Council flats left 90% built by a failed contractor now cost 60% more after hidden defects surface

Westridge Construction started the seafront scheme in March 2021 and went into administration in September 2023, citing inflation, fixed-price contracts and failures in its supply chain, Construction News reported. Cheesmur took over three months later. The council says the worst problems came to light only once work restarted. Cladding that Westridge left faulty or unfinished had let rain in, soaking several flats with condensation and water damage, and other substandard work had to be torn out and redone.

The defect list kept growing, and in July 2026 councillors added £3.2 million to the budget. At the Oct. 22 council meeting, councillor Lee Cowen laid out the remaining work, V2 Radio reported: scaffolding around the structural beams in November, brick cladding off in December and steel beams cut out in January. New masonry follows in February and March, then windows, doors and new balconies in April. He said the council hopes to hand over the flats in summer 2027.

The council told Construction News it cannot pursue Westridge's subcontractors for bad work because its contract was with Westridge alone. It has recovered £997,830 under an insolvency bond, according to V2 Radio. Westridge, which reported £64 million in turnover for the year to February 2022, was liquidated in October 2025, and unsecured creditors received 12.76p per pound owed. The council says it is reviewing what went wrong, and that the extra cost comes out of its ring-fenced housing account, not council tax.