Anger over piles of rubbish on Sheffield streets as students move out of rented homes for summer

University students have been criticised for the rubbish left in residential areas including Broomhill, Sharrow Vale, and Broomhall.

Bags of rubbish, over-flowing bins, microwaves, and broken chairs among the items dumped outside homes and blocking pavements since students moved out of rented homes at the end of June.

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Keith Wigley, a retired community worker, passing through Broomhill, said: “When I was walking past, I was thinking what a dirty place we live in.

“If people come to see what Sheffield’s like, they’ll take one look at these streets and want to turn back around. If the Romans came back to see this, they’d think ‘what a mess we’ve made’”.

Among the streets affected by the fly-tipping are Broomhall Street, Whitham Road, Broomhall Road and Clarke Street.

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Lucy Morley, Director of the store Good Taste, located on Whitham Road, said: “I think it’s just a big shame to see all the rubbish everywhere.

“It’s hard to know who’s at fault. The students have a big part to play but you wonder whether there are enough services to help them get rid of their waste.”

Bags of unopened food, including packets of raw mincemeat, were seen left infested with flies for days in the popular student area of Broomhill when students started to move out.

Thomas Watson, 20, a resident from Broomhill, said: “I genuinely feel disgusting having to walk by it.

“Not only that, but I also feel unsafe and uncomfortable having to contend with traffic when the pavement is blocked.”

Liam Hand, the University of Sheffield Students’ Union President, urges people to consider the environmental impacts before dumping their waste.

He said: “Although many of our student community do this responsibly, there is still a city- wide issue with waste. I strongly encourage students to consider the impact our waste has on the local community and our environment.”

Both the University of Sheffield and Sheffield Hallam University say that around 50,000 students move house in Sheffield at this time of year, which is a ‘unique challenge’.

In a joint statement, they said: “We aim to help students responsibly manage their waste through the Donate, Don’t Waste scheme, which encourages students to donate, reuse and recycle items wherever possible.”

They also encourage people to use food banks and charities for non-perishable food items.

Both universities also work alongside the council on the annual end-of-tenancy, which is a paid service that caters for any waste that won’t fit inside the bins.

The universities added: “We never want to see unbagged waste left on the street and the universities and council work closely together to react quickly if this becomes an issue.”

Sheffield City Council’s website says that waste incorrectly disposed of will be treated as fly-tipping and culprits will be fined accordingly.

Nadia Lincoln, 20, a student from the University of Sheffield, said: “If I was aware of the University’s Donate, Don’t Waste scheme, that would have saved me many runs to the tip.

“It concerns me that not enough students living in housing know what services are in place. I hadn’t heard of the scheme up until now.”