[henamoured]

Compost heaps do attract vermin. Where this has an impact on neighbours, in areas of high-density housing for example, the most responsible course of action is to either make the heap totally impregnable to vermin, or to make other arrangements for waste-management. If this means no compost heap, then so be it.

Re. compost heaps - I suppose its smelliness/vermin attraction does depend on what you put on it. Mine are in dalek type bins and I've never noticed any smell even with chicken droppings.
I think if you get a good mix of material then the heap will not smell.
To rectify a smelly heap try putting on a 'lid' of grass cuttings which soon rot down into a thick mulch and seal the heap, thus warming it up and helping to get the smelly stage over with quickly.

[Swing Swang]

henamoured - I quite agree, a well constructed heap is not foul-smelling. Indeed it may even have a 'sweet' aroma. In my experience a heap's 'smelliness' has little bearing on its attractivness to vermin - there's so much else that they like that a well constructed heap provides - warmth, worms, and in some cases dryness. Rats don't like to be wet, so regular watering, as well as all of the other methods available does seem to help.

SS