Legendary Reading nightclub The After Dark has been granted Asset of Community Value (ACV) listing.

The council has given the status to the building at 112 London Road after an application from Reading Civic Society.

After Dark manager Zee Khan said: “This is a really positive thing. They are an independent group of people and they have valued the club and the council has verified it as being a very significant part of Reading.

READ MORE: Nightclub After Dark licence is revoked

"For 200 years, the place has been doing community events and has been a very positive venue.”

The club had its licence revoked by Reading Borough Council (RBC) in June 2019 due to noise and safety concerns and will face the council at High Wycombe Magistrates’ Court for an appeal hearing on January 5, 2021.

Mr Khan added: “It is very interesting that this group of people in the council are saying it is of value and we have other individuals saying it is not. One of them is not right.

“This is the first nail in the coffin for the idea that the After Dark is a dangerous or noisy venue.

“This recognises that the club is not a drain on the community, it is an asset. It cannot be both.

“The venue is the best licensed premises in Reading.”

The hearing has been delayed due to the Covid pandemic. While the club is able to continue operating until the appeal is heard, the pandemic means it has been shut since March.

Meanwhile, plans to demolish the After Dark nightclub and turn it into flats were rejected by the council for a third time in June.

Mr Khan said some members of his family had doubts about the venue because the venue was “previously unable to pay its way”, leading to the planning applications.

But he said the listing will add pressure to his family in a positive way, making them more aware of the importance of the venue.

The decision on whether to grant the venue ACV status has come later than expected, with the council apologising in October after ‘missing’ an application to grant the club ACV status.

ACV status can provide a means for planners to refuse consent for redevelopment and also means that the building cannot be sold for alternative uses without the knowledge of the local community.

A nearby pub, The Hop Leaf, was also recently listed as an ACV by the council.

READ MORE: Reading pub listed as ‘community asset’ – what this means for future of ‘vital’ pub

If the owner of an ACV building wants to sell the property, they must contact the council, who will notify the community group that nominated the asset.

The community group then has the opportunity to register its interest as a potential bidder, triggering a six-month moratorium period during which, subject to certain exceptions, the owner can only sell the asset if it is to a community interest group.

After the six-month moratorium period, the owner can sell to whomever they choose.

Mr Zahid says the After Dark will likely open to the public again in January 2022 if he wins back the licence, with some works planned to improve the venue, but he said the club has been talking to theatre and music groups about opening it up to them sooner as part of broadening the way the venue helps the community.