THE mystery of who owns the Winter Gardens may finally be over - but the answers reveal a complicated arrangement between a registered charity and a construction company.

The Buildings at Risk Trust (BART) still owns the freehold on the building but construction firm Barnfield have a 125-year lease, and an option to buy the building outright.

Barnfield have already paid the agreed price, which represents the £300,000 'registered charge' against the building.

Councillors met with Barnfield Construction representatives on Tuesday.

BART did not attend, citing an emergency at one of its other properties.

The meeting's chairman, Conservative Cllr Roger Mace, said: "The question of ownership is very clear.

"There is no doubt about the circumstances of ownership.

"Legal ownership is with BART but, in practical terms, Barnfield has a very 'close to ownership' interest.

They are in a position to become owners at any time they wish.

"The price for ownership has already been paid."

Cllr Mace gave a verbal report to members of the council's External Affairs Review Board shortly after the meeting finished.

He said: "There was a very full discussion at the meeting with Barnfield and I was able to give answers to all the questions that were raised.

Throughout the course of the meeting they were very constructive and helpful.

"We have renewed our invitation to BART as we feel it is very important for them to talk with representatives of the review board.

"The ownership situation is slightly unusual, but the situation is complicated by the public money that was used in refurbishing the building and the loan from the council."

A £112,000 council loan was made jointly to BART and Barnfield in order to help the rebuilding - along with more than £1 million in funds from other public bodies.

The review board, which has been investigating the situation for several months, has already discovered that the terms of the loan were varied under the council's ' emergency powers' one weekend in 1995.

There is no evidence that some of the procedures necessary to use those powers were carried out.

The review board has now asked officers for a report detailing all their options in relation to the loan.

This might, Cllr Mace added, range from writing it off to attempting to reclaim the money.

Cllr Mace says the review board's aim is to secure a final use for the Winter Gardens, rather than looking to the past, and said that several ideas had been discussed, though hopes that the building could become a conference centre are fading.

The building lacks the necessary number of smaller meeting rooms and the IT facilities expected by modern conference organisers.