A BASINGSTOKE shopping centre has become dog friendly.

Festival Place has announced its new ‘dog friendly’ policy which allows people to bring their canine companions into the centre.

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The shopping centre has published a list of rules when it comes to bringing dogs inside, and shops will be publishing ‘dog friendly’ stickers in their windows to let customers know whether dogs are allowed inside individual stores.

More than 60 stores have agreed to allow dogs inside, including restaurants, cafes, clothes stores, jewellery stores and banks - see the full list below. 

The rules include dogs not being allowed on escalators; dog owners having to clean up after their dog; and informing Festival Place staff immediately if a dog fouls.

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Anti-social dogs will not be allowed inside the shopping centre.

Festival Place is following in the footsteps of other shopping centres which already allow dogs inside, including Gunwharf Quays in Portsmouth.

Many shops decided to change their rules on allowing dogs inside following Covid-19 lockdowns, after which there was reported to be a 10 per cent annual rise in dog ownership.

Announcing the new policy on its website, Festival Place said: “We love dogs at Festival Place – and if you have a well-behaved furry friend who’d love to help you sniff out some great bargains, we’d be delighted to welcome you.”

Festival Place director Neil Churchill said: “Dog ownership boomed during the pandemic, and we hope this will make life a bit easier for those visitors who want to enjoy a day out with us but are anxious about leaving their dogs behind.

"Festival Place is more than a shopping centre – it's a destination, so this will enable people to shop, eat and relax with us alongside their canine companions.

“Many of our retailers are dog-friendly, so owners should keep an eye out to see which stores are displaying stickers.

"We do have guidelines in place to ensure a visit to Festival Place continues to be a pleasure for all our customers, so we look forward to shaking paws with lots of new four-legged friends.”

Festival Place encourages dog owners to read its guidelines before bringing along their furry friend.

Dog owners are asked to: -

  • Keep dogs under control on a non-extendable lead
  • Clean up after dogs and take any mess away
  • Alert Festival Place staff if a dog fouls
  • Not leave dogs in cars
  • Not bring anti-social dogs into the centre
  • Not use the escalators
  • Not leave a dog unattended
  • Respect individual retailers’ policies on dog admittance

It also advises that Festival Place reserves the right to ask visitors with dogs to leave if the guidelines are being breached.

Here is the full list of dog friendly stores in Festival Place:

  • Las Iguanas - Outside

• River Island

• 3 Store

• Afrizi

• Apricot

• Apricot Café

• Ask Italian Limited

• BeaverBrooks The Jewellers

• Blacks

• Brew Dog

• Bubble Citea

• Caffe Nero

• Cards Direct

• Claire's Accessories

• Cool! Merchandise

• Cosy Club

• EE

• Ernest Jones

• F Hinds

• Festival Street Kitchen

• Goldsmiths

• H Samuels

• HMV

• Hotel Chocolat

• In Time

• Lush

• Metro Bank

• Mobile Bitz

• Nationwide Building Society

• New Look

• Newbury Building Society

• Office

• Pandora

• Paperchase

• ProCook

• Rymans

• Schuh

• Sharps

• Sia Beauty

• Skechers

• Sky Stand

• Smiggle

• Sony Centre

• Stagecoach

• Starbucks

• Supercuts

• Superdry

• Swarovski

• That Gallery

• The Fragrance Shop

• The Perfume Shop

• Tiger

• Timpson's

• TK Maxx

• Trespass

• Typo

• Vodafone Retail

• Wagamama

• Wash Shop and Go

• Waterstones

• Yankee Candle

• Yogoo

• Your Home Your World

• Cote - Outside

• Christmas Times

• Calendar Club