Action urged over 'worst fly-tipping hotspot'

14 hours ago

Rachel AlexanderLocal Democracy Reporter

News image — Mattresses and huge containers, full of rubbish, are among the waste dumped in the area

BBC An image of rubbish spread out on the road. There is a bath and other items spread out across the floor. A huge, blue metal container stands behind them, next to a fence. — Mattresses and huge containers, full of rubbish, are among the waste dumped in the area

A council has been told to "put its money where its mouth is" as the "worst fly-tipping hotspot" continues to grow.

Rubbish, including sofas, mattresses, skips and rubble, has been dumped on Springvale Street and Ann Street in Willenhall in the West Midlands.

There are abandoned caravans, smashed up cars and huge shipping containers full of waste among the fly-tipping.

A spokesperson for Walsall Council said they were aware of the longstanding issues in the area and plans for the site were being considered.

Councillor Simran Cheema, ward member for Willenhall South, first raised the issue with the council in October 2025.

Cheema said it was "unacceptable and appalling" that no apparent action had been taken since then.

"In the meantime, there's just further dumpings there every single day," she said.

"I've never seen fly-tipping like this before. I think it's the worst I've seen across the borough.

"When there's fly-tipping on private land, the council would rightly point out to landlords and push them to get it cleared as soon as possible.

"But now, when a lot of it is on council-owned land, the public highway, it just seems like they're really slow. That's my biggest frustration."

LDR Rachel Alexander An image of sofas and rubbish on the side of the road piling up. there are four different coloured sofas - grey, dark grey, black and pink. — Councillor Simran Cheema said it was "unacceptable and appalling" that no action appeared to have been taken since she reported the issue in October

In July, Walsall Council approved spending £4.7m on ramping up their enforcement efforts to tackle fly-tipping.

The authority's leader, councillor Mike Bird, vowed he would "put the force back into enforcement" and said fly-tippers would face the full force of the law.

But Cheema described the words as "meaningless".

"They need to put their money where their mouth is and do what they promised," she added.

"It's all well saying they'll put the force back into enforcement but we actually need to see it happen. These hot spot areas are where we really need to see action, sooner rather than later.

"I've never seen anything like this before and I just find it absolutely appalling that it's been left to get into this condition."

The council's spokesperson added: "Plans to secure the site are being considered ahead of clearance to ensure issues are alleviated long-term."

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.

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