Avonside Group goes into administration

Photo: Duncan Andison - stock.adobe.com

Avonside provides specialist roofing, energy and plumbing services to the housebuilding industry

Avonside Group Services, the UK’s largest roofing contractor with its registered office in Heywood, has gone into administration (7 September).

Avonside provides specialist roofing, energy and plumbing services to the UK’s housebuilding industry. It operates 39 branches across its three divisions: Avonside Roofing, Avonside Energy and Avonside Plumbing.

Administrators Begbies Traynor is now in charge of the group, which has managed to sell nine roofing branches, saving 79 jobs.

The administrators hope to find a buyer for the company’s energy division, which continues to trade.

Remaining roofing operations and Avonside’s plumbing business will cease trading.

A spokesman for Begbies Traynor said: “The group experienced a period of disrupted trading during the pandemic which, alongside margin squeeze, the impact of underperforming divisions and financial reporting issues, resulted in a requirement for extended working capital facilities.

“Despite extensive efforts from the management team, shareholders and advisors, the group has been unable to secure the necessary funding from existing stakeholders, or third parties, to effect the required turnaround and enable continuation of trade in the current form.

“Following an accelerated sale process, the joint administrators have secured the future of nine Avonside Roofing branches, preserving 79 jobs via an administration sale to an industry buyer, which will see this part of the business continue as a going concern.

“Despite a positive outcome for a number of the group’s roofing branches, the difficult macro-economic backdrop and market conditions meant that the joint administrators were unable to find suitable buyers for the remaining roofing and plumbing sites within the group and as such all remaining roofing and plumbing branches are expected to be closed imminently.

“The group’s energy division continues to operate out of its seven branches whilst negotiations continue to sell this division solvently.

“Negotiations are advanced and it is hoped that these will be concluded successfully over the next 24 hours.”