Birmingham children calling for clean-up operation around schools surrounded by rubbish
People in Alum Rock tell us there's been a "surge" in local fly tipping since lockdown started
Children as young as seven are writing to Birmingham City Council asking for a deep clean operation around schools in the area - as well as more being done to stop the criminals dumping their rubbish.
Adderley Primary School said Year 2 pupils will write to representatives from Birmingham City Council after seeing the growing levels of litter have a "negative impact on the local community".
Litter and fly tipping has been an issue in the area for a while but a local community group says levels have risen dramatically over the last 12 months due to people in the area cleaning their homes but not disposing of waste properly.
Mr Muhammed Hussain, from the Alum Rock Community Forum said: "We've got about a dozen or so hotspots within Ward End and Alum Rock, and unfortunately people think they can just get away with fly tipping their household rubbish or black bin without any regard to how they're segregating the area.
"What it is doing is bringing the whole area down and people have this negative view of Alum Rock and Ward End. That's what Alum Rock is trying to turn around. It's not something we're going to tolerate and if we all should take responsibility by reporting those who people who are dumping the rubbish."
A Birmingham City Council spokesperson said: “The flytipping of waste is criminal activity that shows no regard for our shared environment and places a completely unnecessary strain on our resources. We’d encourage people to report flytipping, so that we can take appropriate enforcement.
“When cases are reported, we investigate and do secure prosecutions such as a recent custodial sentence for an offender in the city. We are ensuring crews visit this specific site to clear waste and see if those responsible can be identified.
“As COVID restrictions allow, we also stand ready to support community groups who are keen to do their bit to help our shared environment and we will be discussing with the school how we can work together on the issues in this area.”
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