A COUNTRYSIDE CODE FOR STILLINGFLEET

We are all fortunate to live in such an attractive village with its ancient church and village green, surrounded as it is by open countryside. For some, the surrounding countryside is a source of pleasure and recreation, but for others it is the source of their livelihoods. So, in order to protect and manage our environment for the benefit of all, the government has devised ‘The Countryside Code’.

This link provides full details of ‘The Countryside Code’ 

Some of the basic provisions are set out below:

• Respect other people and their property.
• Take your litter home.
• Keep to public footpaths and rights of way.
• Keep your dog under effective control and pick up after them whether on the village green or in open countryside. Failure to do so by an unthinking minority on the village green is believed to have contaminated grass and hay causing abortion in several sheep so no farmer can now be found willing to graze his sheep on the village green, which is a great pity. It has also reduced the value of the hay
• Follow footpath signs
• Please don’t trespass or cause damage to hedges or fences.
• Please don’t block gateways or tracks with your car.

Remember, that even dogs of a gentle disposition can revert to their ancestral hunting mode when they see sheep or cattle running from them, so please keep your dog under control at all times. Panicked sheep on the green have ended up drowning in the beck, so it does happen.