A heartbroken couple claim they are living in a “disgusting” neighbourhood due to alleged fly-tipping that they believe led to the death of their cat.
Katie Rogers, 48, says she has been in a dispute with her local council since April last year after her outdoor bins and alleyway were left littered with ‘dirty needles’, rats and human waste.
Ms Rogers and partner Lee Peacock, 49, from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, allege that despite living with the issues since 2024 and making formal complaints to the council since April 2025 neighbours continue to fly-tip.
The support worker added that their garden has become so dangerous with hazardous waste and rat infestations that they can no longer let their two year-old granddaughter outside.
Speaking today the grandmother said: “It started about six months after we moved in. We’ve been in the house for two years in June and we’ve had nothing but issues.
“This has been going on for over a year now.”
“When we first moved in, Lee was constantly putting it all in our bins because he’s a bit of a freak where he doesn’t like it outside his house but I told him not to do it because then the more they’ll carry on doing it.”
Ms Rogers claims that language barriers between neighbours has only added to the rising tensions.
She added: “We don’t have much communication with anybody. We don’t really speak to any of the neighbours apart from the one on the opposite side of us that we do get on with but the other side – that’s where the majority of the rubbish is coming from.
“If you walk up and down the alley, it’s just full of household rubbish, shopping rubbish, human waste.
“We’ve had dirty needles – I’ve even walked, put my bin out and found one of them urinating outside.”
She added: “I do know for certain it’s next door because last year Lee went out and opened one of the bags and there was an address in it, which was my next-door neighbour.
“So, Lee took photographs of this with the name, with the rubbish, sent it to [the council]. Nothing happened as far as we knew.
“The rubbish was removed by the council. Then, within a month it was all back again. In my neighbour’s back yard, you can see from the photos that his yard is full of rubbish.
“That green bin that was outside – that had a suitcase in it – he has now put it back in his yard.”
However, things came to a head in September last year when the couple’s beloved cat Oscar, 16, became unwell before being put to sleep after alleged exposure to the hazardous waste.
“Oscar used to be an outdoor cat. We had to put him to sleep last year.
“We kept him in for the first six months because of us just moving in and the surroundings. He’d been out a few times and we noticed something wasn’t right with him.
“He’d gone to the vets. They couldn’t pinpoint it.
“Then, after a couple of months, he kind of picked up. He was back to himself but not fully himself. The weight started dropping off him and he ended up skin and bone.
“It’d gone on for about five months. After he started being poorly the first time, we kept him in.
“You don’t know what he’d been eating outside with everything that’s out there. The vets didn’t know – couldn’t pinpoint what it was – and he wouldn’t have survived any sort of surgery because he was 16 – nearly 17 years-old.
“I can’t even let my dog out the back because of all the rats and everything. In Summer, my granddaughter – I won’t let her out in the back.
“I wouldn’t trust her being outside in the back yard, not with all the rats.
“We found [the rat] because I have a bin storage. I have a wooden unit that holds my three wheelie bins.
“We found them constantly in there – they’ve gnawed through the bin covers. We see them running across the yard, everything.
“Every corner you look at in my area – you’ve got couches, beds. There’s rotten food, there’s Christmas decorations, a car number plate, a TV.
“We’re ringing the council and the council just come in and they’re not going directly to the people when we’ve been giving the address. They’re just getting away with it.
“I think the more the council is letting people get away with this all the time, the more they’re going to keep doing it.
“It’s disgusting. It’s horrible because Lee always likes to keep our part of the alleyway tidy and we argue because he’s constantly going out and checking – it does his head in more and more that nothing’s being done.
“What’s the point anymore because nothing gets done? We do feel like sometimes just dumping it all back outside their houses but then we’ll get in trouble for that.
“It’s hard on us because we do our best to keep ours tidy and then it’s just disgusting anyway.
Ms Rogers confirmed that she would like to see more action from the council, adding she would like to see “people being fined” for fly-tipping.
She added: “Especially when they’ve been given the addresses straight out of the rubbish. Lee’s put rubber gloves on and gone through to find whose they are for them to be fined.
“If we did it and we dumped all our rubbish outside the council offices, you’d be fined straight away.
“I’ve got photographed evidence of next-door’s rubbish and then it’s been outside in the back alley and Lee’s emailed them twice about next door and nothing’s been done.”
A spokesperson for Rochdale Borough Council said: “We sympathise with the family over their loss.
“The gated alley behind [the street] is unregistered and privately owned, so not included in council street cleaning.
“When the gating order was introduced, residents agreed to maintain the alley and keep it free of waste.
“Residents with alley access are encouraged to coordinate maintenance activities, and the council will provide support for community-led initiatives where feasible.
“Residents are also requested to report any incidents of anti-social behaviour or related concerns such as pest control online at: https://www.rochdale.gov.uk/environment-pests.”
Rochdale Borough Council have stated on their website that the fine for fly-tipping is £400. This is eventually reduced to £250 if it is paid within a week.
Featured image: Katie Rogers and Lee Peacock. Credit to Katie Rogers.
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