Rising materials costs, supply chain problems and loss-making job blamed for 40-year-old firm’s demise

Gateshead-based firm Tolent has collapsed into administration after 40 years of business with over 300 staff made redundant.

James Lumb and Howard Smith from Interpath Advisory were appointed joint administrators to Tolent plc and five of its operating subsidiaries this afternoon, Interpath said.

The administrator said 313 staff have already lost their jobs with the remaining 91 kept on “to assist them whilst they explore any possibility of a sale of the businesses and their assets”.

tolent

Tolent collapsed earlier today with the loss of more than 300 jobs

Interpath said Tolent, which was one of the country’s best-known regional contractors also had offices in Leeds, Stockton-on-Tees and Shotton Colliery, had faced significant challenges in recent years including “rising costs of raw materials, supply chain issues, material and labour shortages and the collapse of a number of developers, contractors and supply chain partners”.

It added: “Against this difficult backdrop, one of Tolent’s major contracts – the £85.5m Milburngate development in Durham – became significantly loss-making, which had a p