Residents have said their area is at "saturation level" with the number of former family homes being turned into houses of multiple occupation.

Stoke-on-Trent City Council's leader Jane Ashworth has invited four Hartshill residents affected by the issue to meet with officers at the authority to consider how the number of HMOs can be more tightly controlled.

Her offer was made at the latest Hartshill and Harpfields Residents Association meeting, held on Monday (May 19), where residents spoke out about the increase in HMOs.

One of the latest applications, to convert a property in Claridge Road into an eight-bedroom HMO, was granted permission last month.

MP Gareth Snell, who represents Stoke-on-Trent Central, has called on the city council to introduce a measure that removes permitted development rights on HMO conversions, meaning that a planning application would be required before work took place.

In a letter to Cllr Ashworth, circulated at the meeting, he said: "The application for Claridge Road was granted planning permission on the basis that under permitted development rights, it could be converted to six bedrooms anyway.

"As such, the council only needed to consider the impact of an extra two bedrooms and vehicles when deciding, rather than the full impact of having an eight-bedroom property in a residential area and the associated cars.

"This decision sets an unsustainable precedent and the council cannot afford to allow this reasoning to form the basis of further decisions.

"You will be aware that the scale and strength of feeling on this issue is large.

"A curb on permitted development rights to control the conversion of homes is rightly demanded by residents and they have my full support."

Amanda Poulson, who chaired Monday's meeting, asked what the city council planned to do to stop the increase. She added: "We feel we are getting overrun and getting to saturation level.

"HMOs are depleting our community spirit. We have problems with parking, antisocial behaviour, fly tipping and wheelie bins being left out.

"A lot of the buildings are big and hold a lot of our past for Hartshill. When the HMOs go in they take some of the history out.

"We all know there is a place for them, but not all in Hartshill.

"We have got a lot of houses in close proximity to each other and the invasion of privacy is massive – the quality of life of residents should be the priority."

Cllr Shaun Pender, who represents the Basford and Hartshill ward, said it was a growing issue across the city. "We have a burgeoning rental sector because of our proximity to the university and hospital", he told the meeting.

"I have so many residents getting in touch with me about it. I have lobbied the last administration.

"We have a homelessness crisis out there and this is what this is a symptom of. We have arrived at a tipping point and the coming and going is really unsettling for people living round that."

Claridge Road resident Ann Ryles, speaking about the latest application being granted permission in the street, said: "It has been an absolute misery – I cannot describe what we have been through in the past 18 months. It's the second application made to change (the property) to an eight-bed HMO.

"It's loaded in favour of the developer, we don't have a right of appeal as the objector. Why are our names and addresses being published (on the planning application portal) for everyone to see?

"Normally (applicants) are given planning permission to work 8am to 6pm Monday to Friday and 8am to 1pm on a Saturday. Here they have been allowed to work until 6pm on Saturdays as well.

"We know there are at least four other HMOs in Claridge Road.

"We asked (cabinet member for housing and planning Cllr Chris Robinson) about it and he said that by Christmas action would be taken to control the number of HMOs – nothing has happened."

Cllr Daniela Santoro, who represents Hartshill Park and Stoke, responded that name and address details were a legislation requirement. "Any objections to planning applications have to be transparent", she said.

Cllr Ashworth said that since Cllr Robinson's pledge the previous planning boss had departed. "We have a new boss of planning and next week we will have a new chair of planning", she added.

"I think we have probably been guilty of being scared of being overturned in court. I think it's to do with the culture of the department – we are terrified of losing half a million pounds in a court case.

"However we need to be bolder in this issue. The council doesn't necessarily know where HMOs are because there is no legal requirement for them to register unless they are over six bedrooms.

"We are looking at a selective housing scheme for all landlords and tougher building regulations, so if someone wants to convert a property into a HMO they have to bring it to us, even if it's a three-person HMO.

"At least then it must be registered and they can't just go in and do it."

Penkhull and Springfields representative Cllr Sarah Hill said most HMOs were not an issue. "I know a house where there are three nurses and we have got people working for (hospital service provider) Sodexo who would love to have their own house but can't afford it because the costs are so high", she told residents.

"It's about trying to get the balance right. Part of it is about how we as a local authority have more stringent control."