Council backs call to limit small HMO conversions

Councillors will debate planning rules for smaller HMOs in the Bassetlaw district

A council has backed a call to tighten planning rules for smaller houses in multiple occupation (HMOs) in an area of Nottinghamshire.

Bassetlaw District Council held a meeting on Thursday after local party leaders raised concerns that more were appearing in the area.

Under the current planning framework, changing a home to a small HMO is classed as "permitted development", meaning planning permission from the council is not needed.

Fraser McFarland, Reform UK group leader at the council, has proposed a motion calling for the introduction of Article 4 Direction, which would restrict permitted development rights at the council.

Data held by the authority suggests there were 169 HMOs of all sizes in the district - making up about 0.3% of homes in Bassetlaw.

McFarland claimed residents "are fed up with inaction" on HMOs, adding that many people attended the council meeting demanding proper regulation.

"Reform UK brought this motion forward because communities have had enough," he added.

Motion passed

The motion also asked for a three-month deadline for council officers to report back to the cabinet and full council with detailed recommendations and a draft Article 4 Direction for formal consideration and adoption.

Ahead of the meeting, McFarland told the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS): "It would give full public consultation and control back to local people where HMOs are located, the amount in an area and more of a say in the future."

The council's ruling group, Labour, proposed an amendment to the motion, which essentially concluded the same request to introduce an Article 4 Direction.

The motion read: "It has not been appropriate to delay the work that is already ongoing to manage the development of HMOs for an extraordinary council to be convened."

The amendment also removed the three-month deadline in the original motion and stated the council had already been working on managing new HMO development.

"The use of planning powers, including an Article 4 Directive are already on the Forward Plan and Article 4s have been to pre-scrutiny," it stated.

The amended motion was passed by the council, beginning the process of an Article 4 Direction being introduced to remove permitted development rights for people wishing to make small HMOs "in areas of Bassetlaw where evidence shows significant growth or concentration of HMOs".

It would mean that before an HMO is made, where an Article 4 Direction is in place, a planning application would need to be submitted to the council for a decision to be made.

The passed motion will also see the mapping out of current HMOs and assessing their local impact.

In a statement, Bassetlaw's Labour MP Jo White said she was "very concerned" about the growth of HMOs in the district.

"The Article 4 Direction will restrict permitted development rights and give residents the opportunity to have their say on the location of new HMOs through the usual planning processes."