Coastal areas are “predominantly affected” by houses in multiple occupation (HMOs), North Yorkshire’s deputy mayor has said.
Concerns about the potential impact of HMOs and accommodation for vulnerable people on some coastal communities have been highlighted by Jo Coles, deputy mayor for policing, fire and crime.
Speaking at a meeting on Wednesday, October 14, she said she had been working with partners over the summer on community safety issues in Scarborough and Eastfield, including concerns linked to housing provision.
“I am concerned about the policies around accommodation for vulnerable people,” she told a meeting of the York and North Yorkshire Police, Fire and Crime Panel.
While stressing that responsibility for housing provision rests with North Yorkshire Council, she added that the implications for policing should be considered when accommodation decisions are made.
“Those decisions about where to place vulnerable people obviously are a responsibility of the local authority, but it’s really important that the implications for policing are understood,” she told the panel.
Jo Coles, York & North Yorkshire Deputy Mayor for Policing, Fire and Crime.
Responding to questions about antisocial behaviour, Ms Coles revealed she had held discussions with partners about specific properties and wider issues affecting coastal towns.
Ms Coles also suggested some coastal communities were seeing increasing concentrations of HMOs.
She said planning applications for such properties “do seem to be predominantly affecting coastal communities currently in terms of the siting of increasing numbers of HMOs on the coast”.
The comments come amid ongoing controversy over emergency accommodation schemes in Scarborough.
Scarborough and Whitby MP Alison Hume has objected to planning applications submitted by specialist housing provider Homemore to formally designate The Lodge on Valley Road and The Redcliffe Hotel as mixed-use hotel and emergency accommodation facilities.
More than a dozen residents attended a recent public meeting to voice concerns about the impact of The Lodge on the surrounding neighbourhood, describing what they said was a deterioration in quality of life and linking the site to antisocial behaviour.
Deputy Mayor Jo Coles Joined North Yorkshire Police And Alison Hume MP On A Patrol Of The Homemore Sites.
In August, Ms Hume joined Jo Coles and North Yorkshire Police on a patrol of Homemore-operated sites in Scarborough to discuss concerns raised by residents and possible responses.
Speaking after the visit, the MP said her focus had been on ensuring decision-makers understood “the reality on the ground”.
Andrew Waggitt, Homemore. Courtesy Numminen, LDRS
Homemore has previously said it provides supported accommodation with 24-hour security and support services, and argued that refusing its planning applications could result in vulnerable residents being dispersed across hotels and guesthouses without similar support arrangements.
Homemore’s planning application is under consideration by North Yorkshire Council, which has not set a date for a decision on the proposal.