Typical situations
- A petition or aggressive enforcement is about to remove control while live jobs are still unfinished.
- The contracting business has value as a going concern, but cannot currently pay its debts.
- A sale of the business may preserve contracts and employees better than an abrupt stop.
- Bonds, frameworks or employer terms make an informal rescue unstable.
Administration has to work around live contracts
The legal purpose of administration is the same as for other UK companies. The construction difference is operational: employers, subcontractors, suppliers and bond providers all react quickly once a formal process begins.
Before administration is treated as the answer, directors need a clear view of which contracts can still be completed or novated, which retentions may still be recoverable, and whether a going-concern sale is realistic.
Pre-packs in contracting
A pre-pack can preserve a contracting book, staff and relationships, but it is scrutinised closely. Buyers and advisers will look at work in progress, disputed valuations, bonds and personal guarantees as carefully as they look at the order book.
It is not a shortcut around creditor outcomes. The commercial case still has to stand up, and the wider administration framework still applies.
Compare it with CVA and liquidation
If directors can retain control and only need to compromise unsecured debt, a construction CVA may be more proportionate. If there is no viable contracting operation left, construction liquidation is usually the cleaner route.
Turnwell helps boards compare those options against cash flow, creditor pressure and personal exposure before a process is chosen.
Common questions
Will employers keep the company on site in administration?
Not automatically. Some contracts treat administration as a termination event. That risk should be tested before the process is treated as a rescue route.
How does this differ from the general administration page?
The general page explains administration and pre-packs for UK companies. This page focuses on live contracts, bonds, site continuity and the sale of a contracting business.
Related services
Construction CVAs
Assess whether a CVA can work for a contractor once bonds, retentions and employer termination clauses are taken into account.
Construction liquidation
Close a contracting company in an orderly way, accounting for live jobs, plant and retention recovery.
Construction creditor pressure
Respond to supplier action, main contractor insolvency and enforcement without losing sight of live contracts.
Personal guarantees
Map personal guarantees, plant finance and director duties in a contracting business under pressure.
Related insights
What to do if your company receives a winding-up petition
Practical steps for UK company directors after a winding-up petition is threatened or presented, including the effect on bank accounts and the options that may remain.
Construction cash flow, late payment and retentions
How late certificates, pay-less notices and retentions create cash pressure in construction businesses, and what directors should examine first.
