I visited the ‘forgotten’ Birmingham neighbourhood where locals have one key concern

And as I wander down some of the suburb’s roads, amid the sometimes overwhelming stench of rubbish, it becomes easy to see why some locals are concerned by the impact of HMOS.

On certain streets, you are welcomed by piles of rubble from nearby building works on the edge of pavements while on others, it’s a smelly heap of bin bags which are crawling with flies.

Located within walking distance of the University of Birmingham, Selly Oak is known for being popular with students – but it’s Birmingham City Council instead which is the target of some of the long-standing residents’ anger here.

Elsa Ralph, who has lived in the area for 27 years, claimed the council’s “blanket acceptance of HMOs” in parts of the area is causing some pretty unpleasant issues.

“It’s a huge, huge burden on the waste issues,” she said during my visit. “And the rat issue is just horrific – it’s really difficult.

“Each summer, we look at what we can put [in our garden] that the rats won’t attack.

“And each year, we still end up with damage – there’s damage to the fences, furniture, plants. I don’t really want to go out there at night. I can’t even enjoy the space I’ve spent time and effort on,” the 55-year-old added. “It should be a nice, tranquil space – it’s disheartening.”

Elsa continued that she feels that families in Selly Oak are being “pushed out”, saying: “There are fantastic links for schools, nurseries, GPs, retail and transport.

“It is an attractive area for families but the council needs to tidy it up.”

Another exasperated resident living in the area, who wished to remain anonymous, also told me he was worried about the cumulative impact of all of the HMOs and argued that more of a “balance” was needed.

“The area is always going to be populated with students, we live next to one of the best universities in the UK,” he said. “The issue isn’t against students.

“One more HMO in isolation won’t make an issue but when it’s one more on every road, every month or every six months, that’s 30 new HMOs.

“When you’re turning a three-bed property into a student property with six or seven individuals rather than a family, you are going to have more waste naturally,” he continued.

“Yet the landlords and letting agents do not provide them [the students] with the correct storage or correct information.” 

He went on to say he was also worried about HMOs being used as exempt accommodation, which is housing where vulnerable adults are supported to live independently.

“Someone stopped me the other day who had just come out of a 14 year prison sentence and he was a drug addict,” he claimed. “That’s next to nurseries and primary schools.”

So what do these locals want from Birmingham City Council?

The unnamed resident urged the local authority to look at their policies when it comes to HMOs and “think more long-term” if purpose-built student accommodation is being built in Selly Oak.

He also wanted the council to cooperate more with landlords and letting agents and address waste, fly-tipping and letting boards, which he claimed was attracting crime.

Asked what her message to the council would be, Elsa added: “Stop trying to push us out of the area.”

What Birmingham City Council said

A recent planning committee meeting heard that in normal circumstances, when it comes applications for HMOs, if it’s more than 10 per cent in an area, then that can be a reason for refusal.

However, there can be exceptional circumstances if the character of an area has already changed and is predominantly HMOs.

Cllr Majid Mahmood, the council’s cabinet member for environment, told the Local Democracy Reporting Service that they understand the concerns of local residents about issues relating to the “street scene” in their part of Selly Oak.

“First and foremost, we cannot lose sight of the fact that everyone living or operating a business in any area has a personal responsibility to respect their local environment,” he said.

“The majority of the people in Selly Oak look after their environment for which many thanks.

“We know of many good people who litterpick and report environmental issues. If everyone did this, we would not witness the many issues that are being experienced in this case.”

However, he continued that it was right that the council “also has a part to play too”.

“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,” he said.

“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.

“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 – as evidenced by a range of cases in the past across Birmingham – but we need conclusive evidence and/or witnesses willing to come forward to do this.”

He added: “A Public Space Protection Order (PSPO) remains a potential option but has to be a last resort when all other options are exhausted.

“We will keep the situation under review but believe the other actions and options that are being followed, finalised or are already available need to be given a chance to have an impact before an order is considered.”