Royal Mail Group Half-Term – Dog Awareness Message
The purpose of this LTB is to advise Branches, our Safety Reps and members that week commencing the 9th of February, RMG will be issuing a ‘half-term’ Dog Awareness message, given the spike in dog incidents last year and during this school holiday.
As reported last year during RMG/CWU National Dog Awareness Week (DAW), held in June, a total of 2,197 attacks by dogs on RMG employees took place from March 2024 to March 2025. Although this was a slight reduction from the 2,206 reported in the previous year, these numbers sadly continue to highlight the risk of dog attacks on CWU members within Royal Mail and Parcelforce.
Whilst Dog Awareness is an all-year-round message, the half-term activity from RMG will centre on ‘keeping your fingers safe’ and ‘if you knock on a door and hear a dog barking, please take steps to keep yourself safe’. The key messages will cover:
Avoid putting your fingers through a letterbox:
- Use a Posting Peg, the palm of your hand or a safe alternative.
- If you cannot get mail through the door without using your fingers, don’t do it.
- For undelivered mail, use a P6705 sticker when you return to the unit to endorse the mail item.
- Report all hazards to your manager.
If you knock on a door and hear a dog barking, please take steps to keep yourself safe:
- Take a few steps back – create distance.
- Ask the customer to secure the dog before passing them the item.
- Report all instances of dogs being unsecured at the doorstep to your manager.
Attached to this LTB is an advance copy of the RMG SHE (Safety, Health, and Environment) WTLL briefing planned to be issued week commencing 9th February and entitled ‘Keep Every Finger Safe This Half Term’.
Also attached is an advance copy of an RMG (SHE) Huddle entitled ‘Yellow dots for Dog Hazards’, which is due to be issued week commencing the 2ndof February. This communication sets out the required actions to be taken to ensure that all ‘yellow dots’ used to mark dog hazards on an RM2000 fitting are reviewed to ensure they are aligned with the Hazard Cards and Offsite Risk Assessment (ORA) system.
In outlining the above, it is also relevant to remind Branches, our Safety Reps, and members alike of the availability of a Dog Customer Postcard, which can be delivered alongside the normal mail and is designed to help dog owners identify steps they can take to provide a safer delivery point. On one side of the postcard, the customer is asked to support some simple steps to provide a safe delivery point, and the reverse side can be used to notify anyone delivering to their address that they have a dog. These postcards have been in use within Royal Mail for some time now and have been previously communicated in LTB 030/25 to promote their wider use.
Two versions of the Dog Customer Postcard are attached to this LTB, one in English and another in Welsh, and these postcards can be requested from your line manager.
Finally, where a situation arises where the deliveries may need to be halted for safety reasons, the P6705 stickers (a copy also attached) should be used on all returned mail items to identify the unsafe reason(s) that prevented any delivery attempt.
A Reminder of the RMG/CWU Joint Message to all on Delivery and Collections
All individuals who perform deliveries and collections across Royal Mail and Parcelforce are reminded of the need to remain vigilant, cautious, keep safe and take no risks:
- Be vigilant, keep safe, take no risks and protect yourself at all times.
- Always err on the side of caution.
- Don’t enter properties where dogs are running loose.
- Don’t put fingers through the letterbox (use your Posting Peg).
- Don’t assume a dog won’t bite, as any dog can be aggressive.
- Don’t accept an owner’s word that their dog will not bite.
- Look for the presence of dogs. Signs on gates, walls and windows, cages in vehicles, toys in gardens.
- Rattle the gate to warn a potential dog of your presence.
- When calling with an item, ask the customer to put their dog away and step well back from the doorstep to maintain a safe distance. If the customer needs to leave the doorstep to fetch ID or another item, politely ask them to close the door/secure the dog.
Also:
- Report all dog attack incidents and near misses.
- Remember to report significant dog hazards and inform the manager of any increase in risk/changes. This needs to be captured on ORA (Offsite Risk Assessment).
- Mark your frame with a yellow dot where there is a significant dog hazard. Remove any yellow dots on frames no longer appropriate (e.g. the dog no longer resides there).
- Put ‘D’ on the envelope and parcels to remind yourself of known dog hazards when you are out on your route.
Message to Safety Reps:
As part of the CWU’s ongoing support for measures aimed to reduce all forms of dog attacks, alongside our wider campaign work to remind the public to be aware of their legal and moral responsibilities to control their dogs and prevent dog attacks, WSRs and ASRs are asked to:
- Ensure that this LTB, the key messages outlined, and the attached materials are shared widely within all workplaces.
- Support Unit Managers in delivering these key messages on Dog Awareness.
- Work with Unit Managers to make sure a good supply of Posting Pegs, P6705 stickers, and the Dog Customer Postcards are available locally.
- Visit workplaces – organise a plan of visits ongoing throughout the year, focusing on dog risks and controls.
- Carry out Inspections/Investigations following dog related incidents.
- Talk to members about the threat of dog attacks.
- Introduce yourself to new starters in the unit, typically they will be most at risk, so speak to them about the principles of AVOID and the dangers posed by dog attacks.
Any other enquiries in relation to the LTB should be addressed to: lpietrzykowska@cwu.org
Yours sincerely,
Martin Walsh
Deputy General Secretary (Postal)
LTB 031/26 – RMG Half-Term – Dog Awareness Message
Att: Advanced Copy RMG SHE WTLL Keep Every Finger Safe this Half Term
Att: Advanced Copy SHE Huddle FY26 006 Yellow dots for Dog Hazards
Att: LGH_Dog_Postcard_English Door_Drop Jan 26
CWU Eastern No5 Branch 