Action on 'student ghettoes'
Thursday, 28 January 2010 12:00 AM
By politics.co.uk staff
The spread of areas dominated by student housing will be halted by the government as it imposes new rules on landlords, it was announced yesterday.
John Healey, housing minister, said landlords wishing to rent out houses to three or more unrelated tenants will need to apply for planning permission.
Councils will receive new powers to licence and regulate landlords in particular areas.
The moves are a last-ditch attempt to limit the prevalence of student areas. Many local residents resent the way their neighbourhood becomes a ghost town for vast portions of the year, when holidays see students return to their parent's homes.
There are also concerns about litter and noise, and other societal problems stemming from resident populations who only intend to stay in an area for a couple of years.
"I am giving councils more local powers to crack down on the worst landlords and stop the spread of high concentrations of shared homes where it causes problems for other residents or changes the character of a neighbourhood," Mr Healey said.
Landlord associations and student groups protested the move, which they branded an overreaction.
"This will be nothing to the economic decline of bars, restaurants and local shops if students and young professionals are deprived of the choice of locality in which they can live," said Alan Ward, chairman of the Resident Landlords Association (RLA).
"Packing them into expensive halls of residence neither gives them the experience of independent living, nor integration with thriving communities. It will create student ghettos."
The new powers will only apply to homes converted for multi-occupancy in the future.
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