 Students fly-tipping furniture and other rubbish at the end of the university year has led to an invasion of rats in a Birmingham suburb, local residents say. Selly Oak, in the south-west of the city, is a popular spot with students at the University of Birmingham, with hundreds staying in multi-occupancy terraced houses there. People living in the area say there is a problem with litter all year round – but it gets particularly bad around graduation time, when mountains of stuff are moved out of homes and dumped on the roads. The issue has grown so bad that parents are keeping their children indoors during the summer months, and fire bosses warn there is a 'fire and health hazard'. Photos taken this week show vast piles of bin bags, mattresses, chairs and tables gathering on local streets like Exeter Road and Hubert Road. Dad-of-four Tariq Abdelhossein, 39, who lives in the area, said: 'They leave it looking an absolute tip and it has turned into a yearly event. 'At this time of the year I refuse to let my children play outside because it's a health hazard and attracts rats. 'You would think they would take some pride in the place they have called home for several years but they leave it looking like a slum.' A local fire chief said fly-tipping made the streets 'a massive eyesore' (Picture: SWNS) Another local, who wanted to remain anonymous, said empty booze bottles were regularly left in the street throughout the year. They added: 'It really smells as well on warm days, it's disgraceful really. You can't get a pushchair down the street without having to go around bins or piles of rubbish. 'You would think the landlords or the university itself would try to intervene but it keeps on happening and it's the people who live here who sometimes have to clean it up. 'They don't even pay council tax, so they aren't even helping fund the bin m){kind=link}
NEWS… BUT NOT AS YOU KNOW IT
Students fly-tipping furniture and other rubbish at the end of the university year has led to an invasion of rats in a Birmingham suburb, local residents say.
Selly Oak, in the south-west of the city, is a popular spot with students at the University of Birmingham, with hundreds staying in multi-occupancy terraced houses there.
People living in the area say there is a problem with litter all year round – but it gets particularly bad around graduation time, when mountains of stuff are moved out of homes and dumped on the roads.
The issue has grown so bad that parents are keeping their children indoors during the summer months, and fire bosses warn there is a ‘fire and health hazard’.