Mansfield District Council to spend £1,200 per day decide whether an HMO crackdown is needed

The research will help councillors decide whether action is needed to crackdown on developers and landlords.

Council leader Andy Abrahams announced in October that the authority would start the process to bring in an Article 4 direction – which restricts properties from being turned into HMOs without permission – after months of calls for action.

Local MP Steve Yemm was one of those calling for the move after he showed how streets such as Princes Street – since dubbed the worst place in the country for HMOs – had been swamped by HMOs.

On Thursday, the first official step in that process – the Mayor signing off the funding – took place, with £50,000 being put aside for the research phase of the six-week project, which will involve estimating the numbers of HMOs in Mansfield and scoping out how much they are affecting neighbourhoods.

Mr Yemm said: “I welcomed it (the research). I think movement on this is really important. But, of course, you know, it has to be translated into action. The important thing for me is acting quickly on this and making sure we’re doing everything we can to protect residents on residential streets as quickly as we can do.”

Across Nottinghamshire, only three of eight councils have restrictive directions on HMOs in place.

They are the city council – for the entirety of the city – Broxtowe Borough Council for parts of Beeston and Bassetlaw District Council for parts of Worksop and Retford, while Gedling Borough Council is currently looking into bringing one in for parts of Netherfield.

Earlier this year, Rushcliffe Borough Council ran a similar evidence gathering process to the one Mansfield is about to undertake and found there was “no evidence” to bring in an Article 4 direction.

There is the possibility that Mansfield’s might draw the same conclusions – but Mr Yemm, who has previously voiced his concerns in parliament that HMOs are contributing to a lack of community cohesion, parking pressures and more fly-tipping, says he is confident that won’t be the case.

He said: “They might (find not enough evidence), but I think if they did, I would dispute that. I’d be extremely disappointed and I’m sure the residents along those streets would be if that was the outcome. That’s not what I’m expecting.

“We might not be the HMO capital of the country, it might not be the worst, but I do know that on certain streets in Mansfield it’s a really significant problem.”

While in his social media broadcast, Mayor Abrahams said he would instruct his own council staff to do the research, it now appears that due to a lack of capacity, the work will have to be outsourced.

It means that the research won’t begin immediately as the council will need to procure quotes from contractors willing to do the research and then choose one to complete the job.

Mr Yemm said the important thing he was looking for was a “clear commitment to progress.”

He said: “I want a clear, measurable timescale and I want them to prioritise the most affected neighbourhoods, particularly a lot of those that are close to the town centre, but really, as well, greater transparency and involvement of residents I think are really important.”