Parts of north Birmingham are seeing overflowing household waste and growing public frustration after Birmingham City Council introduced fortnightly general rubbish collections as a trial during an ongoing refuse workers' strike.
Where the problem is appearing
Residents in the Royal Town of Sutton Coldfield – notably the Falcon Lodge estate and Carhampton Road – report mounds of household rubbish outside homes only days after the change took effect on 7 July. Concerns centre on mess, odour and vermin attracted to the uncollected material.
What the council and union say
The industrial dispute between the council and Unite continues, with the union asserting that an agreement to end the strike was reached in March and the council disputing that claim. There is also no recycling service in operation in the areas affected while the trial runs.
Local reaction
Homeowners have criticised the timing and design of the trial, arguing the move to fortnightly collections is inappropriate while industrial action persists. One long-standing Falcon Lodge resident warned the change will be particularly difficult for larger households and said scheduling problems have compounded the situation.
“I feel the fortnightly household waste collections are going to prove a big problem, certainly for larger families. They need to either give them bigger bins or revert back to weekly because the area is in a mess already and it only started on July 7.”
— Gareth Copplestone-Jones, Falcon Lodge resident
- Areas affected: Falcon Lodge, Carhampton Road and other parts of north Birmingham including Sutton Coldfield.
- Change introduced: Fortnightly household rubbish collections and weekly food-waste rounds, trial started 7 July.
- Context: Ongoing refuse workers' strike lasting around 18 months; recycling services not currently running.
Public-health and practical consequences
Residents describe piles of bin bags on pavements and reports that animals such as rats and foxes are being attracted to the waste. Practical effects include unclear collection dates and delayed pick-ups: one resident said they were told collections would not take place until the following Tuesday, creating periods where waste may be uncollected for up to three weeks.
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Trial start | 7 July |
| Strike duration | Around 18 months |
| Services affected | Fortnightly general waste; weekly food waste; no recycling |
People on affected streets want clearer communication from the council about scheduling and contingency plans while the dispute remains unresolved. They are calling either for a return to weekly collections or for larger bins to reduce the risk of overflowing refuse between pick-ups.
The standoff between Unite and Birmingham City Council remains central to the situation: residents see the dispute and the timing of the trial as interlinked, while council leaders say the trial is a planned change to collection frequency. Until negotiations make progress, households in the trial area say they will continue to experience disruption to a service they regard as essential.
