A north west construction firm has gone into administration after more than 120 years in business.
Harry Fairclough Construction, which has around 150 staff, is based in Warrington and has an office in West Yorkshire.
Staf posted messages on social media describing being sent home yesterday as the company ceased trading.
One employee wrote on LinkedIn: “Sad day. Harry Fairclough Construction LTD have ceased trading. I am currently available for work. Please contact me for my CV.”
Harry Fairclough Construction specialised in civil contracts but also had a division known as Harry Fairclough Build to deliver buildings for private and public sector clients.
The contractor, founded in 1898, won places on all six lots of the North West Construction Hub’s £1bn framework last August, alongside the likes of Galliford Try, Laing O’Rourke and Morgan Sindall.
Harry Fairclough also secured work on the £3.5m-£10m lot of North Lincolnshire Council’s £150m building and highways framework last May. The building arm had been working on the £3.2m Aldham Robarts Library pavilion at Liverpool John Moores University.
Harry Fairclough Construction’s accounts for the 2018/19 year have not yet been submitted to Companies House, having been due on December 31 2019.
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In 2017/18, it made pre-tax profits of £118,000 with a turnover of £38m.
In a statement posted on Twitter, the Civil Engineering Contractors Association North West said: “More terrible news for our industry, as Harry Fairclough has gone into administration.
“CECA NW is here to help find vacancies for staff.
“Let’s keep getting the message across – clients must increasingly recognise the pressures on contractors if they want their projects and the ones the public demands to be delivered.
“If more bona fide civils contractors like Harry Fairclough are pushed to closure, the only firms left for clients to use will be those without the accreditations and practices that keep our industry safe, innovative and effective.”