Stirling Council Supplementary Guidance December 2018 Houses in Multiple Occupation www.stirling.gov.uk/planning Supplementary Guidance Houses in Multiple Occupation 1. Introduction 1.1 The purpose of this Supplementary Guidance (SG) is to expand on Local Development Plan Policy 2.3 – Particular needs housing and accommodation, part (e) of which is related to Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMO). Inparticular, this SG provides the locational criteria with which planning applications for HMO should comply, as specified in criterion (e)(iv) of Policy 2.3. This guidance also outlines Stirling Council’s Overprovision Policy in relation to the licensing of HMOs and describes the respective roles of planning and licensing in the management of such properties. 1.2 The Council recognises that Houses in Multiple Occupation (HMOs) are a key element of the private rented sector, which itself plays a significant role in meeting housing needs. This sector, including HMOs, provides a degree of flexibility not available in the owner occupied and social rented sectors. The demand for HMO accommodation is particularly high in Stirling from students, young professionals and people working away from home. However, it is also recognised that concentrations of HMOs can in some instances lead to a range of cultural, social, physical and economic changes in a community. 1 The range of potential problems associated with high concentrations of HMOs can include: • Changes in the demand for services, altering the availability of services provided; • Increased competition for private houses, consequential rises in house prices, and reduced availability for non-HMO residents; • Areas of high HMO concentrations can become unpopular with non-HMO residents, altering the community; • Potential physical deterioration caused by lack of investment by absentee landlords; • Increased population density, resulting in an increased demand on services, infrastructure and on-street parking provision; • A high number of transient residents leading to less community cohesion. 1.3 In view of the issues arising from concentrations of HMOs within certain areas of Stirling, the Council’s priorities include tightening the regulation of HMOs and reducing the number of HMOs in the town centre. The Council therefore revised SG05 in October 2015 and introduced an HMO Overprovision Policy pursuant to Section 131A of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006. 1.4 Within the Stirling City area, the demand for accommodation within Houses in Multiple Occupation is mostly for student accommodation and, in the rural areas, to support the tourism and agricultural sector in providing staff accommodation for seasonal workers. At 22nd May 2015 there were 381 licensed Houses in Multiple Occupation purpose built for student accommodation, providing capacity for 2,405 bed units and a further 321 licensed Houses in Multiple Occupation with a further 1,346 bed units. 2 1.5 The policy on the provision of Houses in Multiple Occupation in the Stirling Council area set out in this guidance seeks to avoid concentrations of Houses in Multiple Occupation in view of the problems such concentrations can create in the areas they are arise. It is considered that number of licenced Houses in Multiple Occupation in Stirling, the ever increasing private rented sector and approved purpose built student accommodation developments that are either under construction and/or awaiting development – plus the stated exceptions to the policy – can meet the current and predicted future demand for affordable, high quality rented accommodation. It is intended that the demand and affordability of rented accommodation in the Stirling Council area, and the impact that the adoption of House in Multiple Occupation Overprovision policy may have, will be reviewed after a period of 12 months. 3 2. The role of Planning and Licencing in HMO 2.1 The Planning and HMO licensing systems are two separate regimes with distinct functions and objectives. Scottish Government Planning Circular 2/2012 Houses in Multiple Occupation: Guidance on Planning Control and Licensing1 encourages local authorities to take a coordinated approach to the planning and licensing of HMOs, with joint working between planning and licensing teams and other relevant departments. This revised SG and Overprovision Policy have been jointly developed by the Planning Service and the Housing Service and its implementation will be administered through joint working between services to ensure consistency and that information on the location of HMOs is shared. Requirement for Planning Permission 2.2 The formation of a HMO does not always require planning permission – only where use as a HMO would constitute a ‘material change of use’ is permission generally required. There is no statutory definition of ‘material change of use’; however, it is linked to the significance of a change and the resulting impact on the use of land and buildings. Whether a material change of use has taken place is a matter of fact and degree and this will be determined on the individual merits of a case. 1 http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0039/00396049.pdf 4 2.3 Circular 2/2012 states planning authorities may provide guidance as to occupancy levels for individual HMOs that would be considered to be a material change of use. With reference to the Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Scotland) Order 1997 and The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Scotland) Order 2011, the formation of an HMO in the following circumstances will be deemed to be represent a material change of use for which planning permission will be required: Formation of HMOs in Houses: The Town and Country Planning (Use Classes) (Scotland) Order 1997 defines a house (Class 9) as being the sole or main residence of a single person, or any number of persons living together as a family, or not more than 5 residents living together as a single household. By encompassing ‘households’ of less than 6 people, Class 9 includes people living together under arrangements for providing care and support within the community and other groups of people including students, not necessarily related to each other, but who choose to live on a communal basis as a single household. Where there is an increase in the number of residents, resulting in six or more residents living within a house falling within the definition of an HMO under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 a material change of use of the property will be deemed to have taken place and the property will no longer be considered to fall under Class 9 of the Use Classes Order. Planning permission for the formation of an HMO will therefore be required. 5 Formation of HMOs in Flats: A flat is defined in The Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (Scotland) Order 1992 as a separate and self-contained set of premises whether or not on the same floor and forming part of a building from some other part of which it is divided horizontally. Flats are distinct from houses and are classed as Sui Generis within the Use Classes Order. Where there is an increase in the number of residents, resulting in three or more residents living within a flat falling within the definition of an HMO under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006 a material change of use of the property will be deemed to have taken place and planning permission for the formation of an HMO will be required. In determining the use of a flat as an HMO, it is a matter of fact and degree whether the nature of the use is materially different from that of a family flat. It is considered that three or more persons from three or more families in a flat is materially different from family use on account of the more independent lifestyles of occupants which, it is considered, can have an adverse impact on residential amenity. Formation of HMOs in other buildings: The conversion of hotels and hostels class (Class 7), including hotels and boarding or guest houses; residential institutions (Class 8); or buildings used for any other use to an HMO will require planning permission. 2.4 Planning permission is required for the formation of HMOs in houses or flats as defined above where properties are being proposed for HMO use for the first time only, except where it is proposed to intensify an existing HMO use (i.e. the number of rooms), in which case planning permission may be required. Properties that have in the past operated as HMOs with planning permission and/or a licence, but where the property has, in the intervening period, not operated as an HMO and/ or the licence has expired, may also require planning permission if it is deemed there has been an intervening use. 6 Planning Considerations 2.5 Where planning permission is required for the formation of an HMO, the key consideration for the planning authority is the impact the change of use would have on the residential amenity of the surrounding community. Relevant considerations include: parking and road safety; the management and storage of waste; and the maintenance of external spaces including garden ground. Concerns about the behaviour of HMO tenants, however, are not something that can be taken into account in determining a planning application. 2.6 Where concentrations of HMOs are considered to be having a negative effect on the amenity of a community, or where it is considered likely that such a situation may arise, planning authorities may adopt policies to manage HMO concentrations. This SG sets out Stirling Council’s policy for managing the concentration of HMOs, revising the policy that was adopted alongside the Local Development Plan in September 2014. Section 3 outlines the locational criteria that will be applied to the determination of planning applications for HMO within the Local Development Plan area (i.e.