Plans to turn a former GP into 12 houses in multiple occupation (HMO) rooms have been approved by Croydon Council.

In 2023, Harte Planning applied to Croydon Council to turn the former Heathfields Surgery on 39 Heathfield Road into an HMO building.

The rooms will house 14 occupants and will spread across four floors.

There will be two rooms in the basement, four rooms on the ground floor, four rooms on the first floor, and two rooms on the second floor.

The basement kitchen will be shared by four people.

The ground floor kitchen will be shared by four people, with space for one more person from the first floor.

The first-floor kitchen will be occupied by five people.

The planning statement states the Victorian house will have a large communal area in the rear garden, as well as cycle storage with charging points.

Transport for London (TfL) gave Heathfield Road a PTAL (public transport accessibility level) of 5, the highest rating.

Heathfield Road is a short distance from South Croydon station and the lower end of the South Croydon shopping district.

At a Council meeting held last month, councillors shared their concerns about the plan, with Cllr Lara Fish expressing her personal dislike for HMOs.

Currently, there are five other HMOs close to the site on 39 Heathfield Road.

Jose Sanchez Loureda, who spoke on behalf of the objecting South Croydon Community Association, called this an “oversupply”.

He said: “There is a saturation of HMOs in the area.

“There are at least five other HMOs in close proximity, although they do have different postcodes due to the street layout, this ignores the true potential for over-density as existing HMOs already meet the demand.”

The application was amended earlier this year to reduce the number of occupants, but Loureda felt this would still be an over-supply.

There were also fears about the increased level of noise, with Cllr Danielle Denton saying: “13 residents, plus their visitors, will have a major impact on noise in a rather quiet residential street.”

Cllr Michael Neal voted against the application, he said: “The new design of the building and the effect it will have on the character and the appearance of this location and area and living conditions of the occupants is not quite right”.

It was confirmed last Monday (September 16) that Croydon Council had approved the application, despite the objections raised.

The development will begin between now and no later than September 16, 2027.