'Clock is ticking' for stalled Nottingham M&S redevelopment on stricken Lister Gate

The "clock is ticking" for the redevelopment of the historic former M&S building in Nottingham after years of little noticeable progress. Permission was granted for the old home store in Lister Gate to be turned into new shops and a sizeable student accommodation complex in late 2021, fueling hope that the building would not stay empty for long - unlike large parts of the city centre street.

The retailer was one of the first stores to leave the now-barren street in 2020, with Covid and the shutdown of the Broadmarsh shopping centre setting off a chain reaction of shop closures and relocations. But nearly two and half years after redevelopment plans were passed by Nottingham City Council in December 2021, nothing has yet been done with the building, which has been empty for nearly four years.

The manager of the Hunter UK Retail Unit Trust, a Guernsey-based scheme mostly invested in by local authority pension funds that owns the building, had previously stated construction would start at the beginning of 2022 and take two years to fully complete at a cost of £16 million. Hunter REIM, which manages the trust, failed to address the lack of process at the old store when repeatedly contacted by Nottinghamshire Live.

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Councillor Steve Battlemuch, who is Nottingham City Council's portfolio holder for skills, growth, economic development and property, explained time was running out for construction to begin - as work has to start within three years or planning permission will expire. “Planning permission was granted in December 2021 so the clock is ticking for the developers," Mr Battlemuch said.

"It’s obviously disappointing that no progress has been made by them." The lack of progress at the store is a setback for struggling Lister Gate, which the city council is currently trying to revive by regenerating the space where the Broadmarsh shopping centre had once stood.

Recently the local authority approved plans to redevelop the former Claire’s Accessories, Mountain Warehouse and Holland and Barrett shops at the partially-demolished shopping centre into a Community Diagnostic Centre (CDC), which Nottingham University Hospital NHS Trust will use to quickly test patients without them having to go to hospital. The council's Green Heart project is also now underway, which will convert a football pitch-sized area at the end of Lister Gate into a green space with plants and wildlife.

"I’m confident that we will see some other developments on Lister Gate in the near future which will improve the area,“ Mr Battlemuch added, expressing hope for the once thriving shopping street.

Under the plans passed in 2021 the old M&S building, which was originally built for Woolworths in the 1930s and has protected Grade-II status, would be converted into two retail units. The 156 student beds would then be housed in a five and six-storey building behind and above the historic building, which would overcover the existing service yard which leads to Stanford Street.

Returning the M&S building to use would have improved the look and feel of the largely empty city centre street, Nottingham Civic Society explained. "Life has largely left Lister Gate - it all looks rather sad. The M&S building is a good example of the Art Deco style and has some interesting features.

"If it was brought back into use that could help that area, which has become quite sad, become a bit more attractive. Maybe the ongoing work at Broadmarsh can encourage life to come back to Lister Gate, but we will have to see."