Top Tips

Define what behaviour are you trying to influence. We focused on the four key messages in our Take the Lead campaign:

Keep dogs on the lead around livestock and wildlife.
Always bag and bin dog poo.
Stick to the paths during ground-nesting bird season.
Keep out of MOD areas when red flags are flying.

The behaviours you want to change will likely vary on different sites so it is worth doing a full assessment of the site in question to identify the problems. We have previously worked with Stephen Jenkinson, an expert in access and countryside management, who we can recommend as a professional to help assess sites and offer insights into how best to manage your site to encourage responsible behaviour of dog walkers.

2. Be clear in your recruitment material. Recruiting via social media or posters on the site in questions are a great way to reach the right people. Make sure you are clear about the type of person you are looking for and what the volunteering role requires in terms of time and commitment. It might help to run a dog walker focus group or coffee morning to discuss the site and as a way to recruit ambassadors or talk through plans.

3. Can you offer an incentive of some sort. Our dog ambassadors were given branded gilets as a way to help ensure they felt part of a team. We found the main incentive for people signing up to the scheme was that they wanted to be part of something which would help make a difference to their local area.

4. Schedule in regular catch ups. Meeting regularly with the dog ambassadors offers important time to hear their findings and feedback from the wider community. It also helps to ensure they feel that their role has purpose and they are part of the larger team.

5. Act on feedback. Where possible act quickly and effectively on any constructive feedback from the dog walking community – this will help people feel like they are listened too and so in turn they are more likely to listen to you. For example, if they express that signage is out of date or unclear, change or update signs to make your expectations of people clearer.