Dozens of car parks have been shut, lay-bys blocked and trees cut down around the country in attempts to deter the outdoor sex practice known as “dogging”. Councils, police forces and park authorities are also carrying out night-time patrols, putting up warning signs and painting double yellow lines in secluded areas. The authorities insist the drastic and sometimes costly actions are needed to deter “doggers”, people who get a thrill from watching strangers have sex in parked cars. But some claim the culprits should simply be arrested for the crimes indecent exposure or outraging public decency, rather than the law-abiding majority suffering restricted access to roads or the countryside.
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The steps taken by town halls in particular to halt dogging were highlighted this week when it emerged that Surrey County Council is considering releasing a herd of bulls into a field. The local authority has had more than 300 complaints about people having sex near the Hog’s Back lay-by on the A31 at Puttenham, and believes the bull option is “viable”. Earlier this year 6,000 trees were cut down at a beauty spot on the outskirts of Darwen, Lancashire, with councillors claiming it would act as “a deterrent to people who go dogging”.
A Daily Telegraph survey has found that councils across Britain have taken similar action in recent years. In Leicestershire, a wildlife area was bulldozed at a dogging hotspot in 2007. Residents complained that mature ash and beech trees had been chopped down at Groby Pool, by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council, but that strangers continued to meet there for sex. A popular picnic site in Derbyshire was transformed, with bushes cut down to make the car park more visible and gates costing £1,000 installed at the Highoredish site. Derbyshire County Council also restricted access to the car park to daylight hours and weekends during the summer, with nearby residents volunteering to lock the gates.
Two lay-bys in Durham, one near Crook and the other north of Tow Law, were closed down partly because of “problems of anti-social behaviour of a sexual nature”. Durham County Council has also closed a car park at Beamish Burn during the week. The same authority has cut back trees and shrubs at two sites near Chester-le-Street and Causey Arch near Stanley, where £1,000 was also spent putting up fencing to keep doggers out. Warrington Borough Council installed a “concrete barrier” and demolished three disused buildings near lanes in Burtonwood “following numerous reports and complaints”, and also took action on two car parks near woods.
A beauty spot in the Cotswolds became so notorious for open-air sex that earlier this year pranksters put up a fake heritage road sign stating: “Official dogging area.” Gloucestershire County Council has responded by clearing scrub and bushes at Barrow Wake viewpoint, and may close another park at night. A spokesman said it had carried out “several low intensity actions designed to discourage blatant sexual activity and help make the sites feel more safe for ordinary visitors. Of particular concern are the 'doggers' and the associated voyeurs who can be fairly persistent and aggressive according to locals.”
In Alkrington Woods, Rochdale MBC closed a car park temporarily and installed CCTV cameras. Kent County Council blocked off a lay-by on the A249 at Stockbury despite complaints from lorry drivers who said they used it as a legitimate rest stop, while a picnic site near Stowmarket was shut down by Suffolk County Council. The Forestry Commissions in England, Scotland and Wales have also taken action to deter doggers, in some places putting up warning signs and in others cutting back vegetation to make secluded car parks more visible.
A Daily Telegraph survey has found that councils across Britain have taken similar action in recent years. In Leicestershire, a wildlife area was bulldozed at a dogging hotspot in 2007. Residents complained that mature ash and beech trees had been chopped down at Groby Pool, by Hinckley and Bosworth Borough Council, but that strangers continued to meet there for sex. A popular picnic site in Derbyshire was transformed, with bushes cut down to make the car park more visible and gates costing £1,000 installed at the Highoredish site. Derbyshire County Council also restricted access to the car park to daylight hours and weekends during the summer, with nearby residents volunteering to lock the gates.
Two lay-bys in Durham, one near Crook and the other north of Tow Law, were closed down partly because of “problems of anti-social behaviour of a sexual nature”. Durham County Council has also closed a car park at Beamish Burn during the week. The same authority has cut back trees and shrubs at two sites near Chester-le-Street and Causey Arch near Stanley, where £1,000 was also spent putting up fencing to keep doggers out. Warrington Borough Council installed a “concrete barrier” and demolished three disused buildings near lanes in Burtonwood “following numerous reports and complaints”, and also took action on two car parks near woods.
A beauty spot in the Cotswolds became so notorious for open-air sex that earlier this year pranksters put up a fake heritage road sign stating: “Official dogging area.” Gloucestershire County Council has responded by clearing scrub and bushes at Barrow Wake viewpoint, and may close another park at night. A spokesman said it had carried out “several low intensity actions designed to discourage blatant sexual activity and help make the sites feel more safe for ordinary visitors. Of particular concern are the 'doggers' and the associated voyeurs who can be fairly persistent and aggressive according to locals.”
In Alkrington Woods, Rochdale MBC closed a car park temporarily and installed CCTV cameras. Kent County Council blocked off a lay-by on the A249 at Stockbury despite complaints from lorry drivers who said they used it as a legitimate rest stop, while a picnic site near Stowmarket was shut down by Suffolk County Council. The Forestry Commissions in England, Scotland and Wales have also taken action to deter doggers, in some places putting up warning signs and in others cutting back vegetation to make secluded car parks more visible.
