Rugby Residents - are you aware that Rugby Borough Council has NO POLICY within their existing Planning Strategy on Houses of Multiple Occupation (HMOs)?

Are you aware that 100% of your street could in effect, under the present Council, be purchased by developers and turned into HMOs due to this complete lack of policy?

At a recent planning meeting (11th January 2023) the Councillors present argued amongst themselves on the need for policy on this matter and admitted it was lacking. 
A live-stream of this meeting can be viewed on the Council Youtube channel: 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USvXYuSejmI

Without a policy in place, developers can continue to purchase the much needed family homes within the area and turn them into HMOs with almost no question. In one street alone a developer is in the process of purchasing 4 homes in a row – turning each one into a 7-8 bed HMO, subjecting the neighbours to years of construction work and noise - and that’s prior to the 28+ residents moving in and the stresses that will cause on parking and local amenities.

HMOs are needed, we agree, but there needs to be some constraints put in place, some parameters set, a policy laid down that ensures that the whole town isn’t lost to this transient market that continues to take away affordable town centre family homes.

In signing this petition you are asking the present council to:

a)       Consider their overall planning strategy and the introduction of a
policy on HMOs

b)      Consider the licensing of all HMOs within Rugby regardless of their size

c)       Consider the introduction of Article 4, an amendment to the planning strategy that removes specific permitted development rights and would require all changes of use, from family homes to HMOs, to apply for planning permission

Other local councils have managed to pull their fingers out and introduce policies on this matter – it’s now time for our council to do the same!