Plans submitted to turn St Helens home into four-bed HMO

Plans from Stirling Focus Holdings Ltd suggest changing the property at 127 Cooper Street, St Helens, into a small house in multiple occupation (HMO).

If approved, the plans would see the home's downstairs living room become a bedroom with the existing family bathroom.

Meanwhile, three existing upstairs rooms would stay as bedrooms, although two would have their storage spaces converted into an en suite.

The current kitchen and dining room would remain communal.

The plans state the house would provide accommodation for up to four "unrelated" occupants sharing communal areas, with no external changes or construction.

The application puts forward the change under a "permitted development right," specifically from a dwelling house (Use Class C3) to a small HMO (Use Class C4).

The submitted documentation stated: "The property is currently in use as a single dwellinghouse (Use Class C3)."

"The property has been in continuous residential use as a private dwelling, and no material change of use has occurred.

"The proposed change of use is from C3 to C4 (small House in Multiple Occupation for up to 4 occupants).

"Under Schedule 2, Part 3, Class L of the Town and Country Planning (General Permitted Development) (England) Order 2015 (as amended), a change of use from C3 to C4 is permitted development where no Article 4 Direction is in place."

The proposal also says: "The use will operate as a normal residential dwelling on a 24-hour basis.

"The existing and last known use of the property is as a single dwellinghouse (Use Class C3).

"The property has been in continuous residential use and that use has not ceased."

An application for a Lawful Development Certificate has been lodged.

The application is currently under consideration by the local authority’s planning department.

Plans can be viewed on St Helens Council's planning portal with the reference number P/2026/0110/CLP.