'Layer of protection' as The Hawthorns granted Asset of Community Value status

Shareholders for Albion submitted the application last November and, following review, several sites including the club's historic home will be listed.

As well as The Hawthorns and its car park, other sites listed are the former Woodman public house, now a surfaced car park, an access way between the stadium and Middlemore Road and a community sports hall used by Albion Foundation.

Sandwell Council told the Express & Star that two elements of the proposal did not meet the required criteria to be listed in the ACV – the Greggs retail outlet and the club's academy on Halfords Lane.

The application has been supported by the football club and chief executive Ron Gourlay has reiterated there have been 'no plans' to sell The Hawthorns.

The CEO said the listing adds another 'layer of protection' to the stadium and comes shortly after the club's home was listed as security against WBA Group's £20million loan from MSD Holdings – at the request of controlling shareholder Guochuan Lai – to aid running, operational and improvement costs moving forward, particularly beyond the summer should promotion not be achieved.

“We are pleased the ACV has now been granted. We offered our full support to Sandwell Council and Shareholders for Albion throughout the application process, and I would like to thank all parties for their contributions," Gourlay said.

“At no point have there been any plans to sell The Hawthorns – it is our home – but an ACV adds a further layer of protection to the site to secure it for future generations of Albion fans, and that is really important.”

Being listed as an ACV means, should an owner wish to sell or grant a lease of 25 years or more, a six-month moratorium period will be triggered in which the site cannot be sold.

That period is for community groups or otherwise to plan and raise funds to bid for the property once it is on the open market.

A council chief explained in his summary that the stadium 'delivers a wide range of social, economic and sporting benefits'.

Tony McGovern, director of regeneration and growth at Sandwell Council, said: “The stadium is an iconic location in Sandwell and has a long history with the local community that delivers a wide range of social, economic and sporting benefits. In addition, the facility promotes social wellbeing and is a critical part of the identity of the local area.

“The decision to list the locations as an ACV was because The Hawthorns stadium site currently and historically over many decades has acted as an important asset of community value which delivers significant community benefits in the form of sporting, cultural and recreational activities.

“There are two elements of the proposal that did not meet the criteria (Greggs Retail outlet and the Club Academy) and so have been excluded from listing as an Asset of Community Value."