Prohibited-name notice signals new venture after Armstrong Construction (Hull) liquidation

Armstrong Construction (Hull) Limited entered liquidation in March 2026 after a winding-up petition was filed at Liverpool Companies Court under case reference CR-2025-LIV-000363 in December 2025. A prohibited-name notice published in the Gazette on 20 May 2026 indicates that a director intends to carry on business under a name similar to that of the liquidated company.

A prohibited-name notice arises under section 216 of the Insolvency Act 1986, which bars a director of a company that has gone into insolvent liquidation from being involved in another company using the same or a substantially similar name for five years, unless a statutory exception applies. Filing such a notice is one of those exceptions, giving the director a short window to proceed lawfully while creditors are put on notice.

About the company

Armstrong Construction (Hull) Limited was incorporated on 19 February 1998 and traded in the construction of domestic buildings, operating from a registered address at Ferriby Hall, 2 High Street, North Ferriby, East Riding of Yorkshire, HU14 3JP. The company previously traded as Fiveshape Limited from incorporation until December 1998, then as Jack Rafter Limited until February 1999, before adopting its most recent name. The notice lists a company address at Oberon House, Ferries Street, Hull, HU9 1RL.

Frazer Ulrick was appointed liquidator when the company entered liquidation in March 2026, according to a Gazette appointment notice.

Officers

The sole current director is Kenneth Osborne, appointed on 13 December 2002. Andrew Stephen Caley served as a director from June 1998 until March 2000, and Jaqueline Peak held a directorship from June 1998 until December 2002. Neil Taylor served briefly as both secretary and director in 1998 before resigning from both roles that year.

Secured lenders

Two secured creditors hold outstanding charges against the company. Westwood Capital Finance Limited holds a registered charge created on 5 February 2026 and delivered on 10 February 2026, secured against land on the east side of Ropery Street, Hull, HU3 2BU, the property at 3 Mechanic Lane, Hull, HU3 2DB, and further land on the north-east side of Ropery Street. That charge was created just weeks before the liquidation. HSBC Bank PLC holds a debenture created on 10 January 2011, comprising a fixed and floating charge over the company's undertaking and all present and future property and assets, including goodwill, book debts, uncalled capital, buildings, fixtures, and fixed plant and machinery.

What this means for creditors and suppliers

Once a company enters liquidation, a licensed insolvency practitioner realises assets and distributes proceeds to creditors. The liquidator takes responsibility for handling claims from those owed money, and known creditors receive statutory communications from the liquidator in due course.

Creditors wishing to evidence amounts owed do so by submitting a proof of debt, the formal claim form used in insolvency proceedings to establish the sum a creditor is owed.

In liquidation, most creditor enforcement action is stayed. Suppliers and trade creditors rank as unsecured creditors unless they hold security, meaning they are paid only after secured and preferential creditors have been satisfied from available assets.

Employees with unpaid wages, notice pay or redundancy entitlements rank as preferential creditors for certain amounts. The Redundancy Payments Service, operated by the Insolvency Service, exists to meet statutory redundancy and other employment-related claims where the employer cannot pay, with amounts recovered from the insolvent estate where possible.