Hull City Council takes next step to limit the spread of HMOs

Hull City Council has listened to residents’ concerns and taken another step towards much greater control of the spread of houses in multiple occupation (HMOs).

A Supplementary Planning Document (SPD) will help avoid concentrations of HMOs and protect residents’ quality of life and local environment by giving the council greater control over the creation of new HMOs.

The new SPD seeks to avoid existing family housing being ‘sandwiched’ between two HMOs on either side, or three or more HMOs in a row being created.

This approach has already been used successfully to turn down a planning application for a new HMO in Melbourne Street, off Newland Avenue, where too many HMOs is a concern regularly raised by local residents. The guidance will continue to apply going forward when the council deals with applications for a change of use from a single-family house to an HMO.