Dog owners have been urged to clear up after their pets after a parish council received complaints about dog fouling in a popular playing field.

West Wycombe Parish council considered banning dogs from the Pedestal Playing fields, which is home to football team the Downley Dynamos, amid concerns owners were not clearing up their dogs’ mess.

However councillors have made the decision to still allow dogs into the park, but urged owners to keep an eye on their pets adding: “one bad owner gives everybody else a bad name.”

Dog walkers using the railway bridge footpath, in West Wycombe Road, were also criticised for hanging bags of dog poo on fences, and have been asked to either throw it in the bins provided, or take it home, so others do not have to dispose of it.

A statement on the parish council website said: “A plea to those people who use the footpath over the railway bridge along the West Wycombe Road – please clear up after your dog and either place the bag in the dog bin in Cookshall Lane, take it home or dispose of it in the nearest litter bin – please do not leave it hanging on the fence and if you are too lazy to clear it up then please kick it well away from the footpath and into the boundary hedge.

“We have volunteers who will be cutting the footpath and it is not fair that they have to walk in dog mess or when cutting back undergrowth have to deal with bags of dog poo.”

Chairman of West Wycombe Parish Council, Vicki Smith, admitted there used to be an issue with dog fouling in the playing fields however she now thinks “most people are being really responsible”.

She added that volunteers who clean the park do not feel it is a big issue, however urged do walkers to keep an eye on their pets and use the bins provided.

She said: “We have dog poo bins and most people are being really responsible and clean up after their dogs. We know a few people have complained that there was dog poo so we were a bit concerned but most people said it isn’t a problem and we said we want to keep it opened up so we decided not to ban dogs.

“We did have a problem, it is a good place to walk your dog, and if you walk your dog off the lead sometimes you can’t see where they go to the toilet, so we ask if dog walkers keep an eye on their dog and use the bins provided.

“When we looked in to it we realised it wasn’t much of a problem. One parish councillor litter picks down there a lot and he said it wasn’t too much of an issue. It is a lovely spot and we do want to keep it open to do walkers.”