespread and growing problem in Bedwardine (the council ward, which is part of St John's)," he said.

"Given the number of complaints I've received recently about the condition of alleyways, I want to know what additional resources the council is making available to deal with the problem."

He raised concerns about it during a full council meeting, also citing Swinton Lane, Skinner Road and Winchester Avenue.

He called for more inspections and street cleansing, warning signs to be erected, extra dog waste bins and better enforcement with a view to the "prosecution of offenders".

The Conservative called for "additional resources" to help tackle it, saying the current measures are not going far enough.

Councillor Adrian Gregson, the city's Labour leader, said: "Dog fouling is undoubtedly an unpleasant, anti-social act.

"Bedwardine has a lot of alleyways which are used late at night by dog walkers, as a result of cutbacks by the county council many people can't see where they are going."

He said extra patrols are being taken in problem areas, with specified 'zones' being examined every two weeks, but added that it was very expensive and "not the answer" in the long-term.

After more questioning and claims he would not earmark extra funds on it, he said: "It's certainly not the case that I'm saying no more funds are available.

"But cleansing alone is not the solution - we need to deal with irresponsible owners who allow their dogs to foul and don't deal with it."

The problem of dog mess in Worcester is expected to be looked at in detail once the council reverts to a committee system of governance in May.

There are 230 dog muck bins in Worcester, with a £30,000 bid to add more in key locations rejected last month.