A Kent council that Curo Construction, appointed to replace Henry Construction on a half-complete £65m job, could now face finding yet another new contractor.
The news comes amid reports that Curo is dealing with “financial challenges”, and announcements by some of its clients that they have appointed alternative firms.
The firm has yet to publish a notice of insolvency but was hit by a winding-up petition from engineering specialist Nationwide Structures at the beginning of the month.
London-headquartered Curo Construction was named as the replacement contractor on the Charter – a development of 242 apartments and a multistorey car park in Gravesend town centre – in August 2024.
Curo Construction solvent in last financial year
The scheme, which started in 2021 but stalled in 2023 after the collapse of Henry Construction, was close to completion. There is no suggestion the project had a bearing on the financial affairs of either company.
In between the two main contractors, Statom Group, which continues to trade, was appointed to prepare the site for its restart.
It is being co-developed by the Reef Group and Rosherville, a company owned by Gravesham council.
A council spokesman told Kent Online: “We have been aware of financial challenges faced by Curo Construction for a number of days.
“Rosherville Property Development Ltd, our wholly-owned subsidiary company, and Reef, our development partners, are working to ensure work on site suffers as little disruption as possible.”
Curo Construction, which turned over £108m in its latest published financial year, has been working on dozens of projects.
In Whittlesey, Cambridgeshire, it was working through development partner Alliance Leisure on pre‑contract design and development work for a scheme called Manor Leisure Centre.
Fenland District Council announced this week that Speller Metcalf has already been appointed as its replacement on the project.
Alliance Leisure said in a statement that it was implementing continuity plans and is replacing the company on all its schemes.
In March, Curo was among 44 firms appointed to a £3bn general works framework from the London Construction Programme (LCP).
The five-year framework, procured by the London Borough of Haringey on behalf of the LCP, covers public sector projects across the capital and the Home Counties.
It includes new-build construction (including modern methods of construction), fire safety, retrofit and preventative maintenance work.
Haringey Council told Construction News it is reviewing the situation.
“We will investigate Curo’s position in regards to administration and their position on the General Works Framework,” it said.
Curo’s turnover down
Curo was founded in 2013 and is best known for building Shinfield Studios, a £250m film studio in Berkshire.
In its latest published accounts, for the year to 30 September 2024, the firm’s revenue fell from £156.8m to £108.3m. Its pre-tax profit fell from £3.2m to £1.2m.
Directors cited the end of the Shinfield Studios contract and delays to project starts for the turnover drop.
According to its accounts it employs 104 people. The firm’s website is no longer accessible.
Nationwide Structures was contacted for comment.
It is not the first time in recent years that an original and replacement contractor have both gone out of business while working on the same project.
In April 2024, Osborne Construction went out of business a month after being named as a replacement for the defunct Mid Group on a 55-home development in Wokingham, Berkshire.
