Residents' fury over Wigan flats

Exterior of a property, 750 Ormskirk Road, Pemberton, the 6-room HMO is being changed to a 9-room House in Multiple Occupation.

Proposals have been submitted to the town hall to convert an existing six room HMO (House in Multiple Occupation) in Ormskirk Road, Pemberton, into a nine bedroom house share scheme instead.

But the prospect has led to concerns about security and privacy for some residents living in the vicinity of the HMO.

In an objection posted on the council’s online planning portal, one resident said: “The property named in this application is at the rear of my garden.

"There is a large opening in the original stone wall dividing the properties, this gives open access to our property. We are extremely concerned about the lack of privacy this will give and also about security.

“There are currently a set of trees offering some privacy, if these were removed the area would be very open.

“We are concerned about the large number of residents that will be living in the property and using the garden area.

“We request that something is put in place to reduce noise and provide security and privacy for my family.”

The application was submitted just days before the council approved new regulations that will help them manage the number of shared houses in areas of Wigan and Leigh.

The policy will be enforced in Swinley and central Leigh following residents’ feedback about the rising number of HMOs in those areas.

Previously, a change of use from a house to a large HMO (of more than six people) required planning permission, but a change of use to a small HMO (between three and six people) does not.

Following a cabinet decision in July, the formal adoption of an “article 4 direction” now means HMOs of any size in those two locations will be considered through the planning system.

However, the Ormskirk Road application would not have been affected by the new regulations. It does not fall into the catchment area for the new measures, and with its six existing rooms, it was already large enough to require planning before the new rules were enforced.

Full details of the application can be found at planning.wigan.gov.uk using the reference code A/20/88457/CU