Mr Sainsbury said members of his group would be willing to volunteer their time and energy to culling the deer, which are coming deeper into residential areas in Wollongong.

This would be a better option than the underfunded council-state government control programs, Mr Sainsbury said, and would ensure deer are culled humanely.

"I've been asking to do this for quite some time, but the offers continue to fall on deaf ears," he said.

"We can set up exclusion zones where the deer can be removed from, physical barriers and so on.

"If Wollongong City Council said 'we don't want any land-based shooting within 1.5km of residential properties, we can organise that."

Mr Sainsbury said this system was already working well in Port Macquarie. He said recent cases of illegal hunting in public streets showed experienced hunters be more effective.

"The Illawarra branch has a mobile coolroom. We're not just going to be shooting it in the escarpment and letting it rot. We'd remove the animals, not leave them.

"The people who do this are going to be vetted, they're going to be interviewed, and they're going to have to show proficiency in what they do.

"It wouldn't be a free-for-all - people would apply for it and they'd have to go through checks and balances to do this. It would be properly done and managed."

The Mercury put the idea to the council, which spent $85,000 on deer control last year, but action does not seem imminent.

A spokeswoman said it would need a "multi-agency agreement" to be developed.

"If we were to look at working with these approved organisations, it would involve the development of a multi-agency agreement and involve community consultation," she said.

"We know more needs to be done. Deer are a long-term problem and there is no quick solution to managing this pest species. While they're a pest, we want to ensure they're removed using safe and humane means."