A CITY resident claims several neighbours have moved away because of the amount of fly-tipping dumped on private land near their homes.

Christine Thompson said the litter, on land either side of an alleyway between Keble Close and Lidl supermarket in Newtown Road, is a major health hazard and eyesore.

The 67-year-old said she has been trying for several years to get the rubbish cleared, which she claims only started appearing after the supermarket was built about 10 years ago.

“The land either side of our alleyway is used to dump thousands and thousands of cans, bottles, broken glass, tyres, and lots more rubbish,” said Mrs Thompson, who has lived in the street with her husband Lesley Thompson for 46 years.

“Four neighbours have left Keble Close because it’s disgusting to look at each day we walk down the alley.

"There is at least 5 years of rubbish on this land.

“There’s broken glass and cans and there could be needles.

“A lot of people have said they are fed up but none of us older people want to have to find new homes.

"Why should we leave?”

She said the alleyway was only fenced off after the supermarket was built and having written to the city council and councillors, as well as the Environment Agency, she has been unable to get it cleared.

“When the trees grow back in the summer, you can’t see the rubbish but at this time of year it looks horrible,” she continued.

“It’s like living on a tip.

“I was going to clear it up myself but one of my neighbours said, don’t you dare.”

Mrs Thompson said she has never actually seen anyone throwing the rubbish over the fence and believes it must be being done at night.

She added that the land is inaccessible to the public and that she had made Lidl staff aware of the problem.

A city council spokesman said the land in question is owned by St Martin’s doctors surgery, and it sits behind its car park.

He said other nearby land is council-owned and, while also susceptible to fly-tipping, is cleared on a regular basis.

The surgery and South Worcestershire Clinical Commissioning Group were both unavailable for comment before we went to print.