ODSTOCK residents were left feeling "disgust", after finding human excrement in a public garden more than once.

The regular fouling in Jubilee Gardens, Odstock, was spotted and reported to Odstock Parish Council by former civil servant Lee Osborne, as he and his daughter use the site regularly for walks.

At the beginning of August the duo first discovered the waste in the gardens near one of the bridges, and only a week later they spotted four new different areas of fouling, also littered with dirty tissue.

Salisbury Journal:

Lee's first reaction to the findings was "disbelief" followed by "disgust and then anger".

He said: "We didn’t think too much of it [at first] as we thought maybe a family with a child had been there and maybe had an accident.

"And on August 10 myself and my teenage daughter were walking towards a wooden bridge [and] I noticed what I thought were rotted rose petals scattered around.

"I looked around and saw no rose bushes then the penny dropped, my daughter was slightly ahead of me so I told her to stand still."

The 42-year-old who complained to the council has suggested wildlife cameras and regular police patrols could help tackle the problem.

Lee added: "What sort of disgusting individual would do this? Repeatedly too. We just trod carefully over the bridge and left in disgust fearing there was more underfoot."

Concerns about the fouling were raised during the Odstock Parish Council meeting on September 9, where councillors said there is no more that can be done.

The council added: "We have submitted a report to the local police, but there is really nothing else that the parish council can do to prevent this, short of closing the gardens altogether. Please help us to keep the gardens nice, and free of litter.

"We plan to undertake some routine maintenance work shortly to the trees and bushes in the gardens, and also to replace the 'Danger Deep Water' sign which has gone missing."