Birmingham’s local elections on May 7 come at a critical moment for the city, which has been stuck in the grip of a year-long bin strike
A message saying ‘do not put your rubbish here’ on the side of a house in Selly Oak, Birmingham/resident Elsa Ralph in 2024(Image: Alexander Brock)
“Do not put your rubbish here!” a message, written on the side of a house in Selly Oak, reads.
Along with small heaps of bin bags and eye-watering stenches in nearby roads, the street corner plea is a clear sign of how the area has been blighted by rubbish woes for some time.
And with local elections taking place this week, there is frustration and a desire for action to be taken on doorsteps across Selly Oak, a neighbourhood popular with students.
READ MORE: Birmingham City Council election 2026 – full list
Elsa Ralph, who has lived in the area for around three decades, said rubbish was dumped on her street “constantly”. She said she had been fighting for residents living near her to have wheelie bins, rather than bags.
She said the rat issue in her area was “really bad” and during my visit, showed me holes in her back garden fences where rodents had chewed through.
“We don’t use the garden anymore,” she said. “We can’t leave the back door open on a nice night.
“The size of them, we thought it was a squirrel running round the back the other night.”
Elsa previously argued the the council’s “blanket acceptance of HMOs” had contributed to waste issues in Selly Oak.
Rubbish in Selly Oak, Birmingham on May 5 – two days before the local elections(Image: Alexander Brock)
But last year also saw concerns over rubbish escalate at the height of the bin strike in the spring of 2025.
“That was so bad,” Elsa said, referring to the impact of the strike. “The smell was awful, it was a putrid smell.”
Asked about the elections tomorrow, Thursday, May 7, she said: “I voted Labour before but I would not vote Labour again.
“I was quite excited when Keir Starmer came in but they’ve backtracked and made a bad situation worse.”
On a nearby road black bin bags were said to pile up on a pavement on a weekly basis before being collected.
READ MORE: Rats, drugs and ‘brazen’ fly-tipping – reality of life in ‘rundown’ Birmingham area
One student, who wished to remain anonymous, said the bin strike had a huge impact on the neighbourhood last year and described the smell at the time as “really bad”.
Asked whether that situation would influence how he voted, he said: “Yes, that’s the biggest concern I’ve had with council services last year.”
He also called on the council’s future leadership to tackle safety in the Selly Oak area, saying: “It’s dangerous to walk around here at night – people are being approached by men and followed.”
“It doesn’t feel very safe.”
Anger over the state of the streets has been a recurring theme in Selly Oak, with resident Catherine Zinetti saying earlier this year that she was embarrassed to live in the area.
Catherine Zinetti(Image: Alexander Brock)
“There’s rats – they’re bigger than the cats,” she said. “Why should we have to pay petrol money to take the rubbish to the skip when we’re paying our council tax?
“It’s horrible, you sit here and all you can see are rats going across the road.
“We’re meant to be the second biggest city in England, it’s a disgrace – absolutely disgusting.”
“We’re suffering – you walk down and it stinks, I’m embarrassed to live around here.”
She said she could not have her grandchildren visit due to the state of her street, adding: “That hurts me to the core.
“Anyone who comes to see me, it’s absolutely embarrassing and no fault of my own.”
Henry Hutson(Image: Alexander Brock)
Henry Hutson, a student and a member of the Revolutionary Communist Party, added back in March that the impact of industrial action in Selly Oak had been “catastrophic”.
“The streets have been littered with garbage, it’s very unclean, it’s not a good place for a student to live in,” he said. “We need to fight back against the council who are completely shameful.”
He said he was reminded of the Winter of Discontent in 1978 as rubbish piled up last spring.
“But even now the effects are still showing, my bins don’t get taken every week, there’s litter I’ve sort of memorised on my walk to and from school,” he said.
“It’s disgusting and no student should have to live in this.”
READ MORE: Inside the ‘forgotten’ Birmingham estate where piles of bin strike rubbish loom large
Asked about fears over rats in the area, he said: “Of course, it’s almost been kind of secondary though – we’ve got used to it.”
Thursday’s elections will decide which party or coalition runs the city council for the next four years.
It comes at a critical moment for Birmingham, which has been hit by the fallout of a financial crisis and the impacts of a bin strike.
Labour will be fighting to keep control of the council but will face opposition from the Conservatives, Liberal Democrats, Green Party, Reform UK, independents and more.
Coun John Cotton, leader of Birmingham Labour, announced last week that an end to the bins strike was finally “within sight” after an agreement was reached with Unite the union.
John Cotton, Labour(Image: Nick Wilkinson/Birmingham Live)
But that update was met with scepticism and anger from opposition councillors, who described the announcement as ‘desperate’ and ‘pathetic’.
Birmingham-specific issues such as the Oracle and equal pay debacles contributed to the council’s financial crisis while Labour figures have pointed the finger at ‘austerity’ measures brought during the Tories ’ time in government.
Coun Cotton claimed earlier this year that the council had ditched the ‘bankrupt Birmingham’ tag after closing a £300 million budget gap.
On rubbish woes in Selly Oak, Coun Majid Mahmood, the council’s cabinet member for environment, said in 2024: “The councillors for the area, for a very long time, have worked hard to engage with the community and stakeholders such as the Student Guild.
“Our waste management team has also carried out various activities in the area in an attempt to encourage the positive behaviours that would end the local issues.
Birmingham local election 2026
Birmingham City Council House(Image: Nick Wilkinson/Birmingham Live)
Brummies across the city will head to the polls on May 7 and decide who runs the local council in an election that comes at a critical time for Brum.
Birmingham City Council, one of the biggest local authorities in Europe, is responsible for waste collection, housing, libraries, road maintenance, social care and much more.
With the council embarking on a financial recovery journey and still dealing with a bins strike, this local election in May is a significant moment for Birmingham.
All 101 council seats across Brum will be contested – this means the election will decide who represents your area and which party or coalition runs the city council during the next four years at least.
We will be bringing you the latest news, opinion and polls covering the elections where you live as well as the wider picture across the UK.
All you need to know about May’s vote can be found here. Our dedicated reporters for Birmingham City Council are Jane Haynes and Alexander Brock.
A full list of candidates can be found here.
“Existing regulations relating to HMOs can also play a part with such issues, and where we have evidence of waste offences that meet the legally-required threshold, we will not hesitate to prosecute.”
A full list of candidates standing in the local elections in Birmingham can be found on the city council website.