Nottingham City Council is to transfer a 48-space public car park in Sneinton to its housing service following concerns that poorly parked vehicles have obstructed emergency access to nearby high-rise flats.
The car park outside Bentinck Court, on Manvers Street, is currently managed by the council’s Parking Services and is available to permit holders and other members of the public through the RingGo payment system.
Under a delegated decision taken on Monday 27 July, Parking Services will relinquish control of the site and Housing Services will assume responsibility for its management and maintenance.
Existing permit holders will be given one month’s notice before public use of the car park ends. They will be directed towards alternative council-run parking facilities nearby.
Once transferred, the spaces will be available for tenants and residents in line with the arrangements at other residential car parks managed by Housing Services.
Bentinck Court, Manvers Court and Kingston Court are three Housing Revenue Account-owned high-rise blocks on Sneinton Road and Manvers Street. Together, they are home to 265 council tenants and leaseholders.
Although residents already have access to a number of spaces on a first come, first served basis, the council said parking had been a contentious issue for some time because of limited availability and an increase in the number of residents with cars.
Concerns have also been raised by the emergency services about vehicles being left outside designated spaces. The council report said Nottinghamshire Fire and Rescue Service’s access was impeded during a recent fire alarm activation because residents’ vehicles had been parked in hatched areas next to the entrance barrier.
The authority said transferring the 48 spaces would increase the parking available to tenants, leaseholders and council housing staff while helping to keep access routes clear for emergency vehicles.
The change will reduce income received by the council’s General Fund. Figures included in the decision report show that the car park generated between £29,000 and £34,000 in each of the past four financial years, averaging £31,346 a year.
Income was £29,782 in 2025/26, £29,674 in 2024/25, £33,787 in 2023/24 and £32,141 in 2022/23. After expenditure, the amounts retained in those years were £29,585, £26,546, £26,599 and £32,141 respectively.
Parking Services said the loss represented a relatively small part of its wider income and could be mitigated by directing existing users to other off-street car parks.
The land forms part of the Housing Revenue Account, which holds the council’s housing property and finances. However, no car park income has been returned to that account under the existing arrangement, with the money instead going to the General Fund.
Legal officers said there was no written agreement covering Parking Services’ longstanding use of the land. Formally ending the arrangement would therefore reduce the risk of future governance, audit or legal disputes about Housing Revenue Account land being used to generate General Fund income.
The council considered retaining the existing arrangement but rejected that option because it would not address residents’ parking concerns. Dividing the car park between residents and permit holders was also rejected because of the difficulties involved in enforcing and monitoring separate allocations and the potential implications for Housing Revenue Account rules.
An inspection found no major problems with the site, although some paving bricks affected by tree roots will require maintenance in the near future. Annual inspections, costing approximately £197, and any subsequent maintenance work will be charged to the Housing Revenue Account.
An electric vehicle charging point at the site will remain. It is maintained by BP Pulse at no cost to the council and stands next to a space used by the Enterprise Car Club scheme. A memorandum of understanding will be drawn up between council services because Housing Services will not be responsible for maintaining that facility.
