Rules and leadsPublished 17 August 2026

Leads, PSPOs and fouling: how UK dog rules actually work

England and Wales use Public Spaces Protection Orders. Scotland uses the Outdoor Access Code. There is no single national off-lead right.

There is no single national off-lead right in the United Kingdom. In England and Wales the everyday rule is a Public Spaces Protection Order, made by the council. In Scotland it is close control under the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. In Northern Ireland it is the council’s bye-laws and dog control orders. A “dog park” on Google is not a legal designation. The lead, the exclusion and the fouling rule sit on the sign in front of you.

England and Wales: the PSPO

Some public areas in England and Wales are covered by Public Spaces Protection Orders. GOV.UK notes that these replaced Dog Control Orders. The power sits in the Anti-social Behaviour, Crime and Policing Act 2014. The council writes the order. It is not a national calendar.

In a place with a PSPO you may have to keep the dog on a lead; put it on a lead if a police officer, a police community support officer or someone from the council tells you to; keep it out of certain places, such as farmland or parts of a park; limit how many dogs you have with you, including for professional walkers; clear up; and carry a poop scoop and bags.

The council must tell the public where a PSPO is in force. If dogs are not allowed in a park, there must be signs saying so. A new order needs a notice and a website publication, stating where it will apply and whether there is a map. A PSPO can last for up to three years and can be extended. The council publishes the current order and any map.

Breach can mean a Fixed Penalty Notice, or a court fine. The council sets the local amount. There is no single nationwide figure worth quoting.

Who sets the rule

Parliament made the 2014 Act. The council sets the everyday lead, exclusion and fouling rules. The landowner sets the terms on a farm, a shop or an estate.

National Trust land is not a PSPO by default. The Canine Code asks for a short lead around livestock, for waste to be picked up, and for the property signs to be read. Forestry England’s Forest Dog Code: keep the dog close and in sight, use a lead if recall is not reliable, bag the waste, follow the signs. The Royal Parks sit outside the borough order. They publish their own list of exclusions and lead areas.

Scotland: close control, not a street season

Access rights cover people walking dogs if the dogs are kept under proper control. That is the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, under the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003. It is responsible access. It is not a Scandinavian-style national lead season for every pavement.

Never let the dog worry or attack farm animals. Do not take it into a field with lambs, calves or other young animals. In a field of farm animals, keep it on a short lead or close at heel, and stay as far from the animals as you can. If cattle move towards you, keep calm, let the dog go, and take the shortest safe route out. Keep to a clear path in fields of vegetables or fruit.

During the breeding season, usually April to July, keep the dog on a short lead or close at heel on moorland, in forests, on grasslands, on loch shores and on the sea shore. In public places, keep it close at heel or on a short lead so that it does not cause concern. Pick up if it defecates in a public open place.

Northern Ireland

nidirect is plain. The person in charge is responsible. A dog is under control if it is on a lead held by someone able to restrain it.

It is not necessary for dogs to be leashed at all times. They must be on a lead in designated pedestrian zones and on land where livestock is present. Councils have bye-laws for parks and other places where a lead is required.

District councils also make dog control orders under the Clean Neighbourhoods and Environment Act (Northern Ireland) 2011. Those orders can cover fouling, leads, exclusion from land, and how many dogs a person may take onto land. The council publishes the current order.

Fouling, the collar, and a dog out of control

Where a PSPO or a fouling law applies, pick up. Pick up everywhere else too: pavement, park, beach, forest, farm track. A bag left on the ground is still fouling.

The Control of Dogs Order 1992 is national. Name and address on the collar, or on a plate attached to it. A chip does not replace the tag.

The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 is a separate layer. GOV.UK: it is against the law to let a dog be dangerously out of control anywhere, including a public place, a neighbour’s garden or the owner’s home. The law applies to all dogs. A dog is treated as dangerously out of control if it injures someone, or makes someone worried that it might. Some types of dog are banned; GOV.UK publishes the current list.

Beaches, wildlife and transport

There is no national beach season. Coastal councils write summer exclusions and lead rules into their own orders. Cornwall, Dorset, East Lindsey and others each publish dates and maps. Read that council’s order.

Wildlife rules in England and Wales are local: a nesting board in a Royal Park, a deer-birthing notice, a skylark zone. Scotland’s April–July instruction in the Access Code is the nearest thing to a country-wide wildlife season, and it is still close control, not a ban on every street.

National Rail: up to two dogs free, unless a train company has set special conditions. On a lead throughout, including on station property. Not on seats. Not in buffet or restaurant cars, except assistance dogs, unless the company says otherwise.

On TfL services, pets travel free with a validated Oyster card, contactless payment or a valid ticket. Dogs on a lead. Not on seats. They must not walk on escalators.

What you check

The sign where you stand. The council’s current PSPO, bye-law or dog control order, and any map it publishes. In Scotland, the Access Code plus any local restriction. If the land is National Trust, Forestry England or a Royal Park, that manager’s page and the gate notice. Lead and bags before you unclip.

The country page for the United Kingdom is at frihund.eu/gb. Read the sign where you stand.