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A bid to convert a terraced house in Newport into a HMO for four people has been approved following further enquiries.

Members of the city council’s planning committee urged officers, earlier in August, to re-check the sizes of the proposed bedrooms at 35 Liscombe Street, in the Liswerry ward.

Several committee members expressed concerns a bedroom was measured at being 0.01 square metres larger than the council’s minimum standards.

The bedroom wouldn’t “serve the needs” of future occupants, one councillor claimed.

A senior officer told the committee the rooms complied with the council’s standards, but she was “not suggesting for one moment that the rooms are large, because they’re clearly not”.

Officers have since used delegated powers to grant planning permission for the HMO conversion.

HMOs (houses in multiple occupation) are typically properties for single, unrelated adults who have their own private bedrooms but share other communal areas.

In a planning statement, LRJ Planning, the agents for applicant Grainger Jones, said the proposed HMO conversion “would contribute to the diversification of housing stock, addressing identified local housing needs and supporting the broader objectives of community inclusivity and housing accessibility”.

A council report also showed the application had drawn 25 neighbour objections, on grounds including parking pressures and fears of bad behaviour.

One objector had raised concerns about having “wronguns” for neighbours if the HMO was approved.

But the committee was told “personal details of occupants themselves is not a planning matter” and members were urged to only consider land use planning issues when making a decision.