According to a report in the Lancashire Telegraph, and confirmed by a statement on the Rossendale Borough Council website, a key provider in £5.6million empty homes programme has gone into administration. The company, AAAW Ltd., is reported to have debts of over £275,000.
It is understood that most if not all of the reported £5.6 million was funding from the Homes and Communities Agency under the empty homes programme. In addition, AAAW seems to have been involved in a wide range of leasing and letting services connected with homelessness.
The Lancashire Telegraph news story reports:
An inquiry has been announced by Rossendale Council, which oversaw the deal for Blackburn with Darwen, Burnley, Hyndburn and Pendle Councils, after it was confirmed AAAW had been wound up.
Council bosses in Rossendale insist they have taken “decisive action” in the wake of AAAW’s failure – though they are remaining tight-lipped over how many of the 515 homes which should have been overhauled were completed.
Rossendale Borough Council's website reports:
Stuart Sugarman, Chief Executive of Rossendale Council, said: "Since the company's collapse, the Council has taken decisive action to manage the impact and mitigate the risks, which we have done well. We set up an internal project team, secured the properties and identified any vulnerable tenants and protected them."
"We are still analysing what the financial impact will be to the Council and we are undertaking a full investigation into what happened especially around the management of the contract."