Herts contractor collapses with 70 job losses

Hertfordshire-based firm Jarvis Contracting has appointed administrators and made 70 staff redundant.

The £43.8m-turnover company was based in Harpenden and worked in the residential, health, industrial and education sectors.

A statement from administrators at Verulam Advisory blamed unsustainable contract terms for its downfall.

“The company has suffered adverse market conditions in the past two years, including supply chain problems and unexpected inflation, which have made the delivery of long-term fixed-price contracts unviable,” it said.

“The result has been significant trading losses with no signs of a recovery in the foreseeable future.”

In its last published results, for the year ending 30 April 2022, it posted a pre-tax loss of £2m, down from the previous year’s profit of £262,000.

The company’s turnover fell from £49.5m to £43.8m.

In a statement issued alongside the results, director Emma Parkinson blamed the war in Ukraine, supply chain shortages, and inflated energy and fuel costs for the losses.

“These impacts, along with changes in industry regulation and a failing planning system, has [sic] made conditions even more challenging for an industry that was already navigating its ways through extremely challenging times, with a chronic shortage of skilled trades post-Brexit,” she said.

The company is a subsidiary of the £64m-turnover Jarvis Group, which is not in administration.

The administrators said that other companies in the group, including Jarvis Homes, remain profitable and continue to trade normally.

Jarvis Contracting landed a place on Pagabo’s £1bn framework for medium-sized projects in January.