Norwich’s Heigham Park could introduce a dog-free area

Norwich City Council has launched a public consultation ahead of a revamp of Heigham Park to ask local folk what they would like to see changed.

A further area could become a dog on lead zone (Image: Sonya Duncan)

READ MORE: Council investigate Trowse tree felling near river

One of the proposals is to make part of the park a dog-free zone, but with Wensum Park already entirely dog-free people are concerned that other parks could follow suit and ban dogs in areas or all together.  

With few green spaces in the city, dog owners want to ensure there are spaces for their dogs to run freely.  

Sarah Wright, owner of Sprowston-based dog walking and doggy daycare company Tom and Toto, said: “I believe that all dogs should be allowed access to suitable public green spaces.  

The plans could see a large grassed area become a dog free zone (Image: Sonya Duncan)

READ MORE: Floodlight wastage at city tennis courts deemed ‘colossal’

“Exercising and exploring is essential for a dog’s mental and physical wellbeing.  

“If blanket restrictions are brought in, the health and welfare of city centre dogs will suffer.  

“Pavement walking is no replacement for allowing a dog to sniff, roll and play on grass. 

“Behavioural problems can worsen for sociable dogs if they don’t have the opportunity to interact. 

Sarah Wright thinks all city dogs need access to green spaces (Image: Denise Bradley)

READ MORE: Misdemeanour in the mist caused a train to meet the bed of the river Wensum

“Some dog-free areas within a park are no problem and neither are lead-only restrictions but to ban dogs completely is unnecessary and the disadvantages outweigh the benefits.” 

However, a spokesman for the city council insists there is no need to panic about the proposals for the NR2 park, which is off The Avenues.

He said: “The public consultation we are running at the moment is asking people if they would like to see a dog-free area of Heigham Park.  

Consulations are currently happening for the further development of the park (Image: Sonya Duncan)

“Most of Heigham Park and the other open spaces run by the city council in Norwich welcome dog walking.  

“Wensum Park is the exception to this because of its riverside location. We created a dog-free policy in order to protect the wildlife there.” 

The city council ran into issues over a revamp of the tennis courts at Heigham Park in recent years, after campaigners opposed replacing grass courts with hard courts, which eventually opened last summer after a five-year process.

Plans are underway to revamp the popular city park (Image: Sonya Duncan)

Have your say on two new plans for Heigham Park 

Norwich City Council and The Friends of Heigham Park are asking residents to have their say on two new proposals to improve and enhance the NR2 park. 

The plans include putting in a dedicated dog-free grass area with picnic benches and creating a pond and natural area to enhance biodiversity on the old bowls green. 

Andrew Summers, head of environmental services at the city council, said: “It’s great to see these emerging plans for this much-loved park. 

“The new plans are high level at the moment because we want to make sure we are investing in the right things for the community.” 

Map shows the current proposals for the park (Image: Norwich City Council)

The consultation runs until 5pm on Friday, June 2.

To read more about the plans and to complete the survey head to gettalkingnorwich.gov.uk/heighampark.