You can smell it before you see it. Piles of black bin bags slumped on pavements. Rats — not the cartoon kind — real ones. Cat-sized. Half bold, half bored, weaving through residential streets like they belong there. Because right now, they kind of do.

The images taken by Nico Froehlich and recently featured in NBC News hit hard. Stark, human, and impossible to ignore — they captured not just the rubbish, but the collapse of a system. When Alex saw them, she felt compelled to write. This wasn’t just a local labour dispute. It was a slow-burning catastrophe playing out in full view.

At AMP, one of our values is creating work that matters. That extends beyond the visual — it’s about cultural responsibility. And sometimes, it means speaking up. Because while politicians argue and city councils dodge accountability, people like Wendy — a single mum of three — are fearing the loss of their homes as their wages are slashed. People like Charlie are feeling physically sick from the stench outside their front doors. And people like Mila — our Gen Z junior agent — are left asking how the UK can still claim to be a “developed nation” when its second-largest city is being left to rot.

“As both a Birmingham resident and a medical student, the current bin strikes and resulting rat infestation feel like a harrowing reminder of the widening disconnect between political decision-making and the health and wellbeing of the public.”This isn’t just about rubbish. It’s about what gets prioritised — and what, or who, gets overlooked. The warning signs have been there for years: libraries shuttered, roadworks half-finished, cultural spaces erased. People adapted. Got used to it. Then the bins stopped being collected, the rats moved in, and it suddenly became impossible to ignore.

“We’re a creative agency, yes,” says Alex, “but we’re also humans. We believe design, culture, and strategy are only powerful when they’re rooted in reality. And right now, the reality in Birmingham is shameful.”“This is not just about bins. It’s about dignity. Access. Class. Health.”We were in Birmingham last week. Mila lives there — balancing her role at AMP with her fourth year studying medicine and global public health at the University of Birmingham. She’s watching her city unravel in real time.

“This crisis has a twofold impact,” Mila says. “It affects people’s mental health, how safe they feel, how at home they feel in their own neighbourhood. But it’s also a very real risk — this could turn into a full-on public health emergency.”And the most brutal part? The way it’s being normalised. People quietly adjusting. Booking waste drop-off slots. Avoiding certain streets. Paying more council tax, receiving less in return.

“The warning signs of Birmingham’s financial struggles have been visible for years — from library closures and unfinished roadworks to the loss of cultural spaces,” Mila adds. “But this latest development lays bare how cost-cutting measures are now being prioritised over the safety and dignity of the people who live here.”Then she says the line that really sticks: “Every rat sighting is a grim reminder that Birmingham is becoming less and less viable as a place to live — a far cry from what the UK’s second-largest city should represent.”She’s not speaking in theory. She lives this, every day.

This isn’t just a story about bin bags. It’s about the quiet erosion of systems. It’s about which communities are protected, and which ones get written off.

Birmingham deserves better. So does everyone whose postcode places them lower on the list.