I Went to One of the UK's Most DIVERSE Areas; It's SHOCKING
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- čas přidán 2. 07. 2024
- In this video, we took a walk around Smethwick, near Birmingham as it was recommended by loads of viewers - and it was certainly an interesting place to visit.
Smethwick is a town in Sandwell, West Midlands, historically part of Staffordshire. Located near the city of Birmingham, it plays an integral role in the metropolitan area.
Its historical significance is marked by its pivotal role during the Industrial Revolution, primarily due to its proximity to coal and iron resources.
The area underwent significant industrial growth and innovation during the 18th and 19th centuries.
One of the most distinctive features of Smethwick is its cultural diversity. Over the years, the town became a hub for a diverse range of communities.
The aftermath of World War II saw a notable influx of immigrants, especially from South Asia and the Caribbean.
This influx has imparted a rich, multicultural character to Smethwick, which is evident in its vibrant shops, restaurants, and cultural festivals.
In terms of connectivity, Smethwick is well-served by transport links. It boasts two railway stations, Smethwick Rolfe Street and Smethwick Galton Bridge, and its proximity to major road networks makes it easily accessible.
If you live in Smethwick and any of the areas covered in this video, we'd love to hear from you!
Please drop a comment below the video and share your experiences with the rest of the viewers, thanks.
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Chapters
00:00 - Intro to Smethwick
00:15 - Stats and Facts
01:20 - Flytipping
02:00 - Litter
02:49 - Town Centre
04:01 - Estates
05:45 - News Headlines
06:13 - House prices
06:35 - Outro
All footage filmed by the UK Explored team and cannot be reused without permission.
#smethwick #birmingham #westmidlands
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Hope you enjoyed this video! If you have any feedback or comments, we'd love to hear them!
Do you live/have lived in Smethwick or any of the surrounding areas?
Whether yes or no, your feedback is valuable to the audience, so please feel free to share.
the W is silent in smethwick
Havent lived there but I shagged a bird and her flatmate who was 10 years older than me when I was 17. Those 2 days were magical.
I grew up in Smethwick. Your comments about litter everywhere is complete bull. I'm proud of where I come from. It may be poor but people look out for each other
What’s to enjoy about this disgusting place I am a true Brummie living on the south side of Birmingham in the semi rural suburbs, Labour did this to our City allowing all these migrants here😢
As a sheetmetalworker, lots of these towns yes are wank, but there are plenty of jobs for grafters, in industrial units.
This is the near future of the UK I am afraid
Depends largely where you live the uk? I live between Wimbledon and Hereford which aren’t like this but my home town of Dudley unfortunately very much is these days
Consequences. UK chose the wrong enemy 80 years ago.
I grew up in Smethwick in the 1960's. It was generally a pretty good place in those days. Looking at this video it's unrecognisable now.
its a right tip now mate...me whole fam r smethwick...all gone now or just left...i spent 40 yrs there.
If you think Smethwick is a tip, have a walk round Sparkhill, Alumrock, Sparkbrook,etc. Those areas are hell on earth.
@@YNWA097while those areas are much worse in terms of littering and rubbish, smethwick is much more dangerous.
Didn't Enoch Powell do the Rivers of Blood speech there in the 60s? Can't have been that great
Isn't it strange how there is usually more fly tipping and littering in the more ethically diverse areas of our towns and cities?
It's not uncommon in some foreign parts, so the practice has been imported to an extent.
I was in Kenya for 3 months at Kahawa Garrison, and the Kenyan Army family quarters were like what you see here, despite it being on an army camp. D
There is more fly tipping and littering in poorer areas with more poverty and social deprivation. There is a correlation between more ethnically diverse areas and areas with more poverty due to the fact ethnic minorities are often 1st/2nd/3rd generation migrants from poorer parts of the world. It's not that complicated, is it?
@@outsidespac3 you are drawing the conclusion that fly tipping/littering is related to the poverty of an area, whilst stating that those areas are also ethnic minority areas.
The issue may equally be concluded to derive from the ethnic make up of that area, rather than the poverty of that area.
It's not that complicated, is it, champ? Why should it be one, and not the other if there is a direct correlation? D
@@derekowens1817not sure where to start. do you really think, all other things being equal (education, age, employment status) black people, or muslims litter more than white people? or do you think university educated black people with good jobs litter more than working class white teenagers? I somehow doubt you think that.
@@outsidespac3 you're the one who made the correlation between poverty, ethnic minorities and littering/fly tipping.
The onus is on you to prove that poverty is the sole criterion, which I am sure is not the case.
Having worked and travelled extensively in East Africa, all you have to do is go off the beaten tourist track, and you will see a much worse situation than what you could imagine from littering and fly tipping in the UK.
In some places there was literally a sea of garbage as far as the eye could see, from village to village, and even in the married quarters of the Kenyan Army Garrison, not just a total failure of the Kenyan authorities, but the people were just too idle to dig a pit and bury or burn the stuff. Kenyan soldier attitude was basically not their job, and why bother when it could just be discarded willy nilly. D
Great video thank you. Most locals pronounce it smethick, a silenced "W", that's not a criticism just a help I hope. I grew up a mile from there and I saw it change over around 40 to 50 years to what you show here.
Thanks - yeah, I learned about the pronunciation after the fact. I didn’t get to speak to anyone while in Smethwick, the areas I visited just didn’t have that friendly vibe like a lot of places I visit, as I do enjoy having a little natter with locals.
The older generations used to smerick. The worst thing to happen to the black country was Sandwell council.
@@jduffell4132bang on sandwell Council are 💩 just want Council tax
@@ukexplored no. We're in bad place. Smethwick is done now. Those of us that were, able have gone. I plan on relocating my family when I can. I was speaking to an older Sikh man recently. His grandfather was stationed here after the war and never left. His family has only lived in Smethwick. And was so despondent at how everything is. It was sad to see. I told him we weren't going to stay and said where are we supposed to go. We don't belong anywhere else. Smethwick is not safe, especially if you're white and to a lesser degree, Indian.
Having parallel societies living together is absolutely a strength. There's nothing better than mixing opposing views and squalor together into a nice melting pot.
It is a genuine tragedy what has happened to Smethwick, Bearwood and the surrounding areas. Even in my lifetime, (20 years) the towns which I grew up in have become unrecognisable, it must be even worse for my parents age and grandparents age to see what has happened to the towns and community they loved and worked so hard in.
I don't think history will be kind to those who allowed for these areas to become the way they have.
Bearwood was quite Des. Res. in the 1980's. A large number of terraced houses, most of which were pretty small, nevertheless a pleasant, very safe and on the surface prosperous area.
Why are there these people defending these down trodden towns in the uk all the time. I just don’t understand how these people are so oblivious towards how bad the uk has gotten.
Because they rely on mainstream media and live in lovely middle/upper class areas where none of this exists
You do not need to be a genius to see the correlation between areas with large Asian populations and fly tipping, littering and generally being run down and dirty. Whether this is down to these areas being more deprived or it being cultural I would not like to hazard a guess.
It may have something to with the culture the youth are brought up in this country,nothing to do with foreign influence.And many other factors.
@@mmmmmm10392 Rubbish, in the 70s-80s Smethwick was majority homogenous and it did not look like it does today, now its a mainly Asian area.
@@careytitan9097absolutely spot on 100% ......its shameful how " certain " groups live & bring down every area they colonise in such a short space of time, Birmingham ,london, leics, etc etc
@@mmmmmm10392 I'm afraid not. I emigrated and the Asian areas here are just as messy and dirty. My hometown in the UK is a rough area and its nowhere near as messy as these areas.
@@mmmmmm10392nothing to do with foreign influence even though the area is 76% foreign? Aye ok Einstein 😂
Seems the area is very enriched!
Every county in the country has areas like this.
Places like this will always exist while Britain continues to be a “diverse” scab magnet.
The benefits of diversity, in all it's glory!
Vote Reform UK!
And
I love the way you pronounce Smethwick,it's so funny,great video😂
Thanks 😅 pronunciation isn’t my strong point 😂
@@ukexploredit is I love your southwest accent it melts me.😊
The residents, restaurants and t/aways pour oil and foodwaste down the drains and dump rubbish rather than organize and pay for collection. Out of sight out of mind. The answer is simple, stop wasting money on advertising, signs, community outreach officers etc. and impose a rubbish collection tax on landlords and businesses in these areas and enforce it. That way councils can afford to employ local people to collect the rubbish. In time they will learn that there are consequences to their actions. It's a bit like teaching children to tidy up after themselves.
Islamabad mark 2
Why is anyone surprised 🤔… look at the people who live there…. Answers everything!!
Alright, this place actually dose look like Bangladesh with all the trash everywhere.
I bet the Bangladesh local authorities probably don't con their own people the way local councils on UK do.
Cuts cuts and more cuts.
Blame the brownies! 😂
I worked in Smethwick over 50 years ago, and they were some of the happiest days of my life. However, even then the writing was on the wall - and the seeds of its dystopian future were sown and fully established. But it was a good place with good people. The causes of its destruction and demise is another 'D' - and one that ends in 'Y'.
It is pronounced as Smethick the W is silent. The residents of Smethwick are disgusted with the fly tipping and rubbish but it is the Sandwell council job to keep the place clean.
Another banger of a video! As others have put though it's smeth - ick
looking forward to seeing SMETHWICK develop in the coming years
I've worked there for about 20 years. Don't get me wrong, it was never somewhere you'd want to go to, but I'd say in the last 10 years its gone downhill. One of our customers came to see our foundry and on their way home they were carjacked. The place is essentially lawless. When I'm going into work in the morning, the "night time economy" is clocking off and its genuinely scary. The driving standard has to be seen to be believed. I hate to say it but immigration is largely to blame here.
Recently come scross your channel. This vid caught my eye as I'm a regular visitor to Birmingham and have been to the Smethwick (swimming) baths on many occasions followed by a cappuccino later on at Bearwood Costa Coffee 😄 Though I tend to go to Harborne more often now for a Saturday afternoon wander, coffee, food, etc 👍
Diverse and trash usually go hand in hand, lol.
I'm not the only one that has noticed this massive coincidence.
Locals in the comment section are losing their shit over the fact the guy pronounced the name wrong but don’t bat an eye over the 3rd world town they live in 😂 cool 🤙
I left in 2021. I lived just outside Smethwick at the time. There was a stabbing a week in the news and the week before I left a house at the end of the street got shot at. It used to be different. People weren’t rich but they were still lovely people.
Unfortunately these areas are like this due to the people that live there,simple has that ,no respect or care for their area ,lye is the same !
Welcome to modern Britain. What a shame this has happened to our once great country.
we all have a duty of care to clean up our neighbourhoods.
When exactly was it great?
@@Russellye5man1you look g@y mate
@@Russellye5man1 😂😂😂😂
super helpful
76%asian....🤔....
Any plans to do Sparkhill or Small Heath in Bham?
Ah yes cultural enrichment ❤
Its mainly the lovely travelling community.
@@merlin5476 Sure buddy, got a lot of gypsies by me but none of this.
Exactly. Ever noticed all this comes from non natives? Import third world to UK and it becomes exactly that. They live like this in their own countries, then come here and do it to ours.
interesting to see that this so called "ballooning" is a thing in other contrys aswell.
here in germany i see those compressed containers more and more
@@donjj8294 Nitrous oxide is now banned in the u.k because of these clowns.
You should try exploring rothwell near leeds, its a decent place but has anti-social youths running feral around the high street and it connects to 2 council estates with bad crime.
If you see litter in or around your street I urge you to pick it up - don’t stand for it. Once the rot sets in for a postcode it’s over.
The w is silent I’m from the bearwood neighbourhood originally which used to be a decent area but has gone downhill
It's a tragedy what has happened to Bearwood in the last 15 years. Not far off the likes of cape hill in becoming another 3rd world ghetto.
Almost cried when I saw my house in this.
lived in smethwick since born, 40 yrs i was there 2 mins from high st until me dad passed...now im in nxt town of oldbury 5 mins away....smethwick used to be cool in the 80s, luved growin up there then...kids everywhere on bikes and playin football...just bein kids and havin a laff....last 15/20 its gone realllly downhill, foreigners galore have taken over and made the place a tip.....as u can see...never used to be like that. i walked through there few mnths bk to the place i used to play, dam it was like a 3rd world country , worse ive seen it...rubbish allover streets...barely any english ppl left there....buuut smethwick is in me heart forever i guess.
Thats the cultural enrichment the liberals keep banging on about mate, you’re supposed to embrace it as a positive thing 😂
Another top video brother - love the W in Smethwick haha, 'Smethick' or 'shithole' suffices :)
Look at the rich tapestry of cultures on display. Glory to multiculturalism.
Just to let you know....The name of the town is pronounced 'Smeth-ick' (silent w)
Well I lived in Smethwick back in May 2004 - May 2015 and fly tipping and crime was never like this I'm glad I came back to my home town in Wolverhampton in May 2015 as I'm happy and better off now.
He was mainly recording winson green when it came to the flytipping
Nah, it's normal all the junk. The locals are just trying to make it like they are use to and remember back home.
I grew up in Smethwick from the mid seventies onwards, since the industry in the area has gone there has been a steady decline of the area, slow and steady at first, then a rapid decline from the early 2000s onwards, it’s such a shame and I personally was glad to get away from there.
I lived for a time in leafy Bearwood which forms a part of Smethwick; once the Midland Metropolitan University hospital opens and connectivity via the tram network is extended, life across the area stands to improve as more families and investors move in. Questions ought to be asked of Sandwell council and their efforts to raise standards across the borough.
I'm 78 now, but I was born & bred in Smethwick and my family lived there for many generations before me. It was a good place to grow up back in the 1940's 50's & 60's, very dirty because of all the industry, but the people were great. However, at the beginning of the 70's, I could see that great changes were on the way, so I managed to get a job in Portsmouth and moved there. The best decision I ever made, reinforced today by what I saw in your video.
The hometown of the actress Julie Walters, who, in her own words, said what a dump the place has become
Smetwick is like the deprived parts of the london boroughs
I deliver around here and other mainly Indian area of Birmingham.........They live like they are in the slums of India....FACT! i know.
Thats all they know
You really just went to the most run-down spots of Smethwick. Further out from the highstreets it isn't too bad, some nice places around the canals and the new developments.
Problem with Smethwick is the council is ran by Sikhs, so they only cater and invest for their own people. One of the reasons why the gurdwaras have constant development around them. (New crossings, memorials, parking etc). They should focus more on youth engagement in the area to lower crime rates.
There's a lot of history in Smethwick. A lot of people stay in Smethwick due to safety from racial abuse and easy commuting.
Mate, my dad used to live there, it's a complete and utter shit hole. Best thing I ever did was get the hell out of the Midlands
There isn't many nice places in Smethwick, don't try and convince yourself otherwise - there may have been once upon a time, but not now. Sandwell council have only ever run the area in the interest of themselves and have allowed the entirety of the area to become the way it has.
The entirety of the West Midlands is a dump
Smethwick is home, I love it
The West Midlands is no longer an area of European culture. It's a dump.
It’s sad, isn’t it, honestly. I’ve been speaking with people who have lived in some of these areas all their lives and they’re just in dismay when they tell me what it was like growing up compared to now.
'European culture' 😂 any culture ?😂
There’s a nice green patch of green Near my house in Birmingham ladywood
And no end of times we call the council to collect dumped rubbish/household furniture/ plastic toys
It absolutely winds me up … I look forward to the day of catching the imbiciles
Hey. I live in Smethwick (pronounced Smethick) and I'm one of the few white residents here (🤭). Apart from the VERY dirty streets (which is an accurate description in your video) and lots of rats (not in your video), I'm quite happy here. Great proximity to Birmingham. Relatively affordable. Safe (by West Midlands/Black Country standards). I've not often felt unsafe. Relatively decent public services (compared to the now bankrupt city of Birmingham). An interesting mix of peoples/cultures who for the most part live alongside eachother respectfully (which may disappoint some of the commentators here). Also, some nicer areas too....which unfortunately weren't included in your video. Not to everyone's taste of course. But you don't have to live here or visit if you don't want to 😊.
I appreciate that, a fair and honest account from someone living in the area. Glad to hear you’re happy there!
Rubbish, I live a few miles away in a genuinely nice area and I know smethwick fairly well. It is widely regarded as a dump. Anyone who’s happy there clearly has extremely low standards.
Smethwick definitely isn’t safe. Smethwick/oldbury is right at top of the list when it comes to gang violence similar to areas like Newtown and handsworth
@squidguard1 lmao smethwick is no where near Handsworth or Newtown
These areas nkt onlysuffer from fly tipping,general litter in streets,but also from side effects, blocked drains and flooding.All boils down to incompetent councils not applying the threats of fines, and not encouraging active participation with public to counter such criminal activity and help set up volunteer groups for litter picking.In Alum Rock Birmingham we face similar problems,one solution is to fit cctv cameras in these areas but funding is hard to come by.British Rail net has serious problem with fly tipping on its embankments and land belonging to them.
It is a dump used to clean the communal areas in a couple of flats you have shown. No pride or self respect. You would clear up and the next week back the same if not worse. Requested we be moved off the sites as they also felt very unsafe.
I was born here. Moved away in the early 90s. Sent to the dogs and I’ll leave it there
Please note, the correct pronunciation (as mentioned by at least one other person) is Seth-ick. The mispronunciation is a distincre distraction.
If you haven’t been already I suggest you go up north and smell the diversity up there some lovely towns and boroughs of Yorkshire and Lancashire!
These sort of areas all have one thing in common... Say no more
Should've interviewed Danny G
It’s pronounced without the W. The ‘ick’ is quite strong at the end, perhaps appropriately given some of the images.
Silent w in Smethwick and the area smells wonderful, if you're happy living there.
Is this on Dudley road? That road is erm.. interesting
that part of Smethwick you're showing is an industrial area, full of factories hence the large amount of litter. Not many people live near that area and only recently have houses been built near there!
no excuse!
You should check out alum rock in Birmingham if you havent already....and if you dare lol!!
What a blast from the past, my old stomping area... what a great place it was to grow up...playing knock door run haha, gutters and playing on our bikes - had the best childhood and was very multi-cultrual mixed with black people, white people, asian people.
Moved out the area when was 14/15...never felt unsafe as a kid, everyone was super friendly (when I moved to London the anti-socialness of people was a big, BIG shock).... the area was heavily influenced by Asian culture, in school learnt about Diwali, would be a yearly grand celebration on the high street, would go to the temple and learnt all about indian sweets like jalebi (probably where my sweet tooth came from :).
We did get burgled once, in the 14 years we live there, which probably promoted our move, coming to think of it.
Don't recall witnessing any other crime when lived there at the time - obviously things have changed everywhere now.
In terms of the rubbish, can't recall if it was like that when I used to live there, however I do think you show the worst parts of the places you visit. p.s you can Google the pronunciation of towns and cities and the Google voice will verbally say them, as to pronounce it Smeth-W-ick is pretty wild lol
It is people who make slums
I am not so sure about the statistics of benefits - currently there are 7 million people on UC alone, given that working age population is 35 million, that is 1 in 5.
Pronounced Smerick, lived there in the late 40s to early 50s. Princes Cinema eventually became the largest Sheik Temple in the western hemisphere at the time. Moved to Bristol about 1967...."good move"....bloody shame what it has become. Lived in an 2 up 2 down in Dibble Road, built about 1900 and still standing.
Poorer areas are usually targeted for fly-tipping and the waist usually comes from construction and clearance in the richer areas... Smethwick will probably be forever doomed as the dumping ground of Birmingham, its also a buy-to-let hotspot where councils in South-East England dump people they have a legal obligation to house.
i dated a girl from smethwick i had to catch the train every night to go and see her my god what a absolute disgrace its turned into of corse this was many years ago dont think i would rush back there anytime soon after seeing this vlog
I lived in shire land rd for two years I worked at the Asda and school I never came across any trouble their x
The comments on here... are rather interesting to day the least
2:18 You're mixing up Birmingham (Dudley Road, Winson Green) and Smetwick (Sandwell). The roundabout with the McDonald's at the end of Dudley Road is the dividing border between Birmingham and Sandwell.
Just watched this i can't believe how bad it has become, my grandfather was mayor in the late 50s, he certainly would be turning in his grave with what has happened here
Not to say its nitpicked but smethwick baths that you drove past in the video has literally only closed a month ago because of the sandwell aquatics centre that opened by the queens head.
That’s good info , appreciate you pointing that out.
It is not the councils fault, the people can not afford to get skips unless they are refurbishing a property. Another thing is that with Smethwick shops do open and close purely because there are four or five shops that sell the same items theirs nothing unique about it which makes it stands out. I would say the food shops are decent in Capehill including the meat shops as their is a retail park near by which stands out the crowd with a gym, JD, Asda etc... which is a positive. Messy gardens which few of them I successfully cleared up and to many kittens littering in the gardens, lots of fly tipping agreed on that point. I would say the high street is busy, community is friendly most of the time just be brave.
Still the same as 3 years ago.
Nothing done yet 😮
Its mainly the business's wont pay for refuse collection and just turf it out of the curb, in the hope the council will just take it.
My sister used to work in a charity shop in one of these " diverse paradises" one local donated a black bin bag full of used sanitary towels! Unbelievable
When I was a kid Smethwick was a lovely place. Great shopping street, a really nice park, rows and rows of clean well kept terraced houses and the streets were clean. It is a genuine tragedy what immigration and 'diversity' have done to this area. Now there are no pubs, the place is dangerous and the community feeling (at least English community) has completely disappeared. How successive governments have allowed this to happen to our inner cities is simply criminal. There never used to be crime here, now it is a no go area (not that anybody really wants to) such a shame.
Is this the same place that is commonly known as smeth-ick (silent w)?
Wes, it is.
You should perhaps investigate the rat problem in each area, or any other vermin that have moved in.
Smethwick is predominantly Sikh people. They have a big temple there. I lived there for a while.
Its called Smeth ICK. Just like every other wick. Warwick, Berwick etc. Wanted to listen to your commentary but couldnt cope 😂
And I thought Swindon council was bad , seeing all the broken glass on the bus stops
53% of first languages not being English is absolutely absurd.. wow
Imagine the rip off rates, rents ,local taxes paid by these shop keepers and getting nothing in return like street cleaning?
Coventry?
You don't pronounce the "w" - We used to live in Sme'thick ... dire ...
How the hell does a town become 76% foreigners within such a short time. Mind you most of the Birmingham outlines are pretty similar.
It seems that a lot of commentators are more concerned about the right pronunciation of the town's name than the shape it's in.😢
Haha yeah, let’s start with the easy things to fix first 😂
Area of very high immigration what do you expect,a result of only previously living in the third and fourth world countries before jumping on a dingy ferry from France.
You have to wonder what will happen and where they will put people when all the high rise accommodation finally reaches the end of its life as there will unlikely to be money to maintain it let alone to replace it. I read that the actual expected life of high rise is 40-50 years. I expect much of the stock in the UK is reaching this and there is little sign that these areas have any resources spare for anything at even a rudimentary level let alone new building.
let them in and that's what you get
A number of points: I have lived in three different locations in Smethwick since 1959 and like to think I know the area pretty well. I too could have made a 7 minute video showing the very many positive aspects of the town, eg Warley Woods, Victoria Park, Lightwoods Park, etc. You obviously never actually spoke to any inhabitants while you were filming because you would have soon discovered it's pronounced SMETHICK. And some of the footage used is actually Birmingham (Winson Green)! I can't see the purpose of these series of films about the West Midlands. I too am an immigrant (Irish) and I'm proud to say I live in a very diverse community that does have its problems (lack of government investment) but Smethwick has not been THRASHED as the title states.
So that’s why don’t mind it becoming non British, because you yourself are non British 🤔 you are all the same you lot, the celtic fans up here hate the uk as well.
Your videos are absolutely pointless. You haven't got a clue about Smethwick. Why not look for the good in area's? What are you gaining from this?
Get cleaning then
Sandwell Council is just awful
@@Elfizi-Padang lots of small community groups go litter picking in areas. Unfortunately, certain areas don't do it. They just rely on the council. Sandwell council are just a waste of space.
Thank the immigrants for that
Smethwick for the most part really hasnt changed TBH.
B9 had highest amount of uninsured cars back in about 2015 because police wouldn't enter the No Go area to sort it out
A sign saying youll be fined for fly tipping means nothing when they cant read English.
Some folks don't give a damn it used to be tidy years ago no litter hardly...
My street is in the video xD
I think CZcams knows where you live. It’s a powerful algorithm 😂