Wigan residents have a message in a bottle for dog owners

Standish councillor Debbie Parkinson is cutting down abandoned plastic pop and water bottles she has picked up in the street.

She is then filling them with dog poo bags and attaching them to lampposts around Standish as a DIY dispenser.

Primary school children in Standish have also been involved in the project, where they have made and then located the dispensers.

Coun Parkinson said dog owners who have forgotten to bring their bags now have no excuse.

She said: “I’ve had lots of reports of dog mess around schools.

“We’ve had kids walking through dog poo and we know the potential health consequences of that.

“So we needed to do something and I come up with the idea of these dog dispensers.

“It’s been done elsewhere and I spoke to parents and they said it was a good idea of tackling dog mess and boosting recycling in one blow.

“I organised a workshop after my council surgery and children and residents from Standish Voice have helped me.”

The dispensers have been put up around Standish including near St Wilfrid’s Primary Academy, outside the library and on The Line footpath. There have been 25 put up in total.

Coun Parkinson added: “They’ve gone down well so far and let’s hope they work.”