Toxic Town Ending Explained: Did The Corby Mothers Win The Lawsuit?

Published Oct 10, 2026, 11:00 AM EDT

Memory Ngulube joined Screen Rant in April 2024 as part of the Movies and TV team. Since then, she has written for the Perennials and Streaming team, covering a wide range of topics from new releases to old movies and TV shows. Memory is currently a Classic TV writer. 

Before joining Screen Rant, Memory was a freelance copywriter who specialized in email marketing and social media management. While she enjoyed her job, her true passion was always movies and TV.

When she isn’t writing for Screen Rant, Memory can be found reading, baking (which is one of her passions), or watching her favorite K-drama.

In 2025, the Netflix miniseries Toxic Town brought to life the harrowing true stories of the residents of a small English town called Corby. Based on real events, the four-episode series tackles what transpired in Corby following the closure of a steel plant and the mismanagement of toxic waste that led to several children being born with limb differences. Toxic Town is a fictional representation of the heartbreaking disaster, but the show's creators ensured it stayed as true to the real-life story as possible.

With the help of Toxic Town’s cast, which includes Jodie Whittaker, Aimee Lou Wood, and Claudia Jessie, the critically acclaimed series does an incredible job of outlining the hardships that the families faced before the lawsuit they brought against their local council and the effort it took for them and their legal team to finally win a decades long case. While the case was won in 2009, its impact on environmental management is still apparent even to this day.

The Corby Toxic Waste Case That Inspired Toxic Town Explained

Ben Blackall/Netflix © 2024

Corby relied on its steel industry for decades. However, the economic boost that the British Steel company had brought to the town ended terribly after it closed in 1980. Following the closure of Corby Steelworks, the local authority embarked on a massive regeneration and reclamation project during the 1980s and 1990s. Unfortunately, the old site contained contaminated materials, including industrial waste which was excavated and transported around the town. Corby was usually covered in dust from the industrial waste, but the residents had no idea of the damage it was actually causing until years later.

One of the women at the center of the story was Susan McIntyre (Jodie Whittaker), whose son Connor was born with limb differences. Susan and the other mothers involved in the case did not have any knowledge about what was the underlying cause of their children’s physical disabilities. It was only when Susan was contacted by a journalist that she put the pieces together and subsequently went on a mission to uncover the truth (via Business Insider).

The Outcome Of The Corby Toxic Waste Lawsuit & Who Was Found Liable

After the Corby mothers discovered that improperly handled environmental waste was the reason that their children were born with physical disabilities, they decided to sue the people responsible with the hopes of trying to understand what had truly happened. This resulted in a years-long legal battle where the Corby Borough Council refused to take responsibility for the pollution.

According to the evidence eventually accepted in court, the council and contractors failed to properly control contaminated dust generated during the works. The material could therefore become airborne and reach areas where pregnant women lived or worked. The judge found that the Corby mother's case had merit, leading to the women winning the case and settling out of court (via The Guardian).

Though the amount of funds given to each individual Corby mother remains undisclosed, the Netflix series reveals that the victims of the Corby Toxic waste scandal were given £14.6 million by the Borough Council. Despite the civil case being a success and the council being held liable for the environmental disaster, to this day there haven’t been criminal charges brought against them.

How The Corby Toxic Waste Case Made A Long-Term Impact

Netflix

While the Corby toxic waste scandal is now famous globally, that hasn’t always been the case, despite what happened being a huge environmental disaster and system failure. The fact that the mothers sued the Borough Council and won was a historical victory for the small town, because it highlighted issues that the public were unaware of at the time, such as the link between pollution and birth defects.

At the end of Toxic Town, there are some very interesting and scary facts that are presented. Despite the scandal highlighting major environmental concerns, there are at least 21,000 former landfills across England and Wales, with some being located in areas that are accessed by the public, including houses and schools.

Though there hasn’t been any direct legislation connected to the Corby case, the awareness it has created was the right step forward in the battle that many are still fighting.

The Corby case was, of course, a disturbing event, but because of it, people are more aware of environmental pollution. This in turn had some big implications for environmental safety and the best way to dispose of toxic waste. Though there hasn’t been any direct legislation connected to the Corby case, the awareness it has created was the right step forward in the battle that many are still fighting.

Where The Real Corby Mothers Are Now

It's been more than two decades since the Corby moms won their case against the Borough Council. Naturally, they have moved on with their lives, but the impact of what they went through is still felt. Susan McIntyre, who played a huge role in the case, currently still lives in Corby, but she lent a helping hand to the creators of Toxic Town and narrated her experience to them. Maggie Mahon (played by Claudia Jessie) also still lives in Corby where she works as a teaching assistant.

Tracey Taylor (played by Aimee Lou Wood) also remains in the town. She continues to speak about the case and is still advocating for the safe removal of toxic waste. Meanwhile, Des Collins (played by Rory Kinnear), the lawyer who represented the families, still practices law and is the owner of Collins & Solicitors.

The Biggest Changes Toxic Town Makes To The True Story

As a dramatized version of a real event, Netflix’s Toxic Town makes some changes to the true story, but most of what's presented in the miniseries is accurate. The show focuses on three main characters, Tracey, Maggie, and Susan. In real life, however, 19 total children across 18 different families were affected by the toxic waste in Corby. Though it might seem that the reduction of such a huge number to three children diminishes the story, the opposite is actually true.

Because the Netflix series is so character-driven, it gives audiences the time they need to care about these people and feel the injustice that befell them because of the negligence of the council. Most of the characters, including the main leads in Toxic Town, were based on real people. However, the series does add a few that were fictional. Pat Miller (Ben Batt) and Bill Martin (Simon Harrison), for instance, were included for dramatic purposes.

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Though not every family affected by the Corby toxic waste scandal actively participated in the creative process of the Netflix series, their stories are just as important as those outlined in the show. All in all, Toxic Town does a great job of telling the harrowing story of the environmental disaster.

Sources: Business Insider, The Guardian