Osborne Construction Ltd, Osborne Group Holdings and Osborne Homes Ltd has joined Geoffrey Osborne Ltd in filing notices of administration
The Osborne Group’s administration notice was first reported last Thursday (18 April), citing a cashflow crisis.
Founded in 1966 in Chichester by Geoffrey Osborne, the Group has remained in control of the Osborne family for nearly 60 years.
In the last few years it has faced economic difficulties, which resulted in the sale of three of its divisions after post-pandemic business struggles.
Chairman Andrew Osborne commented that filing for administration was “the right thing to do while we continue to seek external investment”. The company is being represented by Macfarlanes LLP.
The latest accounts for Geoffrey Osborne Ltd showed a £44m pre-tax loss and a decrease of over £225m in turnover.
The Group confirmed that staff will be paid up until administrators are formally appointed
In a statement the company said: “The decision was reached after an 18-month programme to restructure the firm to focus on the core construction business and following an extensive effort to secure new investment into the business.
“The company with its advisors are currently working with interested parties with the ambition that aspects of the business will be sold and will continue to trade. Negotiations are ongoing. To support this process all staff will be paid up to the date the administrators are appointed.
“Osborne has faced significant headwinds common to the entire construction over the past two years, fuelled by high inflation, the lingering impacts of COVID-19 and Brexit, and a slowdown in public sector procurement. Despite these challenges, Osborne has maintained strong relationships with suppliers, contractors and staff, while delivering for customers.
“To address this under-performance and protect the underlying construction business Osborne has sold its property management division, infrastructure business and offsite manufacturing arm securing the employment of over 850 jobs. The proceeds of all three sales have been reinvested into the construction business, which has continued to deliver projects in London and the southeast.
“Regrettably despite a substantive improvement in performance the residual losses on legacy projects have undermined performance which has impacted on the ability to win new work. Despite the management team ensuring the current business is profitable with a good pipeline of work the business has struggled to secure the necessary investment to continue as a going concern.”
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