'I don't feel safe in my area once hailed as Britain's coolest neighbourhood'

'I don't feel safe in my area once hailed as Britain's coolest neighbourhood' Resident Natalie Freeman says the heart is being "torn out" of Digbeth, a bohemian district of Birmingham known for its creativity where Peaky Blinders' creator opened a studio Locals have expressed concern about safety in a trendy area once described as "Britain's coolest neighbourhood". Digbeth, an area of Birmingham, previously named one of the best places to live and has undergone multi-million pound investments in a bid to make it "better" than Media City in Salford, Greater Manchester. People were so impressed by the district that Peaky Blinders creator Steven Knight opened a studios there last year. But photographs taken recently, though, show rubbish strewn on the streets and graffiti on walls. In 2022, a footballer was knifed to death in Digbeth and fed-up workers and residents say, since then, the neighbourhood has been blighted with vandalism and rubbish. Once a haven for creative and arty types, some Brummies have accused developers of "tearing the heart out" of Digbeth. Ensure our latest headlines always appear at the top of your Google Search by making us a Preferred Source. Click here to activate or add us as your Preferred Source in your Google search settings. Yet, in 2027, the BBC will be moving into a new flagship HQ called The Tea Factory, which was recently completed as part of a £69.3 million development Natalie Freeman, 39, who works in the Custard Factory, a creative area of offices for several independent businesses, said: "It's been a double edge sword with the regeneration as it has sort of torn the heart out of it. "The smaller independents are having to move out due to rising costs and parts of the area have become increasingly run-down and dangerous at night. "The graffiti issue is a massive problem - it was always just street art but vandals just tag away with no repercussions now and almost every street is covered in it. There's never anybody to stop them either. "People just dump rubbish all the time as well. It's pretty grim to be honest in parts and I don't feel that safe at night sometimes. "People say it's still a good nightlife but that can come with crime as well - there's been plenty of stabbings in Digbeth and a man was murdered at The Crane club a few years back. "They've pumped lots of money into certain projects in a tiny radius instead of supporting the current shops, bars and other businesses which have made it what it is they've just got ideas above their station, which means the rest of the suburb is starting to rot and become a slum." Among the graffiti currently blighting the area includes the city's iconic John F Kennedy mosaic, recently being defaced after proudly standing in the city since 1968. Other photographs taken around the area this week show graffiti tags sprayed along multiple buildings as well as rubbish dumped in the street, which locals say has become the norm. Cody Fisher, 23, a semi-professional footballer, was stabbed to death on the dance floor of the Crane nightclub on Boxing Day 2022 following a minor altercation. Two men, Remy Gordon and Kami Carpenter, were convicted of his murder. Chinese national, Jinming Zhang, 41, was also murdered in a flat in Digbeth earlier than same year and his killer remains at large. The previous year Ashley Day, 20, was stabbed to death with a Rambo knife at a flat party advertised on social media. One office worker in the area, who did not want to be named, added: "I won't let my daughters come in to town anymore and Digbeth has started attracting the wrong crowd. "It used to be one of the best night's out in the city but it's not safe. It looks a right dump in parts now. When you redevelop an area you've got to work with and support who is currently there but they haven't so it sort of kills the vibe which made Digbeth special in the first place." Another local resident named Jamie said: "The graffiti has got out of hand - people are seeing the street art as meaning anyone can paint anything on any wall and it is starting to look a right mess. "Targeted the JFK in particular is appalling - a mural should be pretty sacred and kept up to date. It's not right people doing things like that. "Some places have been kept clean but in others it is starting to look really bad." Other locals reacted on social media after images were posted of the defaced JFK mural which was commissioned by Birmingham's Irish community five years after the US president was shot dead in Texas. Digbeth is currently undergoing a 20 year regeneration framework which is aiming to transform the area into Birmingham's main creative and media hub across 11 development sites on 35 plots. It was launched at the UK Real Estate, Investment and Infrastructure Forum (UKREiiF) in May 2025. West Midlands Mayor Richard Parker previously promised Digbeth will be bigger, better and bolder than Salford's Media City" while unveiling previous regeneration plans. Birmingham City Council was approached for comment but did not respond.