Concerned parents have called for an end to the use of dangerous weed killer linked to cancer in Lewisham as they boycott a major park in the borough.

Iris Borgers, 55, launched a petition to Lewisham Council after spotting a man spraying weeds in Mayow Park with Roundup.

Roundup contains a chemical called glyphosate, which has been linked to a cancer diagnosis in the US and saw a chemical giant pay out $289m (£226m) to a former school grounds keeper.

Pharmaceutical group Bayer has always rejected claims its product was carcinogenic.

Since the petition to scrap use of the chemical was started on April 15, it has gained nearly 600 signatures.

Miss Borgers, who has been running the Grow Mayow Community Garden for 10 years, told News Shopper dog walkers and parents have started to avoid the park after she posted photos of the man weeding on Facebook.

“We have weekly parents’ groups on the hard standing where he was spraying, where babies are laying down, and then there’s this person standing there in protective gear,” she said.

“As a gardener myself I knew exactly what he was doing.”

According to Miss Borgers, the mother and baby group has been cancelled since she made the photos public.

“I’ve had messages from parents – they’re really concerned,” she told News Shopper.

After contacting several councillors in Lewisham about her concerns, Miss Borgers set up the petition calling on the council to stop using Roundup immediately.

“We have award-winning parks in the borough, so it’s a bit contradictory that we’re using this pesticide on them,” she argued.

Other London councils such as Croydon have scrapped the use of Roundup as a weedkiller after concerns were raised about it.

She also suggested other ways in which the council could tackle weeds in parks across the borough, such as community payback schemes.

“I weed in the garden all the time. We could tell the park groups that we have to start weeding in the park.

“We can easily use other alternatives like friends’ groups in the parks. We will come out and do a bit of weeding,” she said.

A spokesman for Lewisham council said the concerns were being taken "very seriously" and ensured the use of all herbicides were regularly reviewed.

He added: "Roundup’s active ingredient Glyphosate, has only recently undergone a thorough review in Europe and has been re-approved for use in amenity situations as a safe chemical.

"We will continue to monitor the latest scientific research and take an evidence based approach.

“In addition to the use of Roundup and other more traditional cultural methods of weed control, we are exploring alternative methods to enable us to be in a position to stop using Roundup and other glyphosate containing products if required.”