Leslie Keats tries to recoup money owed to creditors after 拢131m-turnover contractor went into administration

Quantity surveying firm Leslie Keats has been appointed to assess the value of Lancsville鈥檚 contracts, in a bid to recoup some of the money owed to creditors.

The 拢131m-turnover firm became the latest medium-sized victim of the recession at the end of last year. It was put into administration after it failed to repay a 拢10m loan given to the firm in 2008 by distressed lending specialist Agilo

Administrator at Vantis, Nick O鈥橰eilly, said the QS firm was currently looking at the worth of the construction firm鈥檚 contracts, and was in the process of selling them on.

Meanwhile, machinery valuing firm Edward Symmons is evaluating the worth of the plant and machinery owned by Lancsville.

O鈥橰eilly said once these assets had been sold, Vantis would calculate how much the beleaguered firm was able to pay back to its creditors.

He added that all employees of Lancsville had now been made redundant.

Lancsville had been employed as a main contractor on projects including the 拢28m Iylo residential scheme in Croydon and a 拢40m Thames Gateway mixed-use development.

Ash Pillai, project manager for Phoenix Logistics, the developer behind the Iylo project, said the development had been pushed back by at least six months following the administration of Lancsville.

鈥淭he site has been closed since before Christmas. We鈥檙e waiting to see if it鈥檚 possible for us to continue without a main contractor, and to appoint all of our existing subcontractors directly.鈥�

Pillai said he hoped work would begin again on site by April.

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