AN Elderly man was assaulted after he approached a man who had failed to clean up after his dog in North Ayrshire.

And now the council's enforcement team is urging frustrated residents to think twice about confronting people caught leaving a mess in their communities.

The team – who lead the fight against environmental crime including dog fouling, littering and fly-tipping - have urged people to contact them with as many details as possible if they witness somebody leaving a mess.

Since they were established over three years ago, the team has handed out over 1,300 fixed penalty notices. They target areas where environmental crime is a problem.

And while they welcome the support of North Ayrshire residents, they would rather they didn’t take matters into their own hands.

Councillor Jim Montgomerie, Cabinet Member for Place, said: “The team has been given a lot of support from the public since they were established. The number of environmental crimes being reported has never been higher because there is a recognition that the team mean business. They are passionate about cleaning our communities.

“We understand that it can be incredibly frustrating when you see someone leaving a mess. We have all probably witnessed someone tossing a piece of rubbish or not cleaning up after their dog. It feels like they are committing a crime against you and the whole community.

“While it is very annoying, our advice would be not to confront the person. If you feel you have to, please tread very carefully.

“We have learned of an elderly gentleman being punched because he confronted a man who failed to clean his dog’s mess. That’s totally unacceptable.

“So please be careful. It wold be much better and safer if people contacted us with as many details as possible. We would then endeavour to catch the culprit and issue him/her with a fine.

“That would have the desired long-term impact.”

Please contact the team on EnvironmentalEnforcementTeam@north-ayrshire.gov.uk or log a complaint via the council’s website.