Dogs will continue to be allowed to roam without a lead on Dorset beaches in the winter  – including the Front beach at Lyme Regis where town councillors had opposed the move.

But in a concession to the town the Order will be reviewed after this winter with a promise that changes will be made, if justified.

Lyme Regis councillors had complained that the consultation process undertaken by Dorset Council was flawed – giving too much weight to people who did not live in the area.

Mayor David Sarson said although there had been a 54 per cent vote on no restrictions for the beach during the winter the feeling in the town was that the dogs on leads rule should stay in place.

“We have serious concerns about the integrity of the consultation which potentially skewed the result with a large majority of non-residents,” he told the Dorset Council Cabinet meeting.

He said, in his view, a dog off a lead was not in the control of its owner and he feared people being knocked over, or even attacked, is they were allowed to roam off lead.

But other argued that the rules, which come into effect on January 1st for three years, should apply across the Dorset Council area, without exceptions.

Campaigners told the meeting that the Front beach was the only one in Lyme adequately accessible to people with mobility difficulties and that it would be unfair to deprive them of a suitable place to exercise their pets.

Campaigner Martin Pennycott told the meeting that Dorset councillors should not allow themselves to be persuaded by Lyme Regis town council who he said wanted their own views to over-ride a clear majority vote in favour of allowing dogs without a lead on the beach in winter.

Portfolio holder Cllr Laura Beddow said if problems did arise, even before the end of the winter, the public spaces protection order could be reviewed.

She said legislation already existed to cover all the concerns raised around dogs on the beach, and other public spaces, including laws against fouling and being out of control. She said  wardens, including authorised staff from the town council, could enforce cthe rules with fixed penalty notices.

She said there was no evidence to support the claims that the Lyme beach should be a special case and nothing to suggest that it had more winter visitors than any of the other Dorset beaches, or that problems of fouling, or attacks, were more frequent.

The resolution, as amended for a Lyme Regis review after the winter, was passed unanimously by the Cabinet.

It means that the Dog-related Public Spaces Protection Order 2024 (PSPO) will replace the existing Public Spaces Protection Order for a period of 3 years from 1 January 2024 until the 31 December 2026.