Welcome to the Website
of the
NOTTINGHAM ACTION GROUP ON HOUSES IN MULTIPLE OCCUPATION
 

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THE NAG
WHO ♦ WHAT ♦ WHY ♦ HOW?
 


 

We are residents living in neighbourhoods from across a large part of the City of Nottingham (Sherwood, The Arboretum, Hyson Green, Radford, The Park, Lenton, Dunkirk, The Meadows, Wollaton Park, Wollaton, Lenton Abbey), and also in Beeston and West Bridgford.

Although our neighbourhoods are as different from one another as we are, what they have in common are the problems caused by increasing concentrations of so-called 'Houses in Multiple Occupation' (HMOs) - shared houses with absentee landlords and short-term, highly transient tenants.

What we have in common is the feeling that as individual residents we run the risk of having little or no say in what primarily local and national government, our higher education establishments, developers, investors, and others are planning and doing, even though their decisions directly affect us and the future of the neighbourhoods in which we live. As individuals we feel we have little or no voice. However, we believe that coming together as a group gives us a voice.

In February 2004, we did get together and formed the Nottingham Action Group on HMOs – the NAG – not a nice name, but appropriate. What has been happening to our neighbourhoods is not nice for those who live in them, or for their futures, and we are ready to nag and keep on nagging to get things done.

Whilst we cannot change what has happened, perhaps we too can become not just the 'dreamers of dreams' but also the 'movers and shakers', and, by influencing what may be going to happen, so help shape the future of our neighbourhoods.

For the NAG that future needs to be neighbourhoods that are resilient, balanced and sustainable, and where people feel happy to put down roots and contribute to the future of the City of Nottingham as a whole. In other words:

‘... places where people want to live and work and learn, now and in the future. ...'



WHAT IS A HOUSE IN MULTIPLE OCCUPATION (HMO)?
 

An HMO is often also known as a 'shared house'. Put as simply as possible, an HMO is a building, or part of a building, occupied as a main residence by more than one household where a 'household' can be one person or several people provided that they are related to one another. So, for example, a home is probably an HMO if 

•three or more unrelated people live there as at least two separate households, and

•the people living there share the same amenities such as a kitchen and/or bathroom.

For more information about HMOs and about legislation relating to HMOs, we suggest you take a look at these websites:

http://www.hmolobby.org.uk

http://www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/HMO 

Also, Nottingham City Council publish a regularly up-dated Register of Licensed HMOs, which can be downloaded from the appropriate link in this page: http://www.nottinghamcity.gov.uk/HMO. Scroll to the 'Downloads' section and the register is the last item on the list.


COMPLAINTS ABOUT LICENSED HMOs
 

Complaints about licensed HMOs can be made directly by e-mailing:

hmo@nottinghamcity.gov.uk


REPORT A ROGUE LANDLORD

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If you want advice or help relating to the condition and management of your privately rented property

Visit:
E-Mail: environmental.health@nottinghamcity.gov.uk
Telephone: 0115 915-2020 (Option 4)
Write to: Environmental Health, Community Protection, Nottingham City Council, Loxley House,
Station Street, Nottingham NG2 3NG



FOR YOUR DIARY
 

NAG MEETINGS & EVENTS

February 2019 Unipol-NAG (U-NAG) Open Meeting: 'Current Trends & Future Developments in the Student Housing Market'

Notes of this meeting, held on Thursday 21 February 2019, are now available to read and to download when you open this page.

January 2018 NAG Open Meeting: Notes of Meeting Now Available

Notes of this meeting, held on Friday, 26 January 2018, are available to read and to download when you open this page.


NATIONAL, NOTTINGHAM & NEIGHBOURHOOD: MEETINGS, EXHIBITIONS, CONSULTATIONS & EVENTS

Friday 29 November 2019 to Saturday 1 February 2020: Journeys to Nottingham from the Windrush Generation

Nottingham Trent University, Bonington Gallery. In 2012, Nottingham Black Archive began to document the experiences of those who came from the Caribbean to England during the Windrush period. Journeys to Nottingham is a collection of narratives, photographs, and ephemera from people who travelled from the Caribbean to Nottingham during the Windrush era. It is a snapshot of why they came, what they did, and where they worked on their arrival to the city.

THE FUTURE OF NOTTINGHAM UNIVERSITY'S ESTATE:
LEARN MORE & HAVE YOUR SAY
A Series of Consultation Opportunities


Following publication of its new University Strategy at the end of 2019, Nottingham University is preparing a Development Framework for the university's UK estate which will set out the principles of development of its UK xampuses over the next 20 years. The university is holding a series of consultation events to which it is inviting stakeholders or interested parties from across the wider community to explore and comment on the university's plans. Note that the exhibitions do not run in the evenings.

Monday 20 to Friday 24 January, Jubilee Campus, Exchange Building Foyer. Consultation session: Wednesday 22 January, 12 noon – 7.00 pm

Monday 27 to Friday 31 January, University Park, Portland Building adjacent to the Malone Atrium. Consultation session: Wednesday 29 January, 12 noon – 7.00 pm.

Monday 27 to Friday 31 January, Kings Meadow Campus, main café space. Consultation session: Thursday 30 January, 12 noon – 7.00 pm.

Monday 3 to Friday 7 February, Sutton Bonington, The Dining Hall, in the Barn. Consultation session: Wednesday 5 February, 12 noon – 7.00 pm

Initial ideas can ve viewed and commented on on-line at www.nottingham.ac.uk/estates/development/edf.aspx  and comment feedback forms will be available at each event. The deadline for all comments is Sunday 9 february 2020.

The NAG received this information on Monday 20 January 2020, and has sent a response to Nottingham University in which, in addition to other points such s the short notice, it asks for an additional series of consultation sessions at a venue which is easily accessible for all residents, for example the foyer of the Advanced Manufacturing Building on Derby Road (adjacent to Lenton Lodge) which, because of the excellent public transport links, is easily accessible for all interested residents who live in Lenton & Wollaton East Ward and in locations further afield.

 


NEWS DESK
 


NATIONAL NEWS

Belfast Hoyland Anti-Social Behaviour

Robbie Meredith (BBC News NI Education Correspondent) writing on Thursday 28 November 2019 reports on anti-social behaviour in the Hoyland area of Belfast and disciplinary measures taken by Queen's University and Ulster University.

'How Students Can Buy a £400,000 Home With Zero Deposit'

Patrick Collinson, Money Editor of The Guardian (Saturday 26 October 2019) used this headline for a report by Patrick Collinson, its Money Editor, on the increasing number of building societies offering deals that let young adults buy their university home and pay the mortgage with the rent they charge other students.

Students at Bristol (UWE) & Coventry Universities Unhappy with University Accommodation

The BBC News (Wednesday 23 October 2019 and Thursday 24 October) carried reports about students dissatisfaction with their accommodation at the University of the West of England, Bristol, where students have said that 'studio pods' are 'not fit for humans'; and at Coventry University where students were moved into temporary accommodation due to a rat problem at halls of residence.

 

NOTTINGHAM NEWS

Nottingham Tops Survey of Faster Growing Home Rental Costs

On Wednesday 16 October 2019 Kevin Peachey (Personal Finance Reporter, BBC News) reported on a survey by property website Zoopla which had found that 'tenants moving into a Nottingham home this summer paid 5.4% more in rent than a year earlier.' Leeds and Bristol (up by 4.5%) were the only other UK cities where rents rose faster than the UK average growth.

York House Scheme Revision Adds Extra Student Rooms

Writing in the Nottingham Post (Friday 2 August 2019) Jamie Barlow reported that developers of the site of the former York House office block have revised the scheme to add another 50 student bed spaces to the existing scheme, making a total of nearly 500.

Bolting the Stable Door: Councillors Aim to Stop Beeston Tide of HMOs

Writing in the Nottingham Post on Friday 5 July 2019, Kit Sandeman reported that Broxtowe Borough Council is to take action to control the number of student houses in Beeston ... and prevent it from turning into another Lenton.

 

NEIGHBOURHOOD NEWS

Planning Committee Approve 703-Bed Student Accommodation Near Lidl on Wollaton Road

The Nottingham Post's Kit Sandeman (Saturday 21 December 2019) reported that the Council's Planning Committee, which met on Wednesday 18 December 2019, approved plans to build student accommodation in Deakins Plan, near the Lidl on Wollaton Road.

Lenton Community Imbalance at Crisis Point: But "...Thousands More Student Bedrooms Needed ..."

On Friday 20 December 2019 the Nottingham Post reported on a decision by the City Council's Planning Committee to approve plans for a 222-bed student block on Radmarsh Road. A councillor for the Lenton & Wollaton Park East Ward make an impassioned plea for the plans to be rejected stating that: "What's already a complete and total unmanaged community imbalance is accelerating to a level that is totally unsustainable."

Nottingham University to Extend Student Accommodation on Jubilee Campus

On Saturday 7 December 2019, Jamie Barlow, Nottingham Post Digital News Correspondent, reported that Nottingham University has submitted plans for a 280-bed student accommodation scheme on the former Player warehouse site on Triumph Road adjacent to its existing Southwell Hall student block


EDITOR'S NOTEBOOK
 

Not quite a blog, this page reflects the interests and the state of mind of the Editor, so you've been warned that its contents very probably may not appeal to you.

However, if you enjoy random walks and serendipitous discoveries, then I hope these pages, of which the ones listed here are the latest, as they accumulate, may well be for you.

Acqua Alta: Too Little ... Too Late!


ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS & DISCLAIMER
 

The Nottingham Action Group on HMOs wishes to thank: Nottingham City Council for funding support; everyone whose contributions (photographs, ideas, articles, work) form part of this website; and Magneto Technologies Ltd (http://magnetoweb.com) for the expertise which has enabled us to set up and maintain this website.

Last, but by no means least, we also thank our neighbours in the National HMO Lobby for their continuing help and support.

The views and opinions expressed in contributions to this website do not necessarily reflect those of the Nottingham Action Group on HMOs, its committee, or its wider membership.

Whilst we endeavour to ensure that reports are accurate, from time to time mistakes may occur. If you feel this is the case, please contact the Nottingham Action Group on HMOs. Information on how to do so is available on the 'Contact Us' page of this website.

©2020 The Nottingham Action Group

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