Netherfield is set to expand further, despite parking and public safety concerns.
Gedling Borough Council’s planning committee met on Wednesday (3 June) to discuss five separate House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) applications in Netherfield.
The perception that HMO-type accommodation is increasing in the area has been felt both at resident and councillor level.
As of January 2026, out of the 3,120 properties in Netherfield, the authority is ‘aware of’ 36 of them being HMOs, which is about 1.15 per cent of the total housing in the ward.
On Wednesday, the authority approved five six-bed HMO properties across Chandos Street, Beech Avenue and Bourne Street to expand to seven beds.
All three residential roads are close to each other, and this pocket of Netherfield features predominantly older Victorian terraced houses without driveways, meaning the majority of residents have to park on the road if they own a car.
Councillor Darren Maltby (Con) argued that while one extra bedroom being added to an existing HMO does not immediately appear concerning, approval sets a “precedent” for other existing HMOs to one day expand, as extra rooms could add to parking, congestion and public safety concerns already in the area.
Resident Fiona Draycott, who lives near one of the expanding HMOs, told the meeting that ‘add-on’ rooms are being made to properties “already at capacity” and that the plans represent “urban cramming in a constrained Victorian plot”.
Councillor Russell Whiting (Ind) told the committee he regularly walks up and down Chandos Street and said multiple cars are often mounting the pavements, with “pinch points” felt around the street.
With two of the expanding HMOs located on the road, he said: “Someone is going to die on this street… someone is going to be killed by a car, and allowing even one more car… It might not be seven cars, it might be 11, it might be a delivery driver delivering to the seventh person.”
Mr Tuncel, who runs one of the HMOs on Chandos Street, said his properties are “professionally managed” and the expansion of his HMO will help meet the “growing demand” for affordable accommodation for working people.
Mark Cooper, 69, who has lived nearby for more than 25 years, said he did not think the area had the infrastructure to support more people living in HMOs.
He said: “I think a lot of people are against them because they’re removing family homes, and some of them, give it a couple of years, and they’re going to be slums.
“I’m not opposed to people having somewhere to live. People need homes, but I think there needs to be a much more sensible approach to how many there can be in one area.”
Another resident, Claire, has lived in the area for two years and says properties turned into HMOs are not “saleable anymore”. She also said she had not felt “safe” during previous incidents of disturbance involving a neighbouring HMO tenant who was ‘partying from Friday to Sunday’ and fighting on the street before they were removed.
Carlton resident Lucy, who has lived in her home for around 20 years, says HMOs appear to be “moving off” Netherfield, as she has noticed more popping up in Carlton, with one being developed next door.
She said: “I get the impression [the developers] are buying up across Carlton – Netherfield’s getting quite full. It’s similar sorts of houses, terraced… The chances of [HMOs] only having one car [are not guaranteed].”
Lucy says works to turn a neighbouring property into a HMO have left her home and one of her windows “insecure”, as a joint gate could end up being opened to the road.
She continued: “[Increasing HMOs] is to the detriment of communities… it’s taking the value off [our house].”
Lucy said “it’s not about who lives there”, but that there should be more monitoring of where, and how many, HMOs are able to be introduced to an area. She has started a petition for the council to introduce an Article 4 Direction to the borough to better regulate HMOs.
Under the current planning policy, changing a home to a small HMO is classed as “permitted development”, meaning planning permission from a local authority is not needed.
An Article 4 Direction allows councils to withdraw these permitted development rights for HMOs across a defined area, meaning smaller HMOs would require planning permission and would allow resident consultation.
