Parents are reporting that discarded items left on local commons are posing dangerous health risks to both children and pets.

There are fresh concerns that the Clapham and Wandsworth area – known locally as “nappy valley” – is becoming increasingly unsafe for children after lockdown.

Mum-of-three, Carla Shohet, says she was near the bandstand on Clapham Common last Monday (July 11), when her nine-year-old son came back holding a used syringe, with a needle intact.

“Luckily, he was sensible enough not to touch the needle, but I dread to think what could have happened. I've gone there so many times with toddlers, and sometimes they run around out of eyesight. He could have fallen over onto the needle,” she said.

Ms Shohet added that other hazardous items lie at “toddler height” on the common. On previous walks she has found other recreational drugs near the trees. Recently, she deposited a bag of laughing gas canisters that her dog had dug up to the police station.

Dad, Stuart Bradbury, reported a similar experience on Wandsworth Common.

“In the last few months, our beautiful Wandsworth Common has become a place for gangs of teenagers to hangout, get drunk, take drugs, defecate and litter,” he said.

Mr Bradbury says he is constantly stopping his two-year-old from picking up scores of bottle tops left behind after parties.

Last week, he noticed that his son’s special “magic tree” was graffitied. Favoured for its white toadstools, the tree was found hacked and tagged, he believes by a group of teenagers.

Mr Bradbury’s concern however, does not stop at just children.

Recently, he has altered the route of his dog walk, after his dog cut its paws on broken glass in the trees near Trinity Road.

Reports of antisocial behaviour on the common, including mass gatherings and widespread littering, have increased after lockdown, as fewer indoor spaces remain open.