A report to Oxford City Council’s planning committee considered minor amendments to an earlier scheme already granted for the property in Steep Rise in northeast Oxford.

The previous permission, approved on Thursday, October 24, allowed the demolition of a side extension and the construction of a two-storey side extension and a part-single, part two-storey rear extension.

Under the latest, part‑retrospective application, the house has now been signed off as a six-bedroom HMO.

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Several changes already completed on the site, include four new windows, alterations to the flat roof as well as new bin and cycle storage.

Four-bedroom terraced house will be converted into a six-bedroom House of Multiple Occupancy in Sheep Rise, Oxford (Image: Robin Akers Ltd)

The finished layout will provide six en-suite bedrooms of at least 8.5sqm, a 24.6sqm kitchen-diner, additional communal space and a utility area off the kitchen.

The scheme was called in to committee by six councillors over concerns about the proliferation of HMOs in the area and whether communal cooking facilities would be adequate.

However, planning officers said “the development would make the best and most efficient use of the site”, delivering a “high quality and sustainable development”.

Oxford’s Local Plan caps HMO numbers at no more than 20 per cent of properties within 100m of any application site.

Officers reported that only one of the 24 nearby properties is recorded as an HMO, meaning that, with this approval, around 8.3 per cent of homes in the immediate area will be in shared use.

The milestone marks a quarter-century since the first of the BMW-era models rolled off the line at Cowley on April 26, 2001.

On Sunday, the plant hosted a Drive It Day event to mark the anniversary and raise funds for the NSPCC’s Childline service.

The plant also celebrated 50 years of the Rover SD1, 40 years of the Rover 800 and 25 years of the modern Mini, all which have been built at Cowley.

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A 1997 Mini Rover (left) and A 1984 Mini Austin (right) (Image: Zac Holmes)

Tanya Fields, organiser of the Drive It Day said: “The general Drive It Day also went extremely well with 10 Rover SD1s coming back to the plant for their 50th anniversary.

“One of them made considerable effort, coming from the Netherlands.”

Since 2001 nearly 4.7 million Minis have been built in Oxford under BMW ownership.

The Cowley plant contributed to the days festivities by creating aerial footage with modern Mini’s (Image: Matt Richardson)

Organisers said around 70 modern Minis built in 2001 returned to the plant, including 27 with the Y*** OBL number plates, the first batch of the car used for press and marketing purposes.

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The event drew in more than 1,000 visitors, where drivers could drive a vintage car for free.

“We were visited by around 200 classic cars over the day and lots of former workers took the opportunity to come back, along with the local community,” a spokesperson said.

Markus Gruneisl, BMW Group’s chief executive for UK manufacturing, said: “This 25-year milestone is a proud moment for Mini and for everyone involved in its production here in the UK.”