The Marcus Garvey Centre, located within the Howitt Building on Lenton Boulevard in the Radford ward, has been added to Nottingham City Council’s official register of Assets of Community Value after a nomination was submitted earlier this year.
The decision, approved on 31 March, confirms the council’s agreement that the building meets the criteria set out in the Localism Act 2011, which allows communities to identify land and buildings considered important to their social wellbeing or cultural interests. Under the legislation, councils are required to assess nominations and maintain a public register of both successful and unsuccessful applications.
The Howitt Building, which houses the Marcus Garvey Centre, is owned by Nottingham City Council. The authority’s property team raised no objections to the nomination, and no comments were submitted by ward councillors during the consultation process.
Listing a building as an Asset of Community Value does not change ownership or guarantee its long-term use, but it does provide communities with additional protections. If the property is put up for sale in future, the designation can trigger a moratorium period, giving community groups the opportunity to prepare a bid to take it on. The council report notes that such a listing can potentially delay a sale and affect the property’s market value.
In this case, the council concluded it is reasonable to expect the Marcus Garvey Centre’s use as a social club supporting community wellbeing could continue in the future, subject to addressing current fire safety risks identified at the building.
Council officers confirmed the designation carries no direct financial implications for the authority, noting that financial considerations are not relevant when determining whether a nomination meets the legal tests for listing.
The Marcus Garvey Centre forms part of the wider former Lenton Business Centre site, which sits within the council’s commercial property investment portfolio. The addition of the building to the Asset of Community Value register is an administrative step, with no immediate changes to its operation or management.
The decision is subject to call-in, with a deadline of 10 April for any challenge by councillors before it is fully implemented.
