A new contractor has been appointed to finish a housing development in West Sussex after the previous company working on the project went under last year.
Adur District Council and Worthing Borough Council have signed a new contract with Sussex building firm Cheesmur to complete its Albion Street development in Southwick where Westridge Construction had been building new homes before its collapse.
East Sussex building company Westridge went into administration in September last year, appointing accounting firm Crowe UK to manage its affairs.
Shortly after, the councils announced they were seeking a new contractor to complete the Albion Street scheme for 49 new homes, which was started in 2021.
At the time of its collapse, it is understood Westridge employed in the region of 150 staff including more than 80 trade technicians.
Cheesmur has now taken control of the site and expects to complete the new homes by the summer.
Established in 1990, Westridge delivered contracting and design and build projects ranging between £1 million and £15 million in various sectors throughout the South East of England, including housing, education, healthcare, leisure and commercial.
Accounts made up to February 2022 showed turnover increased by £6.9 million to £64.2 million.
Profit before tax and dividends reduced by £980,882 to £853,426.
Gross profit was £5.93 million (2021: £6.04 million) and the gross profit margin was 9.23% (2021: 10.13%).
Councillor Carson Albury, cabinet member for Adur Homes and customer services, said: “We urgently need more homes for local families. Getting the Albion Street development completed will mean dozens of our residents will have better places to live and better lives from 2024.
“We’ve worked with Cheesmur on other projects and we’re delighted that they will drive forward with this development to create these extra council homes over the next few months.”
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