Shared houses in Aylestone need to satisfy Leicester City Council's licensing team as well as building regulations. We plan for both from the first survey, which avoids rework later.
We cover LE2 and the neighbouring postcodes, with the same standards in Aylestone as anywhere else in Leicestershire.
HMO rules in Leicester City Council
| Rule | Leicester City Council |
|---|---|
| Mandatory HMO licence (5+ people) | In force everywhere in England |
| Additional HMO licensing | None found |
| Selective licensing | In part of the area Parts of Braunstone Park and Rowley Fields, Fosse, Westcotes, Stoneygate and Saffron, 10 October 2022 to 9 October 2027 |
| Article 4 direction for small HMOs | In part of the area Several areas of the city, including Westcotes, Clarendon Park and the centre, first in force 20 August 2014 and since extended |
Checked October 2026. Schemes change, so we confirm the position for your address before any work starts.
Leicester City Council's Article 4 direction covers several areas of the city, including Westcotes, Clarendon Park and the city centre. Whether a house in Aylestone needs planning permission to become a small HMO depends on whether it is inside that boundary, which we check for the exact address. Seven or more occupants always needs planning permission. We found no additional licensing scheme in force in Leicester City Council, so the mandatory licence for five or more people is the main one to plan for.
Loft conversions for HMOs in Aylestone: what we do
Plenty of houses have roof space that could hold extra bedrooms, but in Aylestone we always measure the headroom first, because floor under a 1.5 m ceiling does not count towards room size. That tells you how many rooms the loft can really add.
A loft room usually creates a third storey, so we plan the protected escape route and alarm upgrades for the whole Aylestone house, not just the new floor. We also check the occupant count, because seven or more residents needs planning permission anywhere in Leicestershire.
- Headroom survey and countable floor area calculation
- Alarm extended and doors upgraded on lower floors
- New staircase and protected escape route
- Structural design and building control application
- Updated floor plans for the licence file