Not legal but I couldn’t think of anywhere better.
Our local field allows dogs around the edges and a strip up the middle but not on the actual playing field pitch. This is depicted in signage at both ends (it’s also a public right of way through the field) by two red rectangles and a green border and a green line separating the two red rectangles. Great: usually they paint lines on the pitches so everyone knows the location of the boundary. Since March 2020 they have not painted lines on the pitch, the sports department at the council said ‘it’s because the field isn’t really used much for football anyway, but, with covid now we haven’t painted since March 2020 because organised sports haven’t been allowed, only basic maintenance like grass cutting (of the whole area not just the pitch)’.
Since the only way of knowing where the boundary is located is based on the line painting, how is it reasonable we’ve got a £100 fine for entering the ‘red zone’ when there is no clear boundary. There is no unit of measure provided on the signage only red rectangles. The plying fields have no physical boundary but the play area has a physical boundary fence to show you (and in normal times white lines on the pitch guide you on the field).
I want to dispute it but is that even worth it? I feel like their lack of maintenance and coronavirus has caused a blur in what used to be very black and white.
There is no way of knowing at present where the red zone starts, at all, but a council worker still chose to tell us we were in the red zone. Without being able to tell us exactly how he knew we were in the red zone.
Can anyone tell me if it’s going to be worth disputing the fine?