Key Points
- Company Collapse: Westhoughton-based Forshaw Demolition Limited has officially entered administration after failing to meet its financial obligations, debts, and liabilities.
- Insolvency Appointment: Joint administrators Richard Cole, Stephen Kenny, and Amy Lowden of KBL Advisory Limited were formally appointed on 24 July 2024, as recorded by The Gazette.
- Operational Profile: The family-owned enterprise has traded for 23 years, drawing on 80 years of combined industry expertise in asbestos removal, industrial decommissioning, and structural demolition.
- Local Project Portfolio: High-profile schemes executed by the firm include the Church Wharf development, Century Mill in Farnworth, Lever Gardens in Little Lever, Walkden Shopping Centre, and an Arrow Point warehouse in Horwich.
- Legal Framework: Under the Insolvency Act 1986, the entry into administration triggers a statutory moratorium protecting the firm from creditor enforcement while insolvency practitioners assess restructuring or liquidation options.
Westhoughton (Bolton Today) August 8, 2026 – Forshaw Demolition, a family-owned demolition contractor headquartered in Westhoughton with over two decades of trading history, has collapsed into administration after becoming unable to service its outstanding operational debts, expenses, and liabilities.
As reported by Joe Harrigan, Chief Reporter of The Bolton News, joint administrators Richard Cole, Stephen Kenny, and Amy Lowden of KBL Advisory Limited were formally appointed on 24 July 2024 to oversee the company’s affairs, as documented in public regulatory filings published by The Gazette.
Based at Stotts Park on St James Street in Westhoughton, the company has served as a primary enabling contractor across Greater Manchester and the wider United Kingdom. Over its 23-year operating period, the firm built a regional reputation by executing complex structural dismantling, industrial decommissioning, and site clearance projects for both public and private sector clients.
The collapse places the future of the long-standing family business in doubt, with daily control and executive oversight of the entity now fully transferred from its founding directors to the appointed insolvency practitioners at KBL Advisory Limited.
What lead to Forshaw Demolition entering administration?
As reported by Joe Harrigan of The Bolton News, the company fell into administration toward the end of July 2024 after accumulating insurmountable financial pressures that left it unable to meet its ongoing expenses, supplier invoices, and broader liabilities.
The financial strain forced the company's executive management to seek formal protection under UK insolvency legislation. Under the provisions of the Insolvency Act 1986, entering administration introduces an immediate statutory moratorium. This legal shield temporarily halts all pending or threatened legal action, winding-up petitions, and debt recovery enforcement by creditors, providing temporary stability while the administrators review financial records.
According to official guidance published by Companies House, the primary statutory purpose of an administration process is to attempt to rescue a company as a going concern, provided cashflow problems can be resolved. Where a rescue proves unfeasible, administrators must seek to achieve a better outcome for the company's creditors than would be possible through an immediate liquidating winding-up.
While in administration, a firm may legally continue to trade if the administrators determine that ongoing operations will preserve asset value or assist in selling the business. However, day-to-day management authority rests solely with the licensed insolvency practitioners, who hold a primary fiduciary duty to the firm's creditors.
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What major regional projects were completed by Forshaw Demolition?
As reported by Joe Harrigan of The Bolton News, Forshaw Demolition was responsible for executing enabling works on several of Bolton’s most prominent regeneration and infrastructure sites.
Which Bolton landmarks were cleared by the firm?
- Church Wharf Regeneration: In 2021, the firm carried out critical site preparation and clearance for the multi-million-pound Church Wharf masterplan in central Bolton, paving the way for riverside residential and commercial development.
- Century Mill, Farnworth: The company managed the structural dismantling of the historic Century Mill complex in Farnworth, clearing brownfield land for modern housing schemes.
- Lever Gardens, Little Lever: Forshaw Demolition executed enabling and clearance works to support housing and community care facilities within Little Lever.
- Walkden Shopping Centre: The firm handled structural demolition tasks at the Walkden Shopping Centre complex as part of broader retail reconfiguration efforts.
- Arrow Point, Horwich: Recent projects included the complete teardown of a former industrial warehouse facility situated at Arrow Point in Horwich.
In a public statement preserved on the company’s official online portal, as cited by Joe Harrigan of The Bolton News, Forshaw Demolition outlined its operational scope:
"We undertake a full range of enabling services from asbestos removal, industrial decommissioning and demolition/dismantling of various large-scale concrete and steel structures, including pre and post-tensioned road and rail bridges, city centre office blocks, former industrial sites and multi-storey tower blocks."
What happens next to the company and its creditors?
Following their appointment on 24 July 2024, joint administrators Richard Cole, Stephen Kenny, and Amy Lowden of KBL Advisory Limited have assumed full control of Forshaw Demolition Limited.
Under United Kingdom insolvency statutes, an administration period automatically expires after 12 months from the date of appointment unless extended by order of the court or with the express consent of the company's creditors. During this period, the joint administrators will conduct a thorough assessment of the company’s physical assets, plant equipment, leasehold property at Stotts Park, outstanding contract receivables, and creditor claims.
If a buyer cannot be secured for the business or its assets as a going concern, the entity will transition into formal liquidation or be dissolved, marking the final conclusion of a 23-year trading history in the British construction and demolition sector.