Bid to turn South Shields Ocean Road guest house into eight-bed HMO

South Tyneside Council’s planning department has received an application for a property at 81 Ocean Road.

Applicant Ledie Properties Ltd is seeking planning permission to convert the eight-bedroom guest house into an eight-bedroom HMO.

Minimal external alterations to the building are planned, along with internal works to facilitate the proposed HMO use, a type of property which includes multiple households living together with communal facilities.

It was noted that the previous guest house bedroom arrangement consisted of “five twin rooms, one single room, a double room and a family room”.

Those behind the proposed HMO scheme are proposing “single bed bedrooms” and stress that the “property is of a suitable and appropriate size for the proposed use”.

Details of the development are set out in a planning, design and access statement, which describes the development as “the re-use of a building within the built-up area”.

Works include the “insertion of a rooflight in the rear roof elevation and the bricking up of the garage door on the ground floor rear elevation and the insertion of a new door opening on the same elevation”.

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A cycle parking area and waste bin area is also proposed within the rear part of the house in a utility and storage room area, with the area being able to be “accessed both internally and externally”.

The design, planning and access statement adds: “Careful planning has gone into the layout of the proposed HMO and therefore the scheme as set out in the plans ensures that the property is of a suitable and appropriate size for the proposed use.

“In terms of the comings and goings of residents, it would not be any different to that of the guest house use, especially as there is no increase in the number of rooms.”

Floor plans show two bedrooms, a shared kitchen / dining area and lounge, and cycle and bin store on the ground floor, along with four bedrooms on the first floor and two bedrooms on the top floor, and bedrooms would have ensuites.

Those behind the plan said there was not a “proliferation of HMOs within the immediate vicinity and as such this proposal is not considered to lead to a cumulative adverse impact on the immediate vicinity or wider area”.

Developers also referenced previous council planning decisions for HMOs and stressed that it was not for the planning system to address “day-to-day operational matters and management associated with the proposed HMO use” and that these responsibilities “rest with the HMO operator”.

The planning, design and access statement added: “The property does not benefit from any on-site parking provision.

“This is a common occurrence within the area, not only for properties fronting onto Ocean Road, but also the roads adjacent to it.

“The site is close enough to the town centre and local amenities that would allow future occupiers to walk to and from them.

“There is on street parking located along Ocean Road, which would be available to future occupiers in the same way it was available to users of the guest house.”

A decision on the planning application is expected to be made once a period of council consultation has concluded.

Comments can be made on the plan, via South Tyneside Council’s planning portal website, until February 28, 2025.

For more information on the plan, visit the council’s planning portal website and search application reference number: 250070