Stoke-on-Trent residents are calling for action as alleyways have started to be filled by rubbish dumped from fly-tippers.

Residents from the Cobridge area say despite signs warning against fly-tipping, waste is still being left.

Mattresses, shopping trolleys full of rubbish and sofas have been dumped around Portland Street in Cobridge. Now residents want the mess cleaned up for good.

This comes as in May last year Stoke-on-Trent City Council launched a fly-tipping crackdown. In March alone enforcement officers issued 172 fixed penalty notices, cleared 494 incidents, with enough waste to fill 219 skips.

Local residents say the waste is attracting rats (LDRS).

The waste is attracting rats according to Portland Street resident, Jacquie Morris. She said: "I've got two rat boxes out there that I keep doing because it's that time of year, they're nesting again.

"I go out every morning around 6.30am because I've got dogs to walk. If there is rubbish in that alleyway, nine times out of ten you see rats scuttling around. For a city centre road it's diabolical."

Jacquie said she noticed the impact of the fly-tipping campaign when it first started, but it only lasted a couple of weeks before it was back to how it was and during that time she noticed a litter picker would come and clear the loose rubbish which had blown down the street. However, now she says she reports the dumped rubbish at least once a week.

Ms Morris continued: "They take a couple of weeks to clear it, meanwhile it's all blown down the street and then they clean it and then the residents up there dump more. There is another load in the first alleyway, there is a load of rubbish in another and the rest had blown down the road from the last lot they didn't clear. I'm sick of reporting it."

Stoke-on-Trent City Council have previously said they take a zero tolerance approach to fly-tipping (LDRS).

Stoke-on-Trent City Council have previously said they take a zero tolerance approach to fly-tipping and recently fines have been increased from £400 to £1,000. However despite signs warning individuals of surveillance in the area to catch would be rubbish dumpers, residents say people pay no attention to them.

Kevin Walker said: "People pay no attention to the warnings, I know a lot of the rubbish is being left by people who live around here. What happened to taking pride in your area."

Jo Chipps, who moved away from the area 30 years ago due to a similar issue of rubbish being left, added: "It's a mess and it does drag the area down."

Stoke-on-Trent City Council have been approached for comment.

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