North Walsham has been inspired by America in a bid to solve its dog fouling problem

Trackside Skate Park in North Walsham.Picture: MARK BULLIMORE (Image: Archant Norfolk 2016)

But it is not the yellow taxis, coffee shops or Statue of Liberty that are catching the eye of North Walsham - it is the dog-friendly areas of Central Park.

For town councillors want to follow the lead of New York and many other places in America by fencing off parts of parks in a bid to deal with the problem of dog fouling.

The idea was inspired by a councillor's visit to New York where 10 fenced-off areas could be seen in Central Park, creating spaces for dogs to roam free and exercise.

It comes after several members of the public voiced their concerns over the increasing dog mess around the town.

A comment was made on the Facebook group 'Regenerate North Walsham' about the problem and many members joined in the discussion.

One member, Kim Hooker, said: 'I am a responsible dog owner and I get really cheesed off with people that don't clear up after their dogs. I take my dogs on the park in the mornings and there's always poo to avoid, you can't actually walk anywhere without looking at the floor to see where you are walking.'

The town council will also be issuing new bins - both dog and ordinary - as soon as possible, to try and tackle the problem.

Nick Clancy, North Walsham town clerk, said: 'The council has recognised that there has been a problem in certain areas for a while and is being active in dealing with it. We have had complaints before and one problem is the lack of bins and understanding that ordinary waste bins can be used for dog waste as long as the bag is tied up.

'The council has purchased more bins and next week we will be working out the locations and number of bins we will put out. We hope they will be out as soon as possible.

'I suspect that we won't consider banning dogs from public parks, but the council is looking into trying to install a fenced off dog exercise area at Trackside park which will give a safe area for dogs to run and train away from other park users.'

The possible move has been supported by Westover Vets, on Yarmouth Road. It said: 'By providing a safe and secure dog exercising area it improves safety for both the dogs and other park users. It allows dogs to exercise off the lead without impacting on other park users and may restrict fouling in other areas.'

Tom FitzPatrick, leader of North Norfolk District Council, said: 'Dog fouling is taken extremely seriously by North Norfolk District Council and we run a 'No Messing' campaign, an on-going strategy for tackling fouling.

'Officers from the Environmental Protection team are involved in a staged approach which combines education, information and officer patrols across the district.

'In hot spot areas officers will use signage and patrols to raise the profile of the message.'