Will Timms is a very busy man.

Lately, Timms’ phone has barely stopped ringing as some 17,000 metric tons of garbage have piled up on Birmingham’s streets.

The organization’s downfall was primarily due to a longstanding equal pay disagreement necessitating substantial compensation to former employees, mostly women who were underpaid compared to men in similar roles.

But the council’s mistakes have added to pressures beyond its control.

As the population of Birmingham, known as Brummies, experiences increased longevity, there has been a higher demand for its services, and simultaneously, the cost associated with providing these services has escalated.

It’s a predicament shared by local governments across the country, with many teetering on a financial knife edge.

Britain’s local authorities receive a big chunk of their funding in the form of grants from the central government.

However, since 2010, the value of these grants has diminished significantly as the former Conservative government initiated austerity measures for a decade to reduce national debt after the financial crisis.

In England, councils’ funding per resident – including both grants and local taxes – is 18 per cent below its level in 2010 on average, according to a report in June 2024 by the Institute for Fiscal Studies.

Birmingham’s misfortunes weigh heavy on Timms, the pest controller.

“I am fuming (about) the way the city is looking,” he said of the recent garbage crisis.

“It’s affecting everybody’s health.”

Still, the onslaught of negative news bothers the lifelong Brummy because it obscures the full truth of his hometown.

“Brummies, there seems to be like a solidarity (between us), and it’s fantastic,” he said. “I love Birmingham to bits.”