A woman has been left furious after receiving a £120 fine from Manchester City Council for feeding pigeons in Piccadilly Gardens last Sunday.
Kerris Fenn, a 22-year-old customer support executive from Cardiff who was visiting her brother in Manchester for the weekend, was handed the fine under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 for “littering, namely food waste” after feeding pigeons part of the Greggs Vegan Sausage Roll she was eating.
Speaking to the MEN, Kerris explained that she had had ripped the end of the pastry into “tiny pieces” to feed a small group of birds as she thought they looked “quite sweet”, but was left shocked when enforcement officers from 3GS – on behalf of the council – handed her a £150 fine, which would be reduced to £120 if paid it within ten days.
Manchester City Council has defended the fine stating that “feeding the pigeons is littering, plain and simple”.
Explaining the chain of events from Sunday 26th July, Kerris said: “I was sat in Piccadilly Gardens [and] I had walked over from the Arndale Centre. I was eating a Greggs Sausage Roll. It was less than a mouthful left [and the pigeons] had gathered around [which] I thought it was quite sweet.”
ADVERTISEMENT
“I just really like animals, I’m a vegan”.
“I ripped [the sausage roll] into tiny pieces [and] I tried feeding the crumbs to them. It was just a small group, not flocks and flocks,” she said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Greggs
Enforcement officers then came over and “demanded her ID”.
She continued: “They charged me £120 for littering [but] it would have been more than £150 if I left it more than 10 days. It’s outrageous. It’s crazy to treat me the same as someone who throws litter on the floor. I contacted the council and explained ‘this is crazy’ [and] said ‘if you told me, I would have stopped’. I was shocked.”
“It’s the most expensive lunch ever.”
ADVERTISEMENT
“I’m not going back [to Piccadilly Gardens], definitely not. I can’t believe it. I’m still angry about it. It’s upsetting how shocking it was, and how embarrassing it was in front of so many people”.
Addressing the charge, Councillor Rabnawaz Akbar – Executive Member for Neighbourhoods at Manchester City Council – said: “Feeding the pigeons is littering, plain and simple. Clear signs are in place in Piccadilly Gardens to advertise this fact [and] while we take no pleasure in handing out Fixed Penalty Notices to offenders, it’s extremely important that people understand that they should not be feeding the birds in this way.”
“Illegally dropping food for the pigeons is bad for the local environment and can also be harmful to the birds, as many items intended for human consumption are not suitable for them to eat.”
Kerris confirmed that she tried to appeal, but said that Manchester City Council stated she “would have to wait until my case proceeds to court”.
She chose to pay the £120 fine in order to prevent it from increasing.
Trending
Costa unveils 2025 Christmas menu – with NEW festive lattes, sweet treats, and much more
Emily Sergeant
Costa has unveiled its festive food and drink menu for 2025.
Can you believe it’s that time of year yet again? We’ve been noticing the Christmas spirit creeping in for a few weeks now, but it definitely feels like it’s here now.
The popular coffee shop chain is known and loved for its limited-edition seasonal menus each year, and now, with the countdown to the big day officially on, Costa has given fans what they’ve been waiting for as it’s unveiled its festive food and drink offering for 2025 – with a whole host of brand-new treats, as well as some returning fan favourites on the lineup.
It’s absolutely packed full of hearty soul foods and indulgent goodies to get you properly get you in a festive mood.
Costa has unveiled its 2025 Christmas menu / Credit: Costa
The star of this year’s festive drinks is the all-new Butter Pecan Cookie Latte – which is described as being ‘a delicious seasonal twist’ on a normal latte, topped with light whip and butter pecan cookie pieces to transform every coffee break into a little celebration.
Other festive drinks on the menu this year include the comebacks of three absolute Costa Christmas classics – the Gingerbread & Cream Latte, the Terry’s Chocolate Orange Hot Chocolate, and the Black Forest Hot Chocolate.
Also returning is last year’s newest addition – the Caramel Nutcracker drinks range, available as a Hot Chocolate, Latte, and Iced Latte.
Loads of new and returning festive drinks are on the lineup / Credit: Costa
If you fancy tucking into a festive feast to go along with your limited-edition drinks, then this year’s food lineup is packed with hearty toasties and irresistible sweet treats.
For lunchtime bits, plenty of festive favourites are returning for 2025, such as the much-loved Turkey & Trimmings Toastie, Pigs & Blankets Toastie, Brie & Cranberry Toastie, Turkey Feast Sandwich, and the Brie, Bacon & Cranberry Panini.
For those with a sweet tooth, there’s some new indulgent cakes and biscuits too.
For those with a sweet tooth, some real fan-favourite treats are also back this year / Credit: Costa
These include the new Dubai Style Pistachio, the new Caramel Nutcracker Cookie Sandwich, and new Festive Spice Muffin, alongside classics like the Iced Penguin Gingerbread Biscuits, Berry Red Velvet Mini Loaf, Chocolate & Caramel Nutcracker Cake, Gingernut Loaf Cake, and the Festive Bakewell Tart.
Oh, and don’t forget both the All Butter Mince Pie and the Gluten-Free Vegan Mince Tarts are already back for another year too, as is the Terry’s Chocolate Orange Muffin.
The 2025 Christmas menu will be available at all Costa branches and Costa self-serve machines nationwide, and will begin its roll-out from this Friday 24th October 2025 – with some items launching in early November.
Featured Image – Costa
Trending
Manchester’s libraries to become ‘warm spaces’ with free hot drinks and WiFi this winter
Emily Sergeant
Manchester’s libraries are set to become ‘warm welcome spaces’ offering free hot drinks and internet access to those in need again this winter.
After millions of local residents visited the ‘stigma-free safe spaces’ to escape and take refuge from the cold each year since they were first introduced in 2022, Manchester City Council has decided to reintroduce its popular ‘Warm Welcome Spaces’ scheme again this year during the chillier months.
All 22 of Manchester‘s public libraries are, once again, taking part in the scheme this time around.
Designed to ‘provide support to people who need it’ over some of the most challenging months of the year when temperatures drop, the Council’s scheme is offering a range of different services – and they’re all for free of charge.
Free hot drinks, WiFi and internet access, data SIM cards, and newspapers are just some of the things people can make the most of inside these ‘warm spaces’, as well as get access to information, advice, and extra signposting to other support services they made need in the city.
Manchester’s libraries will become ‘warm spaces’ with free hot drinks and WiFi again this winter / Credit: Haydon Waldeck | koolshooters (Pexels)
There will be age-friendly spaces to connect with others, story times once a week at 11am for children under five, and even weekly digital drop-ins too.
Manchester Central Library, Miles Platting Community Library, Hulme High Street Library, Beswick Library, Longsight Library, and Abraham Moss Library are just some of the libraries taking part this winter.
All 22 libraries will be free to enter, and the Council says people can stay in them ‘for as long as you like’.
“For many years, the Council has been a proud supporter of the Warm Welcome Spaces initiative,” explained Councillor Thomas Robinson, who is the Executive Member for Healthy Manchester and Adult Social Care at Manchester City Council.
“In Manchester we have been all too aware of the impact of the cost-of-living crisis and the hardships people have suffered as a result.
“It’s not an exaggeration to say this work has the potential to be lifesaving. The simple act of offering a person a safe place where they can interact with other Mancunians, to not feel alone or get the help they need, can have a lasting and meaningful impact.”
Find your local free ‘Warm Welcome Space’ in Manchester here.
Emily Sergeant -
4th August 2020 
