Homeowners’ fury at Birmingham council over 30ft mountain of rubbish

Angry residents have slammed a council for failing to clear fly-tipped rubbish outside their homes which has grown into a stinking 30ft mountain of waste over the last four years.

Homeowners living on Ford Street, near to Birmingham’s historic Jewellery Quarter, have been left with festering piles of rubbish on their doorsteps since 2018.

Parents are refusing to let their children play outdoors due to the rat-infested mounds which have also left people too embarrassed to invite friends and family around.

Locals say shameless fly-tippers have been making their lives a living hell by repeatedly adding to the huge pile while the council has done nothing to remove it.

Birmingham City Council told MailOnline that the rubbish has been dumped on private land, which has not belonged to the council since 2016. 

Garage door fitters Doorfit Products Ltd own the land and say they were working with the council to try and remove the rubbish. The company also blamed the authority for making the fly-tipping problem worse by imposing ‘restrictive measures’ on the public using tips.

Shocking pictures show the disgusting heap – which includes household rubbish, several sofas, mattresses, bin liners, chairs and piles of wooden pallets.

Piles of fly-tipped rubbish dumped on Ford Street, Birmingham have been left alone by the council over a four-year period, according to furious locals

Locals say shameless fly-tippers have been making their lives a living hell by repeatedly adding to the huge pile

Shocking pictures show the disgusting heap – which includes household rubbish, several sofas, mattresses, bin liners, chairs and piles of wooden pallets

Residents of the street are now calling for CCTV to be installed in the area amid the growing problem as the city prepares to host the Commonwealth Games nearby

Residents are now calling for CCTV to be installed in the area amid the growing problem as the city prepares to host the Commonwealth Games nearby.

Father-of-four Arjan Singh, 44, who lives on the road in Hockley, said: ‘People are going to be visiting our city this summer and are going to see eyesores like this.

‘What opinion do you think visitors are going to be left with when they see things like this? It is embarrassing.

‘It began four years ago and nothing was done to clear the streets and then during the pandemic it has just got worse and worse.

‘There are rats running about, its absolutely disgusting. Its like being in the Third World yet this is supposed to be a modern cosmopolitan city.

‘It has made our area unsafe and unclean – something needs to be done as the problem is getting out of hand and causing everybody a lot of stress.’

Another female homeowner, who did not want to be named, said: ‘The mess is just horrific and stinks.

‘I won’t let my children play outside anymore because I’ve noticed rats running about and I think it’s a terrible health hazard.

‘I’m also too embarrassed to ask my friends around to visit because I don’t want them to see the conditions I am living next to.

‘But this has been going on for years now and still nothing has been done to clear it up. It makes me feel sick walking past it.

Parents are refusing to let their children play outdoors due to the rat-infested mounds

The pile-up of rubbish has also left people too embarrassed to invite friends and family around

Piles of fly-tipped rubbish dumped on Ford Street, Birmingham. Residents say the council has not taken action

Locals say shameless fly-tippers have been making their lives a living hell by repeatedly adding to the huge pile

A Birmingham City Council spokesperson said: ‘Ultimately, the responsibility for this situation sits with the culprits’

‘The council need to install CCTV as our own doorsteps have become a dumping ground for fly-tippers and nobody should be made to live like this.’

Anyone caught fly-tipping and illegally depositing waste could face a fine of up to £20,000 or even prison. 

Doorfir joint managing director Robert Neil said: ‘The fly tipping in Ford Street and surrounding area extends across a number of locations owned by Birmingham City Council, along with a piece of land acquired by Doorfit in 2016.

‘We acquired the land with the intention of extending our storage compound but our plans were delayed as a result of the pandemic.

‘Fly tipping has become a considerable problem in our area and we share the frustration of the local residents.

‘We have applied for planning permission to fence off the land we own and hope to have a decision from Birmingham City Council in the next few weeks.

‘Once permission is granted we will clear the rubbish on our land and fence off the area to prevent any further tipping.

‘Rubbish appears so quickly, overnight and weekends, that we are reluctant to clear the land unless we can fence it off immediately.

‘It is our belief that the fly tipping problem in Birmingham has been worsened by restrictive measures imposed by the local authority on the use of municipal tips and would urge them to make it easier for the residents of Birmingham to dispose of their rubbish legally.’

A Birmingham City Council spokesperson said: ‘Ultimately, the responsibility for this situation sits with the culprits.

‘Those who dump waste are environmental criminals, who are expecting others in our city to foot the bill for the disposal of their rubbish and unwanted items.

‘There is no excuse for this anti-social behaviour, which shows no regard for the surroundings in which we all have to live and work – there are many legitimate ways to get rid of waste.

‘We investigate incidents and do not hesitate to prosecute offenders, as demonstrated in the past by many high-profile court cases.’

The authority urged anyone with information on fly-tipping in Birmingham to give details at: www.birmingham.gov.uk/flytipping. 

Residents have been warned they will be turned away from local recycling centres if they haven’t pre-booked time slots to dispose of their household waste.