Flats bid thrown out

CONTROVERSIAL proposals to convert a semi-detached home into a house of multiple occupation (HMO) for up to 12 people have been thrown out by planning chiefs.

Aquae Sulis Investments proposed changes to the property in Park Street, Farnworth, included increasing the number of bedrooms to eight, and creating a shared kitchen/dining room area.

A bin storage and bicycle parking bay area would also have been located at the back of the property.

Bolton Council’s planning committee unanimously threw out the plans on the grounds there are already several HMOs in the immediate area and the impact it would have on existing residents’ quality of life.

Coun Maureen Flitcroft said Park Street already had an “over concentration” of HMOs, which already have a “negative impact” and have contributed to the “breakdown of the community”