Latest news with #HMO
BBC News
3 days ago
- General
- BBC News
Darlington residents call for rules to stop smaller HMOs
A petition is calling on a council to stop the "uncontrolled transformation" of a of Greenbank Road in Darlington want measures to be put in place to stop landlords turning properties into houses of multiple occupation (HMOs)."Darlington Borough Council has lost control of the HMO situation in our neighbourhood," a letter to residents authority said it was looking into measures it could implement to address the concerns. There are about 400 HMOs in Darlington, according to the are used by residents, often students or young professionals, who rent their bedrooms and share living facilities. 'Unknown scale' Current rules mean that planning permission for an HMO is only needed when it will house more than five people. Specific measures – called an Article Four direction – can be implemented to require the landlord to seek permission for smaller Greenbank Road residents' petition said the council had "no way" of knowing how many houses had already been turned into HMOs and called for the Article Four direction to be made in their area."[The council] cannot make reasonable planning decisions by assessing the impact of new, large HMOs on our local streets if they don't know the scale of the local problem," it said.A spokesman at Darlington Borough Council said HMOs provided "a valuable contribution to housing provision for people who could not access the housing market through home ownership or added: "We also recognise that a concentration of unregulated HMOs can cause issues for neighbouring residents."The authority said while its own policies provided guidance for considering applications for larger HMOs, it did not cover those with fewer than five occupants."We have been working hard to look into measures, such as an Article Four direction, that can be introduced at the earliest opportunity to help control those smaller HMOs." Follow BBC Tees on X, Facebook, Nextdoor and Instagram.
Wales Online
26-05-2025
- Business
- Wales Online
Decision made on plans for this distinctive property to be a shared house for 10 people
Decision made on plans for this distinctive property to be a shared house for 10 people Council officers were concerned about a lack of parking and cramped communal space The detached property in Morriston where plans for a shared house and basement flat have been turned down (Image: Google Maps ) Plans to convert a mock Tudor house into a shared house for 10 people with a basement flat below have been turned down by Swansea Council. A company called AMR Prime Property Ltd proposed 10 en suite bedrooms at the detached property on Springfield Street, Morriston, along with a kitchen and lounge and cycle storage outside. Two of the 10 en suite rooms would be in the loft following a loft conversion. Never miss a Swansea story by signing up to our newsletter here . A planning statement on behalf of the applicant said no parking was proposed as there were many shops close by in the centre of Morriston and that Swansea Enterprise Park was a short bus ride or cycle ride away. The 10 bedrooms, it said, complied with minimum space requirements, that the privacy of neighbours had been considered, and that there was a need for houses of multiple occupation (HMOs). "The proposal overall is of high-quality design and due thought has been given to the appropriate siting and massing, scale, and layout," said the planning statement. "The ambition of the applicant is to ensure that they are creating high-quality, desirable accommodation, that attracts long-term, reliable and good calibre tenants." Article continues below A report by planning officers said the application led to 64 letters of objection, plus a petition of objection with 64 signatures. Concerns about inadequate parking provision, overlooking from bedroom windows and potential noise and disturbance were raised, among others. The officers' report said the submitted plans, notwithstanding the planning statement, indicated that one parking space would be provided but that this was well below the 10 spaces that ought to be available for occupiers and visitors. They said the additional parking demand the proposal would generate would have an unacceptable impact, and that although the property was in a reasonably sustainable location it was still some distance from a major bus route and Swansea city centre. Officers also said some of the south-facing bedroom windows would significantly overlook two gardens on nearby Pleasant Street, and that the dormer roof loft extension would be "incongruous". However, they said there was no clear evidence that the proposal would create noise and disturbance for neighbours. Turning to the interior layout, officers said the HMO communal living area wasn't large enough for 10 people. Article continues below They added that the basement flat was below minimum space requirements and that its bedroom window was directly alongside steps leading to a rear amenity area for the HMO tenants, meaning that whoever lived in the flat would likely keep the window and the blinds closed. The application was turned down on six grounds. The applicant can appeal.
Daily Mail
25-05-2025
- General
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE We lived happily in our house for years... but a horrendous decision from our neighbour has cost us £50k - we've been forced out
A couple have been left distraught after their neighbours house started to be turned into an HMO - which left people defecating in an alleyway near their home and knocked £50k off their house. Roger Brown, 67, and his wife Gail, 64, have been plagued with weeks of builders leaving them feeling unsafe and at their wits' end. The couple, from Shepperton, Sunbury-on-Thames, have lived in their three-bedroom terraced house in a residential street for 45 years. Now they fear the neighbourhood of local families could be torn apart by outsiders moving into a house of multiple occupancy (HMO). As contractors work to transform their next door house, the couple are constantly fighting against disappearing tools, ruined views and even people defecating in the alleyway near their family home. Roger told MailOnline: 'They stole ladders from my garden to use. They have been going down in the alleyway and doing their business there, both ways. They are sh**ting out here.' He said he and his wife's lives have been turned upside down and hit out at the council for failing to protect them as they confessed they can barely work they're so worried. But there appears to be no easy way out for the couple, who claim they are being forced to sell up their much-loved home, losing a small fortune in the process. Roger, a health and safety trainer, added: 'Work started [but] we had been given no notification. It's being turned into a six-bedroom HMO. 'They have been working there [for] three weeks. They have extended the downstairs now it blocks out the light. And while the change of view is upsetting the 67-year-old, Roger revealed a more horrific reality that is upsetting both himself and his wife. Roger slammed the local authorities and said they have been unsupportive. He said: 'The council has been next to useless. We are very stressed over all this. We don't know who will be living here. It's horrendous.' Because of the disruption, Roger says he and Gail are considering moving but are concerned about the impact on their house price - another worry that is too much to take for the hexagenarians. The health and safety worker said: 'We are going to sell. We are being forced out. An estate agent said we will lose £50,000. 'My wife won't feel safe because we don't know who we will be living next to. 'We were in shock. We felt sick. My work is suffering because of the stress I'm going through. 'We have been totally let down. It's wrong. They cut through an expensive fence. All those things add up. It's too much to bear and we don't need it in our time of life.' A Spelthorne Borough Council spokeswoman said: 'The work is being overseen by an Approved Inspector not Spelthorne Borough Council's building control team. Unfortunately, this means the Council cannot intervene from a building control point of view. 'A planning enforcement officer visited the premises but based on the evidence his view was that it would fall within permitted development rights. 'The officer therefore advised that no action could be taken from a planning perspective and that this would also apply to a change of use to an HMO (planning permission is not required). 'The Council was later advised by an Approved Inspector of works that the enlarged property will be used for a six-unit HMO. 'This does not need planning permission but will need an HMO licence. The Council's Environmental Health team has sent out an application pack, but no application has been received yet. 'Unfortunately, the legislation does not allow for public consultation on HMO licence applications or for neighbours to comment or object. 'In January 2025, the Council's planning committee approved an Article 4 direction to withdraw permitted development rights for change of use to HMOs across all wards in the borough. 'However, this will not come into effect until at least the beginning of next year. Going forward this means planning permission will be needed for HMOs but will not prevent applications being submitted or being granted or allowed on appeal. 'The issue with regards the lack of toilet facilities for the workers has been addressed.'
Yahoo
23-05-2025
- Yahoo
Birmingham man charged with £16,000 jewellery heists across West Midlands
A Birmingham man has been charged with multiple jewellery shop thefts totalling thousands of pounds. Nick Dosanjh, from Simmons Drive in Quinton, has been charged with nine shop theft offences. They are said to have taken place across the West Midlands including in Birmingham, the Black Country and Solihull. Read more: Police officer dragged Muslim woman out of HMO in 'state of undress' Get breaking news on BirminghamLive WhatsApp , click the link to join Eight of the charges are for jewellery shop raids where more than £16,000 of jewellery was allegedly taken. The 33-year-old was stopped when West Midlands Police traffic officers stopped a 'suspicious vehicle' in Oldbury this week. Read more : Van driver dies in crash after failing to stop for police Get the latest BirminghamLive news direct to your inbox A spokesperson for the force said: 'A man has been charged after multiple thefts from jewellery shops in the West Midlands. 'Nick Dosanjh, aged 33 from Quinton has been charged with nine shop theft offences in the West Midlands. 'These include in Solihull, Wolverhampton, Brierley Hill, Smethwick, Walsall and Birmingham. 'Eight offences relate to thefts from jewellery stores where more than £16,000 of jewellery has been stolen. 'This comes after officers from traffic officers stopped a suspicious vehicle in Oldbury earlier this week. 'Following enquiries the driver was fined for driving without a licence and insurance.'
Daily Mail
20-05-2025
- Daily Mail
Toddler who died after falling from height tumbled from a window on the top floor flat of an 'HMO used for emergency housing'
A two-year-old boy who died after falling from a height fell from the top floor of an HMO used for emergency housing, neighbours have said. Police and paramedics were called on Sunday to an address in Forest Hill, near Lewisham, south east London. The incident happened on Wynell Road, with emergency services alerted shortly after 12.15pm. An air ambulance was scrambled to the scene. The toddler was treated at the address before being taken to hospital but sadly he died from his injuries. A police investigation has been launched to establish what happened, but the toddler's death is currently being treated as unexplained. Today neighbours told how the boy plummeted from a top floor flat in a property specially reserved for emergency housing. A mother who lives opposite the house said: 'As soon as we heard the air ambulance we ran outside, the police already had sheets up and everything was covered but I got a glimpse of them doing chest compression before they put them in the ambulance. 'We first heard someone got shot. 'I've never met the boy or the woman who I think is his mum, I'd never even seen her, but because it's an HMO there are always people coming and going - I think people are housed there for emergencies. 'The windows in that building are not safe, they open outwards and it would be so easy to lean against them and fall. 'Our neighbour's lad who lives near there came and told us he'd seen the little boy lying in the garden. 'That house should not be used for kids, someone needs to take responsibility for that but I don't think anyone will. 'I just can't believe this, that poor woman, I don't think I could ever go back in there if my child had fallen. 'I had never seen the woman before Sunday, but I want her to know we're thinking of her, we care about her.' On Tuesday, flowers had been left on the wall outside a property where the two-year old is believed to have died. The road, a quiet residential street in Forest Hill, south east London, was filled with emergency services vehicles when the incident occurred on Sunday. One pensioner said: 'The first I heard of it was the air ambulance, it landed on the bowling club lawn I think. 'Then my neighbour told me this morning that a little boy had died, it's such a tragedy.' Another woman, who lives near the site of the fall, said the boy had apparently fallen from the window of a flat. She said: 'On Sunday I was in my garden and the air ambulance flew over very nearby. 'It landed somewhere and I ran out onto the road to find out what had happened. 'Someone said a child had fallen, but we didn't know his age or anything at that time. 'I came back in because it was all so chaotic and I felt in the way. 'My neighbour came over later and told me the little boy had fallen from a window, I don't know what floor it was but it's just horrible. 'I have been crying for the last two days about it, I just keep thinking of the parents, they're going to have to deal with the loss of that little life for the rest of their lives.' A Met Police spokeswoman said: 'On Sunday at 12.17pm police were called following reports that a child had fallen from height. 'Met officers attended the scene alongside paramedics from the London Ambulance Service who treated a two-year-old boy at the scene before taking him to hospital. 'Sadly, despite the best efforts of the medical staff, he later died in hospital. 'His family are currently being supported by specialist officers. 'The death is being treated as unexpected and remains under investigation. There has been no arrests made. 'Enquiries into the circumstances are on-going.' A spokesperson for London Ambulance Service said: 'We were called at 12.11pm on Sunday 18 May to reports of an incident in Wynell Road, SE23. 'We sent resources including ambulance crews, an incident response officer and London's air ambulance. 'We treated a child at the scene and took them to hospital. Sadly, despite our efforts they died.'
