Type
Bankruptcy
Country
United Kingdom
Region
West Midlands; Shropshire and Staffordshire; Staffordshire CC
Location of affected unit(s)
Chesterton
Sector
Construction
Specialised Construction Activities
Specialised Construction Activities
43.22 - Plumbing, heat and air-conditioning installation

400 jobs
Number of planned job losses
Job loss
Announcement Date
29 March 2019
Employment effect (start)
29 March 2019
Foreseen end date

Description

The UK-based building maintenance and services company, George Birchall Service was placed into administration on 28 March, 2019. The company’s 400 employees were made redundant with immediate effect and sent home without pay – only a small group of workers remained employed to close down the business.

A representative of the administrators, FRP Advisory, said that it is their immediate priority to support affected employees and work closely with clients. Hopefully, this will include the further transfer of a significant proportion of the workforce to alternative contractors.

George Birchall Service had offices in Newcastle-under-Lyme and London. It provided building services maintenance to a wide range of public and private sector clients across the UK, including hotels, supermarkets and commercial office buildings. Its sister company, George Birchall Ltd, an electrical contractor was placed into administration last September, leading to the loss of 141 jobs.


Sources

Citation

Eurofound (2019), George Birchall Service Limited, Bankruptcy in United Kingdom, factsheet number 97606, European Restructuring Monitor. Dublin, https://restructuringeventsprod.azurewebsites.net/restructuring-events/detail/97606.