Buyer sought for training firm PFL after insolvency
A COMPANY which specialised in training employees at Merseyside-based car manufacturer Jaguar Land Rover as well as pharmaceutical giants Novartis and Eli Lilly has been placed in administration.
Attempts are now being made to sell Liverpool-based PFL as a going concern. It was bought last year by Manchester based finance group A2E Venture Cataylsts.
The company was established in February 1999 – as a subsidiary of registered charity Partnership for Learning – to provide the training and development needs of the area’s three main employers.
It also helped other train other companies in the North West’s supply chain to improve their competitiveness from its former office in South Road
Accounts show that in September 2009, ‘PFL Centre of Excellence’ purchased 100% of the company’s share capital from the charity.
A statement released by administrators MCR said: “A corollary of factors led to the company’s financial position becoming untenable and the subsequent appointment of joint administrators.
“The company is continuing to trade in administration on a business as usual basis and the joint administrators are hopeful that a going concern sale of the business and assets will be achieved shortly.”
The joint administrators are Stephen Clancy and David Whitehouse.
The last available accounts show that PFL had a turnover of £2.98 to July 31, 2008, down from £3.94m the previous year.
Its profits rose from £39,837 in 2007 to £127,138 in 2008.
But accountants Hurst and Company stated at that time that PFL’s liabilities exceeded its total assets by £1,325,769 which cast “uncertainty on the company’s ability to continue as a going concern”.
A new business PFL Centre for Excellence Ltd, which was incorporated last August and is registered at the Speke headquarters of PFL, is still trading.
