Is Dogging Legal in the UK?

Short answer: no, there's no law against dogging as such in the UK. There's no offence called "dogging", and meeting up with like-minded people in a car park isn't a crime. But the sex itself can still break the law, depending on where you are, when, and who might see. Here's what actually applies, in plain English, so you can enjoy yourself without ending up in the local paper.

This guide explains the law in general terms. It isn't legal advice, and if you're in trouble with the police, speak to a solicitor.

The laws that apply in England and Wales

Police and prosecutors use a handful of existing offences when public sex goes wrong. These are the ones that matter.

Outraging public decency

This is the big one. It's an old common law offence, and it covers an act that's lewd or obscene enough to outrage ordinary standards of decency, done in a public place where at least two people could have seen it. The courts have made clear that nobody actually has to see it, or be offended by it: it's enough that two or more people were there and could have seen it. So "only the other doggers were watching" isn't a complete defence if you were in full view of a footpath or a road.

Exposure

Under section 66 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003, it's an offence to deliberately expose your genitals intending that someone will see them and be caused alarm or distress. The key word is intending: showing off to people who've come along precisely to watch isn't this offence. Flashing a dog walker who hasn't asked for it very much is.

Public toilets

Sexual activity in a public toilet is a specific offence of its own, under section 71 of the same Act, whether or not anyone sees it, so keep it out of the loos.

Public order

Where behaviour causes someone harassment, alarm or distress, police can also turn to public order laws. In practice, this is how a complaint from a resident or a dog walker turns into a problem.

Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland has its own laws. Under section 8 of the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009, sexual exposure is an offence when someone exposes themselves in a sexual way to a person who hasn't consented, for their own sexual gratification or to cause distress or alarm, and Scotland also has a common law offence of public indecency. Northern Ireland has its own exposure offence too, which works much like the one in England and Wales. The principle is the same everywhere in the UK: willing adults out of sight of the public, fine; unsuspecting members of the public, not fine.

Where the real risk is

Most doggers never see a police officer. When things go wrong, it's usually for one of these reasons.

• The wrong place, at the wrong time. Family parks, playgrounds, busy daytime car parks and anywhere near people's homes are where complaints come from.
• Being in plain sight. A car under a street light by the main road is a very different thing from a quiet corner after dark.
• Car parks that close. Plenty of spots are on private land or have gates. Ignore the closing times and you're asking for trouble, and if the landowner or a warden asks you to leave, leave.
• Litter and bad parking. Used condoms, wipes and cars blocking the road are what turn a quiet spot into a council meeting, then a police patrol, then a locked gate. That's exactly how the Bradgate Park car parks in Leicestershire were lost: see our Leicestershire dogging sites for where the regulars went next.

Staying on the right side of the law

• Go when the public has gone home: late evening and after dark.
• Pick spots out of view of roads, paths and houses.
• Only show yourself to people who want to see, and keep everything well away from anyone who hasn't come to join in.
• Never anywhere children could be, and never in public toilets.
• Consent counts at a dogging spot just as much as anywhere else: if someone says no, that's the end of it.
• Take your litter home and park properly.
• If the police turn up, stay calm and polite, stop what you're doing, and move on when asked.

Outside the UK

If you're travelling, don't assume UK rules apply. In the US, public sex is generally illegal under state laws on public lewdness and indecent exposure, and penalties vary from state to state. Australia and Canada have their own laws on indecent or offensive behaviour in public. Check the local law before you go.

Find a spot

Now you know where the lines are, find somewhere to put it into practice. Browse our UK dogging sites county by county, each with a map for every spot, or start with our top 5 UK dogging locations.

Before you go

Find dogging sites in other counties: Dogging sites across the UK