Newport City Council rejects HMO in Jackson Place, Newport

Last week the planning application was rejected by Newport City Council.

The 4-bed house, located at 11 Jackson Place in Victoria, has had planning application rejected by Newport City Council to turn it into an HMO.

The council said it rejected the application based on rooflights in bedroom five, which would not be acceptable for any future tenant(s).

Local resident Samantha Gibson has been living on Jackson Place for almost 5 years, and said:

"There are 19 HMOs within a 5-minute walking distance, and this will make it 20.

"If tenants are going to be put into HMOs, they need to be supported with mental health, drug and alcohol issues".

No to an HMO at 11 Jackson Place on neighbour's window (Image: Samantha Gibson, Newsquest)

Councillors Farzina Hussain and Gavin Horton of the Victoria Ward objected to the planning application for similar reasons to the residents.

The main reason given by both councillors was that there is a high number of HMOs and temporary accommodation in that area already.

Cllr Hussain said: "population density is already at a premium which is changing the demographics of the area".

What is a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO)?

Newport City Council says a HMO is, “any property in Newport which houses 3 or more unrelated people forming more than 2 households”.

A single person, a family or a cohabiting couple are considered as one household.

HMOs mean landlords can collect a higher amount of rent as each room would be rented out on individual tenancies.

A count of how many HMOs there are listed under the five county councils, as well as the total number of non-HMO properties. (Image: Ruby Qaimkhani, Newsquest)

As of December 21, 2023, Newport City Council has had over fifty objections on the planning application itself with more sent as a petition to the councillors.

Reasons such as parking, child safety, property value and noise have been given as reasons to why the HMO planning application should be rejected.

Cllr Horton from the Victoria ward said: "There is also concern over parking, rubbish and anti social behaviour. We have had a large petition sent to us with over 100 names and signatures".

A Change.org campaign was set up by residents hoping to stop the planning application.

11 Jackson Place photographed from the outside (Image: Samantha Gibson)

Samantha said: "If you hadn’t published that article, we would have been totally unaware and oblivious. We weren’t made aware of the conversation until the Argus article came out".

The Argus wrote about the planning application in November 2023.

One comment on this article regarding 11 Jackson Place, reads: "Rubbish, the new tenants will be young professionals, e.g. lawyers, doctors, police, accountants etc, or students, They will be a pleasure to live along side of".

John Griffiths MS, the Senedd Constituency Member for Newport East, said:
"Too many HMOs can create an imbalance and change the nature of communities.

Neighbours have posted signs to oppose the planning application (Image: Samantha Gibson)

John stated that he has been contacted by concerned residents and said: "Jackson Place is a quiet street with a strong community feel.

"There are a number of HMOs in the general area and residents are concerned to keep a balance between family accommodation and that for single people.

Newport City Council’s HMO licensing scheme began on 1 July 2019 and expires 30 June 2024.

Newport City Council rejected the planning application for the following reason:

"The proposal, owing to its reliance on rooflights serving Bedroom 5, would result in an unacceptable provision of residential amenity for the future occupier. This is contrary to Policy GP2 and H8 of the Newport Local Development Plan 2011-2026 (adopted January 2015)"

The Argus has contacted Bowen Investments for a comment. That is the company that applied for the change of use for 11 Jackson Place to convert it into a HMO.

The application can be found on the Newport City Council website under reference 23/1020.