A pensioner who was slapped with a £75 fine for feeding ducks says she feels like she was treated like a criminal.

Sylvie Ludlow, 73, feeds the birds in St Saviour's Walk, Dartford, every week after visiting the town's market.

The path runs alongside the River Darent and people often go there to feed the ducks and geese.

Sylvie, from Bexleyheath, was there on February 17 when she was approached by a Dartford council enforcement officer and given a £75 fine for littering.

She said: "I have never committed a crime in all my life. I was so upset and shocked to be accused of littering. I was treated like a criminal.

"It is not littering, as soon as you leave the seeds and bread it is gone."

She added: "I actually pick up other people's litter when I see it. I pick up plastic bottles or cans and I recycle them. So to be accused of littering was so upsetting."

Sylvie's partner Mark Smith, who was with her at the time, wrote a post on Facebook about the fine, asking if anyone else had received one.

Lots of people said they were shocked as they enjoy going to the river to feed the birds at St Saviour's Walk too.

The post was seen by council leader Jeremy Kite, who immediately stepped in to help and got Sylvie's fine, and two others, cancelled.

But Sylvie says if the fine had not been dropped, she wouldn't have paid it anyway.

She added: "I wouldn't have paid it because I don't think it is an offence. Surely there are more important things to be concerned with, and there are other places where littering is an issue.

"Lots of people go there to feed the birds, and the birds are always so grateful. There was a man there with his little boy when I got my ticket and when he saw the enforcement officer approach me, they left."

Cllr Kite (Con) said in a response online a small number of penalty notices related to St Saviour’s Walk "have been reviewed and subsequently cancelled".

He added: "It’s true that we have problems with litter at St Saviour’s Walk and it’s in everyone’s interests for us to enforce against litter and dumping at such a lovely spot. Responsibly feeding the ducks by the river isn't either of those things.

"It’s also true that sometimes we get excessive amounts of bread being left (even complete loaves still in their inedible wrappers). Ducks cannot consume in that quantity and it would be unhealthy for them if they did. Food left uneaten goes mouldy (itself harmful to wildlife) and encourages rats, resulting in complaints from nearby premises and other visitors.

"If there are issues with excess food being left, or the wrong kind of food being fed to the wildlife, then I think we can deal with that in the first instance by better signage, information and friendly advice.

"If some persistent and genuinely harmful actions need to be stopped for the benefit of other visitors or the wildlife then enforcement may have a role but I don’t think anyone wants it to be a starting point."

A Dartford council spokesman added: “St Saviour’s Walk is a popular spot for feeding the ducks and birds by the river in our town centre and we would never want to discourage anyone from doing that.

“Sometimes though, too much of the wrong food can be harmful and if large quantities are left behind it can encourage vermin and that’s not good for human visitors or the ducks.

“So, all we are suggesting is that visitors bring food like sweetcorn, oats, seeds and rice, which are much better for water birds, and limit the use of bread if possible.

"No one is going to object to spreading a few crumbs but on occasion we have had huge amounts of rotting bread left behind and even whole loaves still in their wrappers.

“The council prefers to take a common-sense approach to issues like this so when the council leader was contacted about some recent penalties being issued we reviewed them and were happy to cancel them. We’ve also updated our advice to enforcement officers.

"In all fairness, they were trying to do the right thing but in some of these circumstances a few friendly words of advice might be more welcome. We accept that.

“We are working on some new clear signage to ensure that good advice about keeping the ducks healthy and the area clean is available around the clock.

“We know that visiting the river to feed the ducks has been part of life for generations, particularly for children, and we really don’t want to get in the way of that.”