Dog walkers’ frustration as meeting is called off

From the archive, first published Thursday 16th Nov 2006.

DOG walkers in Winchester say they have been "fobbed off" by the body that banned them from letting their dogs off leads on St Catherine's Hill.

A group of walkers, who have been trying to meet with Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust since the ban in October, say they are being "rubbished" by the charity.

The charitable trust, which looks after the St Cross beauty spot, has come under fire from walkers since banning dogs off leads on October 15.

A group of dog walkers and city councillor, Ian Tait, have formed their own petition and tried to meet the charity's chief executive, Sue Walton, since then, in an attempt to come to a compromise.

But so far, they have been unable to meet up with her. She said she could possibly meet the group last Thursday, but the night before, Cllr Tait received an e-mail saying that she would not be available.

He and other members of the group had taken time off work for the meeting, and were told that the chief executive would be on holiday, and a meeting would not be possible until the New Year.

Charlotte Adamson, who has collected more than 800 signatures for the group's petition for a compromise over the ban, said everyone had had enough and added: "I'm furious that she's just gone to ground.

"She hasn't been in the post that long, and you'd think she'd want to make a presence, rather than just hiding herself away."

She added that the charity had treated the group "appallingly", and said that they had been "fobbed off" time and time again.

Dennis Garratt, head of conservation at Hampshire and Isle of Wight Wildlife Trust, said the chief executive had already met with dog walkers at the site on the first day of the ban.

But Mrs Adamson said that dog walkers did not get the chance to speak to her.

The St Cross resident added: "They wouldn't listen to us on that day, we didn't get a chance to ask her questions."

Cllr Tait said: "I share the frustration of the group, it seems slightly absurd that we cannot meet until January.

"I want to establish precisely what the trust feels their responsibility is.

"I think there has to be a balance between the human uses, the wildlife and the sheep on St Catherine's Hill, and I think there needs to be a more formal meeting to discuss this."

The trust confirmed that its chief executive was on holiday, and was likely to be away for around three weeks.

Mr Garratt added that they had already met the dog walkers once at St Catherine's Hill on Sunday, October 15.

"The chief executive was there, I was there, and we met with them and explained what we were doing," he said.

He added that following the event, the trust had also spoken to Winchester MP Mark Oaten, and representatives of Winchester College, which owns the site.

As a result, Mr Garrett said no further meetings with the dog walkers were scheduled.