An online website has revealed the most popular dogging sites in Essex.

The list, published on the ‘doggingafterdark’, of 33 sites, includes the woods by the disused public toilets in the west of Witham and a field off Hurrells Lane in Little Baddow, Chelmsford.

Other sites include Langdon Hills Country Park in Basildon, Cudmore Grove Country park in Mersea Island and a car park off Colchester Road in Coggeshall.

Other sites include a spot behind Leigh-on-Sea railway station, a car park beside a Travelodge hotel in Southgate Road between Romford and Southend and a car park opposite the Camelot Pub in Chigwell.

WALKERS say they have had enough of strangers who are meeting for casual sex at a Mid Devon beauty spot which has become one of the South West’s most popular spots for dogging.

Land near Bolham has been advertised on several websites including Dogging AfterDark, as one of the best places to engage in the practice of watching strangers have sex in public places in the East Devon area.

Because it is close to the M5 motorway and the A361 North Devon Link Road, and has space for car parking, the site has been “over-run” in recent weeks, said one woman who exercised her dogs there.

“It used to be a bit of a problem on some nights of the week, and I didn’t feel safe there after dark,” she said.

The site is described on one site as being an excellent place to meet for sex with strangers because of its transport links and the fact that there are ramshackle farm buildings and hedges for privacy.

Police say they are unsure whether those meeting at the spot for sex are breaking the law, and the Devon & Cornwall Force is currently reviewing its policy on dogging.

A POPULAR park and an historic beauty spot have been named on a list of dogging websites where strangers meet for sex in front of spectators.

Those who take part claim the activity falls through a legal loophole because it is not an offence to have sex in public unless it causes outrage to a witness.

These dogging hotspots include Central Park, Devil’s Point, Jennycliff, Thorn Park in Mannamead and car parks in Ivybridge and Plympton.

A spokesman for Devon and Cornwall Police said the force is trying to tackle the anti social behaviour, but its powers to stop it are limited.

“Having sex in a public place is not actually an offence – the offence is one of public indecency, or public nuisance – so it’s difficult to enforce any law. We cannot arrest anyone simply for having sex in a public place,” he said.

“We are aware of the issue, and we’ve asked officers to disrupt the problem. We say to people to tell the police about it and we’ll see how we can deal with it, but ultimately it’s not just down to the police, it’s also one for the local authority.”