Firm understood to be winding down its volumetric operations
Homes England says it is continuing to “support” modular housing specialist TopHat after reports that the firm is winding down its volumetric operations.
The Goldman Sachs-backed firm is understood to have opened consultations with the workforce at its factory near Derby and aims to complete all its factory orders as part of a planned wind down.
TopHat has accumulated around £87m in losses since its establishment in 2016 and has been subject to a series of setbacks this year.
It announced plans for 70 redundancies in March, saw a major housebuilder write off its £25m investment in the firm in August, and was the subject of an attempted winding-up petition the same month.
In November 2023, Homes England backed the volumetric housebuilder with a £15m loan to help it in its aim of ramping up production to 4,000 homes a year.
A Homes England spokesperson said today: “We are aware of TopHat’s current position and continue to support the business.
“Despite the current challenging market conditions, housebuilders continue to invest in MMC in recognition of the vital role technology has to play in delivering more high-quality, energy efficient homes at pace and scale.”
At the beginning of this year, the House of Lords built environment committee criticised Homes England and the government for lacking a coherent strategy for supporting MMC.
The committee’s inquiry began after the closure of L&G Modular and the collapse of House by Urban Splash and Ilke Homes.
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