Bath businesses, along with residents and international visitors, are being urged to take part in a new campaign to combat the scourge of the city – gulls.
The Don’t Feed the Gulls campaign, launched this week by Bath & North East Somerset Council and Bath Business Improvement District (BID), builds on previous work carried out in the city to tackle the menace.
And in what the council and BID believe is the first initiative of its kind, notices in English, French and Mandarin will be put on bins around the city urging visitors not to feed the gulls. 
This innovative approach for the campaign is just one of the ideas to be developed out of a public inquiry day, held by the council last November, to discuss ways for dealing with the gull nuisance.
Businesses in the city will receive leaflets from the council offering advice on how they can help with the gull problem – including spreading the word by putting a Don’t Feed the Gulls poster in their windows.
Council cabinet member for neighbourhoods, Cllr David Dixon, said: “Urban gulls create mess by scavenging waste bags, spreading their droppings on buildings and being very noisy.
Pictured: Bath BID services manager Melanie Heath and Cllr David Dixon with international visitors alongside the Mandarin version of the Please Don’t Feed the Gulls bin poster
“Gulls are attracted to areas where food is plentiful and where there are attractive nesting sites, so there are things we can all do to help tackle the problem in Bath and North East Somerset.”
Bath BID chief executive Andrew Cooper added: “Everyone wants to enjoy the world heritage city of Bath without being plagued by seagulls and pigeons. Food waste is a big part of the problem and the Bath BID has already worked with businesses to take more action by providing them with seagull-proof bags, thereby disposing of food waste more responsibly.
“Any action that residents, business and visitors can take to eliminate the food source of gulls and other pests is welcome. I urge businesses to get in touch to obtain a poster and put this up where they can to reinforce the message.”
The council will extend distribution of gull-resistant, reusable rubbish bags to around 450 more homes in Bath in August – increasing the total to more than 2,700.
A special leaflet is also being distributed to residents with these key messages:
- Dispose of your waste responsibly, from your home or when out and about.
- Reduce the food supply to gulls – use your food waste recycling collection. Don’t put food waste in rubbish bags as gulls will attack these easily. Your food bin is lockable so it is bird and animal proof.
- Put out your recycling and rubbish by 7am on your collection day or after 8pm the night before. The closer to 7am you put it out the better, leaving less time for scavenging.
- Don’t feed birds in parks, open spaces or on the street. If you are out in the city please put your rubbish in one of the bins.
- Let us know if you spot gulls attacking waste and making a mess so that we can help.
For information and to download the Don’t Feed the Gulls leaflet and the poster go to: www.bathnes.gov.uk/dontfeedthegulls
