A former Hucknall social club could be turned into a restaurant and housing for multiple people, initial plans have suggested.
The Hucknall Constitutional Club, on the corner of Portland Road and Whyburn Street in Hucknall, closed down in 2025 after the venue began experiencing financial difficulties.
Known locally as the Conny Club, the venue was left boarded up following its closure, but later sold for a ‘hammer price’ of £375,000 according to estate agents Savills.
At the time of its listing on Savills, the club was billed as being in an “ideal location” and had the potential for it to be converted into commercial purposes, such as a convenience store, but could also be used for residential purposes too.
Now, it appears a developer may be considering turning the space into a shop, restaurant and a house in multiple occupation (HMO).
A notification of prior approval (NPA) – which is essentially a formal planning check with officials to see that work can be carried out – was filed by applicant Umar Farooq to Ashfield District Council in late April for the potential conversion.
NPAs will inform a developer whether they need to put forward a formal planning application or not.
According to documents, Mr Farooq’s NPA sought to repurpose the former club by creating two commercial units, where one would be used for retail or another professional service and the other would be used as a restaurant.
The remaining part of the building, including the upper floors, would be converted into a HMO to “contribute to meeting local housing demand, particularly for smaller and more affordable accommodation options.”
No major changes to the building’s external look were put forward, to keep with the existing architectural character.
The NPA was refused by Ashfield District Council on June 4, with planners pointing out the proposal had wrongly been put forward as an agricultural building and stating the original idea would require full planning permission.
Documents said: “The case officer contacted the applicant and advised them to withdraw this application and submit a full planning application. No response has been received, and therefore the authority is left with no choice but to refuse the application.”
It is unclear if Mr Farooq will submit a full application to convert the former social club.
