COUNCILLORS and residents are calling for a Hampshire estate to be better protected from the spread of shared housing. 

Residents in Winnall, Winchester, fear the area is becoming increasingly like Stanmore, which was plagued with issues over what residents said was “studentification” – where landlords converted family homes into student accommodation.

In May, Stanmore had the protection of what is known as ‘Article 4’ put into place. This forces landlords to apply for planning permission before they convert family homes.

However councillors say that the problem has moved away from Stanmore and now more homes in the Winnall area are being turned into homes in multiple occupation (HMOs).

Residents in Fiona Close, Winnall, have drawn up a petition to protect the area after an application was put in to convert one of the homes into shared housing. 

Writing on behalf of the residents of Fiona Close to the council, resident Debra Buscombe stated: “We are a community of elderly and infirm, families with young babies, and individuals. 

“The houses have not been built to withstand noise and we hear a great deal between walls. The prospective HMO is to have a wall erected in the sitting room to provide extra bedrooms so it will go from being three-bed one-bathroom, to five bed-one bathroom with a shared kitchen.”