Dogs could be prevented from using part of a beach if changes - proposed after a child was attacked - are made.

Rule surrounding dogs on beaches at certain times of the year are set to be reviewed this September.

Public space protection orders (PSPO), previously dealt with by West Dorset District Council, include dog control orders, which Lyme Regis town councillors are trying to get changed on parts of the beach.

Currently, dogs are allowed to run free without a lead on the front beach from October to April, but councillors want this changed after a child was attacked by a dog on the beach last December.

Former councillor Owen Lovell told the council earlier this year that a 12-year-old boy received bites and bruises from a dog as he walked towards his grandparents.

He said the dog leapt up at the boy more than once and the owner was unable to control the dog as it wasn’t on the lead.

Other members agreed to push the district council for the orders to be changed.

This was followed by calls from residents for dogs to be kept on leads on the sandy beach, which makes up part of the main Front Beach in Lyme Regis.

Resident Zoe Patrick said: “There should be a safe space that you can come and swim, bring your children down to the beach without worrying about being attacked by a dog or the mess they make.

“Dogs are allowed on other beaches in Lyme, so it is not an issue if you have a dog and you have no where to go - they can come to Lyme, they can go in the sea and they can go on other beaches, but it leaves those of us that want to enjoy the beach dog free.”

West Dorset District Council agreed last year to allow dogs to run free, without a lead on Lyme Regis Front Beach from April to October, but it is hoped that this will be changed.

The current order is reported to expire in October 2020, but town councillors were told earlier this month that a review process would now start in September this year.

John Wright, town clerk at Lyme Regis Town Council, said: “We will continue to make representations to Dorset Council about dogs on leads on the sandy beach.”