Settlement secured for liquidated training firm after five years
A settlement has been reached with creditors for multiple businesses linked to Birmingham Pride festival director Lawrence Barton.
It brings a five-year saga to an end after the collapse of Barton’s training business, GB Training, which owed £8.4m to creditors.
Liquidator Kevin Mawer and Barton have secured an undisclosed agreement that will allow for a distribution to creditors, including the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA) and the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA).
The liquidation of GB Training was triggered during the pandemic, following an ESFA investigation that halted new apprentice funding and cited “potential discrepancies” in fund allocation.
A subsequent report by Mawer revealed that intercompany loans totalling £331k – deemed to have “no commercial justification” – had contributed to the company’s collapse. The funds were issued to connected companies including The Nightingale, GB Holdings, and Good With Wood, just before GB Training ceased trading.
In March 2024, attempts to recover the loans prompted further financial pressure, leading to the appointment of administrators at The Nightingale and GB Holdings. These businesses, unable to repay their debts, were ultimately liquidated.
However, Barton later reacquired their assets through a management buyout, transferring venues such as The Nightingale, The Village Inn, The Loft Bar & Kitchen, and festivals like Solihull Summer Fest and Paric Festival into Develop Excellence Ltd. This move safeguarded over 80 jobs and placed operations under the direction of Terence Runcorn and Gillian Barton.
Barton said: “I am happy to have agreed that this period of 5 years has reached a conclusion. I am happy a line has been drawn under it with all the parties involved and I’m now looking forward to continuing my community and business activities and to making a success of the new venues re-opening next month and continuing to supporting to drive forward the Birmingham nighttime economy.
“I must stress that the allegations of funding overclaims by the ESFA and others were never proven and the terms of the settlement reached in no way represents an acceptance of any culpability or guilt on this matter. I remain concerned about the conduct of the investigation, the devastating impact it had on the Company which I had worked more than 20 years to create and the loss of jobs and services to learners that ensued.”
