Ormskirk letting agent Neil Warnock says that new planning regulations on student housing will be detrimental to the town
Jun 16 2011
by Gemma Jaleel, Ormskirk Advertiser

AN ORMSKIRK letting agent says that the council’s proposal to use new planning rules to limit shared houses in Ormskirk will be detrimental to the town.
Neil Warnock, of NSW Properties believes that the move will drive rents up and lead to below standard student accommodation.
West Lancashire’s cabinet approved a ruling at the end of last year to control the amount of homes of multiple occupation.
The council will use powers to refuse applications for new student homes in Ormskirk, Aughton and Westhead from December 2011.
It follows an increase in students across the area and Edge Hill University now has 25,000 students.
Mr Warnock told the Advertiser: “These plans will mean that accommodation that could have been ideal for students gets knocked back but existing accommodation that is of a sub-standard level achieves astronomical rents just because of supply and demand.
“It is not right that this sub-standard accommodation achieves higher rents when they are not even registered with any particular bodies who monitor the standard of accommodation.
He added: “The plans could be a good thing if it gets rid of the bad landlords, but it would be better if there was an accredited scheme or a standard that you have to adhere to as opposed to using planning laws which will just deter people from buying property.
“I certainly won’t be buying if it means there’s a chance of having the application knocked back.”
However Jane Thompson of the New Way Tenants and Residents’ Association. She said: “There is an over-saturation of students in Ormskirk. We’re not saying students are all bad but this can bring about anti-social behaviour.”