# 58-60 Ocean Street, Plymouth

- **Decision:** allowed, 4 September 2026
- **Decided by:** Planning Inspector: Nick Davies
- **Authority:** Plymouth (South West)
- **Appeal reference:** 6007122
- **Application reference:** 25/01695/FUL
- **Procedure:** written-representations
- **Development:** Change of use of 6-person C4 HMO to 9-person sui generis HMO, bike and bin store
- **Site context:** inside-settlement, near-station
- **Green Belt:** no
- **Framework applied:** August 2026 NPPF
- **Determinative policies:** s38(6)
- **Development plan policies:** Plymouth and South West Devon Joint Local Plan 2014-2034 DEV1, DEV10, DEV29, JLP SPD 2020
- **Main issues:** parking and highway safety, outdoor amenity space
- **Tags:** tier-2, hmo, parties-consulted-on-2026-framework, parking-stress-unevidenced, plan-led

## Summary
Enlarging a Plymouth HMO from 6 to 9 occupants. Allowed. The inspector's own parking observation and the site's accessibility met the flexible SPD parking guide, and nearby parks made up for a small yard. Parties were consulted on the 2026 Framework, but the reasoning is entirely plan and SPD-led.

## What made the difference
SPD standards that are expressly flexible, plus site-visit evidence of spare kerbside capacity (DL ¶7) and the council's own precedents (DL ¶11).

## Policy findings
- **DEV29 / DEV10 (JLP): accord.** SPD parking guide (1 per 2 bedspaces) applied flexibly; inspector saw ~10 free kerbside spaces within 100m; bus stops and station within 300m (DL 5-9)
- **DEV10 (JLP) outdoor space: accord.** yard ~half the SPD 135 sq m, but parks within 250-300m and council precedents for flexibility (DL 10-13)

## Key facts
- No off-street parking; three extra occupants
- Parties consulted on the 2026 Framework (DL 2); no Framework policy cited in reasons

## Sources
- https://appeal-planning-decision.service.gov.uk/comment-planning-appeal/appeals/6007122
- https://appeal-planning-decision.service.gov.uk/published-document/181334b2-1c9e-4060-a8b7-3d3d2a829b5c

---

Source: https://planningdistilled.org/research/england/nppf-navigator/decisions/PINS-6007122.html

A summary of a public planning decision, written from the decision letter. Not legal advice. © Planning Distilled. Released under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 licence (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/): share and adapt freely, with credit to Planning Distilled. Quotations from decision letters, plans and the Framework remain the copyright of their publishers.