A PETITION with more than 1,000 signatures was being handed over today as the campaign was stepped up to keep Hamble lollipop man Tony Williams and his two Newfoundland dogs on patrol.

Gentle giants Alfie and Lulu are regular fixtures at the pelican crossing near Hamble Primary School where the popular school patrol officer works on weekdays.

The retired Hampshire police officer has been ordered to stop bringing his dogs or face the sack.

But this brought howls of protest from villagers who immediately launched a campaign to keep Tony and his canine pals on school crossing patrol.

Tony, 65, says if the dogs have to go then he will too.

Today could be D-Day in the controversy as county council officials were due to have talks with Tony.

Campaign organisers were also planning to hand over the hefty petition. One of the petition organisers Lucy Sullivan, who has two children at Hamble Primary, said: "We collected the signatures in less than a week and we are planning to put more petitions around a wider area."

Villagers are determined to keep Tony and his dogs on duty and Lucy added: "It would be nice if this could be resolved over the half-term holiday."

Parents say that Tony and his dogs are part of the school and are determined that they should stay part of the school.

Joint petition organiser Angela Lilly said: "The children love the dogs and it stops them running across the road.

"They sit down and the children pet them."

A spokesman for Hampshire County Council said that all the school crossing patrol staff were issued with guidelines regarding animals in December last year.

She said: "They could be a distraction to the children crossing the road.

"The fact that he has brought the dogs to school for several years does not have any bearing on this issue."