IPA exclusive industry update from Insolvency Insider
IPA Insolvency Practitioner newsletter, September 2025
A specially curated selection of the top stories for IPA members from Insolvency Insider Editor, Dina Kovacevic. More information on all the stories and the link to subscribe to the newsletter is here.
Appointments
Speciality Steels UK, the UK’s third-largest steelworks and a member of the Liberty Steel group owned by embattled business tycoon Sanjeev Gupta, has been placed into compulsory liquidation, with the official receiver appointed liquidator. Special managers from Teneo were also appointed. The company, which uses scrap metal to manufacture steel, employs nearly 1,500 people across Sheffield and Rotherham. In May, it dropped plans to restructure through a Part 26A process. More recently, Mr Gupta had reportedly hoped to secure funding from BlackRock and Fidera, which invests in distressed companies, to buy back the business. He had requested an adjournment to the liquidation application to allow him to place the company a pre-pack administration, but the Court refused. The government has reportedly agreed to cover worker wages and operational costs while a buyer is sought.
G.R. & M.M. Blackledge PLC trading as Bodycare, a high street beauty chain, entered administration on 5 September, with Nick Holloway, Chris Pole and Mike Leeds of Interpath appointed joint administrators. Bodycare was founded in 1970, eventually growing to trade from 147 stores across the UK and employing about 1,500 people prior to the administrators’ appointment. Bodycare has faced a number of challenges in recent years which have negatively impacted its financial position, including rising costs, a delayed transition to its online retail platform, and the cost-of-living crisis impacting its customer base. In addition, a planned IPO in 2024 was aborted, which led to a shortfall in funding and placed strain on supplier relationships, resulting in a shortage of stock. The joint administrators intend to continue to trade the majority (115) of Bodycare’s stores while they assess options. Unfortunately, however, 32 stores have closed, with about 450 employees made redundant.
Venator Materials plc, the top, non-trading, holding company of British chemicals manufacturer the Venator Group, together with two other non-trading holding companies, Venator Materials International UK Limited and Venator Investments UK Limited, entered administration on 2 September. Mark Firmin and Helen Skeates of Alvarez & Marsal were appointed joint administrators to all three companies, while Richard Beard was only appointed to Venator Materials plc. The joint administrators said that the Venator Group, which employs 519 people in the UK and 2,249 globally, has been severely impacted by increased competition and rising costs. Their appointment comes just two years after the company completed a prepackaged Chapter 11 process to address US$1 billion in debt. The main UK trading company, Venator Materials UK Limited, and the Venator Group’s US and French arms are continuing to trade as normal outside of any insolvency process. The administrators are seeking buyers for the UK businesses while sale processes are initiated for other entities across the Venator Group. Hannah Crawford and Mallika Abidi of Kirkland & Ellis and Jessica Walker and James Hollingshead of Latham and Watkins are assisting the joint administrators.
Recent articles
Kate Stephenson of Kirkland & Ellis explains why the English Court refused to sanction Waldorf Production’s Part 26A restructuring plan, which the Court characterised as being “designed in a pre-Thames world” with “clear echoes of the mistaken approach to out of the money creditors that was rejected in Thames Water”.
Rob Child and Shreya Prakash of Ashurst describe how synthetic proceedings—which enable a domestic insolvency court to apply foreign law—replicate the effect of opening secondary proceedings in other countries without the associated costs and procedural burdens.
Rebecca McGregor and Thomas Rudrum of Linklaters highlight key revisions to the Insolvency Code of Ethics which will come into effect on 1 October 2025, including the introduction of a clear distinction between a practitioner’s “professional life” and their private life, new requirements for practitioners to maintain an “inquiring mind” and an emphasis on demonstrating “strength of character” when facing difficult situations, and more.