Following a refusal of permission for a 7 bedroom large House in Multiple Occupation (HMO), I was appointed to advise a client on the best way of obtaining the additional accommodation. Permission has originally been refused by Oxford City Council due to the lack of parking, the top-heavy appearance of a dormer extension in the rear roof slope, and the substandard size of some of the accommodation.
To address the refusal reasons, a certificate of lawfulness application was first submitted by the client for a loft conversion under permitted development, was approved and implemented. Additional space was provided internally to meet policy standards for HMO bedroom accommodation. I prepared a planning statement to accompany the client’s subsequent application for change of use of the house, to justify the lack of parking at the property, and outline how all three changes now addressed the previous refusal reasons. Consequently, with the loft conversion in situ and other matters evidenced to be compliant with the Council’s Development Plan, a second application for the 7th bedroom was approved.