Welcome to the fly-tipping capital of England, where locals are ’embar

It’s hard to believe the London Borough of Brent was once covered in even more rubbish than it is now. 

Although the gleaming arch of Wembley Stadium is sometimes just a few steps away, its residential streets are a patchwork of filth.

Whether it’s a sea of bottles right by the very sign for the recycling centre, a hollowed-out sofa sagging against a brick wall or a TV just feet from (but not in) the communal dustbin, Brent is covered in, well, crap.

“It’s like a dump,” says Robert Hall, who has lived there all the 60-odd years of his life.

His neighbourhood has become an obstacle course of dumped cars, rubbish, and mattresses. It might sound like he’s exaggerating, but on my 20-minute walk over from Wembley Park Tube, I see a fridge, TV, pet cage and countless bags of rubbish.

“It’s an eyesore. I’m embarrassed to have people visit,” he adds.

And it’s just as well, because it turns out his friends have told him they don’t like coming to see him any more anyway.

An unenviable crown

Brent recently earned the unenviable title of fly-tipping capital of England, after recording 35,000 incidents in a single year.

It’s a stain Brent Council is slowly managing to scrub away, thanks to its zealous squad of enforcement officers tasked with tracking down the culprits.

“It’s important to take pride in what you do,” says Anca Pricop, enforcement patrol supervisor at Brent Council.

“It might not seem a very nice job, but it is satisfying when you catch people.”

Following the paper trail

“We’re little detectives,” she says, having donned two layers of gloves and attacked a pile of black bin bags with gusto.

All make-up, high ponytail and painted silver nails, she brings remarkable glamour to…