53 Shakespeare Road Gillingham Medway ME7 5QL Data via plota.co.uk
Proposal
Change of use from dwellinghouse (Class C3) to 5 bedroom HMO (Class C4) with alterations to boundary wall and front elevation roof light Data via plota.co.uk
Application progress
Refused on 2 Sept 2026 · Committee Decision · Last checked 9 Sept 2026
Planning committee
Decided by Medway Planning Committee on 26 Aug 2026.
Refused
Against officer advice: officers had recommended approval.
- Officers advised approval because the property was suitable for conversion and the design, amenity and highway effects were acceptable.
- The ward councillor raised concerns about family housing, HMO concentration, parking, amenity space and disturbance.
- Members rejected the approval recommendation and refused the application because of family-home loss and intensified occupation affecting neighbouring amenity.
Source: Plota analysis of Medway's committee minutes of 26 Aug 2026.
Documents 5
Decision & officer reports 2
Application forms 1
Site constraints 2
Checked on 11 September 2026. Historic England, the Environment Agency, Natural England and council datasets, Open Government Licence. A boundary can run through a site and the council holds the definitive record: confirm with the council before relying on this.
Sales history 2
Last sold for £225,000 in July 2025. Terraced house, freehold.
Sale prices from HM Land Registry's price paid record, matched to this application by its address.
Every application in Medway - and every UK council - as a live feed, an API, or a bulk CSV export.
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Important details
How this decision compares
Decided in 77 days from validation, 21 days slower than Medway's median of 56 for changes of use. Refused, as 24% of changes of use here are.
Plota live figures for changes of use decided by Medway in the last twelve months, from validation. Medway decision record →
Public comments
No public comments yet.
6 neighbours consulted · Last counted 9 Sept 2026
Consultation & key dates
- Alt. reference
- PP-15015796
- Neighbours
- 24 Jun 2026
- Consultation
- 24 Jun 2026
- Comments by
- 21 Jul 2026
- Site or press notice
- 30 Jun 2026
- Committee
- 26 Aug 2026
- Env. assessment
- No
Historical activity at this location
16 previous applications on record - archival context, not part of the live application.
Previous applications at this address
Nearby activity
Medway is one of the fastest councils in England for householder decisions, ranking #8 out of 296. Only 19% of applications have the time limit extended, well below the 41% national average - the council usually decides on time. Householder applications are slightly more likely to be approved here (96%) than the national average (90%).
Sale prices: Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. This data is licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
Freehold boundary: © Crown copyright and database rights 2026, HM Land Registry. Polygons © Crown copyright and database rights 2026 Ordnance Survey 100026316. Conditions of use
Freehold owner: Information produced by HM Land Registry. © Crown copyright 2026. Source: HM Land Registry, UK and overseas companies that own property in England and Wales, September 2026 release.
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53 Shakespeare Road Gillingham Medway ME7 5QL
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