The fate of hundreds of new Nottinghamshire homes is in limbo after a housebuilder went into administration. Ilke Homes, which produced factory-built modular properties, was in the process of building 131 homes for housing association Jigsaw Homes Group at Rolleston Drive in Arnold, but this work abruptly halted after the company announced it was seeking a buyer on June 9.
The Yorkshire-based housebuilder had also been chosen as Boots' partner to deliver 604 homes near to the health and wellbeing giant's Thane Road complex - with the project only recently being approved by Nottingham City Council and Broxtowe Borough Council. Ilke Homes previously explained it was looking for a sale as "volatile macro-economic conditions and issues with the planning system" had complicated fundraising and housing delivery, but it will now be liquidated after it failed to find an investor.
Ilke Homes, as it looked for new investment, warned its £1 billion order book was predominantly made up of affordable homes and that "much-needed housing" would not be delivered if it was not rescued. Jigsaw Homes Group, which planned to be managing more than 100 of these properties when Ilke Homes finished and handed over the Rolleston Drive development in the future, said it was now considering its options.
Is the government doing enough to help with the cost of living? Let us know
A spokesperson for Jigsaw Homes Group said: “We are very disappointed to hear that Ilke Homes has gone into administration. We were informed of this by the administrators on Friday afternoon and we are now in talks with them to discuss and consider our options.”
Gedling Borough Council, which had residents waiting to move into the new homes, said any delay would negatively impact those on the "already stretched" housing waiting list. “We are very disappointed to hear that the building on this key site for housing in the borough has stopped and that the developer has gone into administration. As the planning authority, we have worked very hard to ensure that these much needed new homes were approved to be built, as delivering affordable homes is a council priority," Councillor Jenny Hollingsworth, portfolio holder for Sustainable Growth and Economy at Gedling Borough Council, said.
"The delay in people moving into these homes will have an impact on an already stretched housing waiting list, as well as creating disappointment and anxiety for families ready to move into these new homes, so we hope that the developers can do something as quickly as possible to rectify the situation. We are in regular contact with the local housing association, Jigsaw Homes, who were going to be responsible for the new homes, to gain a comprehensive understanding of the situation.”
Whilst the planned development near Boots' Thane Road facility was not at the construction stage, the Nottinghamshire-based business had previously said it was "delighted to partner with Ilke Homes to develop this site to provide high-quality, affordable and energy-efficient housing for people in the local area". Boots had also added "it was vital that we find the right partner" for the site due to its historical importance.
When asked what the housebuilder's liquidation would mean for the project, the company again declined to comment. But Councillor Milan Radulovic MBE, leader of Broxtowe Borough Council, said the uncertainty around the housing added to the recent announcement that hundreds of jobs at nearby pharmaceutical firm Fareva could be lost.
"This is yet more bad news. The reserved matters would have to go back to the committee from any new housebuilder," Mr Radulovic said.
"It's a symptom of what is going wrong in this country with a lack of housebuilding, I understand this year is going to be the lowest number of new houses completed since World War Two. The whole planning system is a complete mess, the cost is horrendous and it particularly punishes small and medium sized companies, which are squeezed out of the market."
On Friday, June 30, joint administrators from consultant AlixPartners were appointed to Ilke Homes at the request of the company's directors, following its failed investment search. With significant incremental investment the business returned to growth following the Covid pandemic, but then faced the challenges of unprecedented inflation and a lack of land supply linked to planning processes, the administrators explained.
The company's manufacturing facility in North Yorkshire will close and all site activities will cease. The administrators said the "difficult decision" also means the significant majority of 1,150 staff will be made redundant, with a small number being retained to assist in winding up the company.
Clare Kennedy, joint administrator and partner & managing director at AlixPartners said: “This is an incredibly difficult time for all associated with Ilke Homes, and in particular its employees, who have worked tirelessly alongside management over recent months to find a resolution.
"Unfortunately, the market and economic headwinds have proven too strong to overcome, thus leading to today’s [June 30] appointment. Our focus now is on helping all stakeholders, employees, suppliers and customers alike, to find the best possible outcome in this undoubtedly difficult situation for all”.
Ilke Homes had to apologise to residents near to the Rolleston Drive site in May when a crane had to reposition the load of one lorry after it slipped off on Thackeray's Lane in Woodthorpe. Another of the lorries then had to be halted again at around 6.30pm on Sandfield Road, with the second incident causing damage to a car.
