Manchester site to come to market as SPV behind development enters administration

Land in Manchester that was set to house a 420 unit luxury residential development is due to be brought to market after the special purpose vehicle (SPV) behind the project fell into administration. The SPV, De Trafford No1 Castlefield Ltd, is part of the DeTrafford Group, which has seen several Manchester schemes encounter financial difficulties in recent months.

The SPV acted as a vehicle for the construction of the No1 Castlefield development, which was set to see 420 luxury residential units built at the site on the corner of Trentham Street and Ellesmere Street on land owned by DeTrafford Group. The plan was for the units to be spread across five blocks, ranging from five to 16 storeys. Plans for the scheme were lodged in 2016, with approval secured in 2017.

While there were significant levels of interest in No1 Castlefield, DeTrafford Group failed to bring the scheme forward. This resulted in a winding up petition being filed by a secured lender, reported to be finance company Endless Bridge, which subsequently sought to protect its position through the appointment of administrators.

Interpath Advisory’s Rick Harrison and Howard Smith were appointed as joint administrators to De Trafford No1 Castlefield Limited on May 30 2023. Joint administrator and Interpath managing director Rick Harrison commented: "Our immediate focus will be to assess the options available for the site alongside our agents, bringing it to market in due course. Interested parties are advised to contact us at the earliest opportunity."

In De Trafford No1 Castlefield Ltd’s most recent available accounts at Companies House, for the year ending December 31 2020, its current assets were valued at £25.7 million and its net liabilities amounted to £1.2 million.

No1 Castlefield is the latest in a series of DeTrafford developments to fall into administration. Kroll were appointed as administrators to the group’s £99 million Wavelength development in August last year, before its St George’s Gardens scheme fell into administration the following month.

One of the group's completed developments, the 109-apartment City Gardens scheme, has also reportedly experienced financial difficulties after some buyers were unable to complete on their purchases and replacement buyers could not be secured in time.


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