Greenwich charity building sold by council could become 12-bed HMO
The former home of Greenwich Mind charity could become a 12-bed House of Multiple Occupation (HMO) according to a new planning application.
Mind operated from the site at 54-56 Ormiston Road until 2025 when Greenwich Council put it up for auction as part of a wider land sell-off of various sites across the borough which included car parks. The charity since moved to The Forum on Trafalgar Road.
The new owner has now submitted the 12-bed HMO plan.
Selling the building is yet another short-term decision that appears penny wise and pound foolish. If the authority had utilised it for housing by converting the property it would save long term on the use of third party private landlords over time. The borough still has more than two thousand households in expensive temporary accommodation placing severe pressure on budgets.
By not doing so it could well now ensure this HMO is used for housing homeless households with the authority paying far higher rents via a private landlord rather than utilising it themselves.
Home sales
Compounding housing problems is a substantial loss in council homes last year from Right to Buy sales. A report in The i paper states that when the current government revealed plans to alter Right to Buy in late 2024 a flood of applications naturally went in.
Government gave such advance notice of changes a substantial loss of homes was the inevitable result.
That means that 2025/26 is looking like the country will see the most council homes lost via Right to Buy for 2o years. More than any of the 14 years when the Tories were in power and a steep increase from the prior year.
It also means more council homes will be lost in just one year than the Labour government plan to build move this entire five year Parliament. Not what many assumed would happen when they won power in 2024.
Greenwich borough is mentioned in The i paper report as a borough set to lose a substantial number of council homes. It states:
“Greenwich Council predicts RTB sales of 350 in 2025/26, more than four times the 78 in 2023/24. And it expects the impact of the last autumn’s surge to continue with a further 200 sales expected in 2026/27, having received an “unprecedented” 1,022 applications.”
Extra costs
Greenwich Council also saw a double whammy of losing council homes and having to hire staff to process those 1,022 claims at further expense to the public purse.
In addition the council continues to buy existing housing for homeless households rather than build – with the knock-on impact of private renters evicted and themselves put at risk of homelessness. It also limits availability of private rental homes further increasing rents again increasing homelessness.
Purchasing existing homes is also extremely expensive in London. All the time public land that could see new council housing constructed is sold off for short term revenue and plugging budget gaps.
Combine these factors of selling off public buildings and land, buying rather than building and central government putting a rocket up existing council house sales by giving generous advance notice of Right to Buy changes and the housing crises continues – with public service cuts the result.
A 12-bed HMO would see a lot of bins here and if even half have cars that’s a lot of vehicles. Seems too much for a cramped site.
Ideally the council would have kept it and converted to two homes resulting in large sums of public money not going to private landlords for years on end and the homeless problem is still helped as families could have moved in. Perhaps another option could be four flats though academic now as they’ve flogged it and the worst of all worlds will result if the HMO is approved which I assume it will. An unsuitable site and costing taxpayers. Lose lose. And Labour Greenwich loses more votes as they’ve chosen the wrong path. Amazes me this is happening with Labour in power at all levels as well with a Mayor and at Westminster. Little different from when the Tories were in.
I could not agree with you more Ed.
Greenwich Council should have retained tbe property and converted it in two or four self contained flats housing people on the housing waiting list.
12 HMO rooms in a house of thu
Is size seems to many and the room sizes would be small and cramped.
This is Labour putting public money back in ti tbe private sector.
HMOs on this scale are often used by the building owner to rent en masse to local authorities or Home Office contractors. It’s a profitable endeavour and ensures much public monies heads to the private sector.
Starmer offered change. After 18 months public assets were still being sold off? Perhaps the only real change he meant was losing more homes via Right to Buy. It’s really of little wonder they’re looking to get a battering on the local elections. No one who voted for them wanted the Tories of Truss, Boris and the like on steroids. Failure after failure and it’s taxpayers footing the bill.
To compound the madness Greenwich Council are paying tens of thousands to private landlords to create HMOs and then rent back to them and those seeking public housing at far higher rents than social housing.
The whole system is beyond mad. It’s a massive transfer of public money to private interests. Who is benefitting from this?
I could not agree with you more Ed.
Greenwich Council should have retained tbe property and converted it in two or four self contained flats housing people on the housing waiting list.
12 HMO rooms in a house of thu
Is size seems to many and the room sizes would be small and cramped.
This is Labour putting public money back in ti tbe private sector.
Labour now are absolutely in hock to private interests and corrupted. Stand for nothing except self-interest. Rather than see selling off assets as a bad thing they’ll be rubbing their hands. The party is gone.
Houses of multiple occupation is the new “Klondike goldrush” and every local authority is perfectly happy for this most cynical of business model. The bedroom will be small with a telephone kiosk size shower closet and minute hand basin squashed into a corner behind a filmsy wall.
Where are 12 people going to cook and keep their food, do the laundry and who is going to keep everything clean and tidy?
Greenwich council is paying around 1500-2500 for the majority of hmo spaces in 4-8 bed places. This is why they don’t have any money to spend on services. Really should be a national owned issue and scale used to bring down costs.