Croydon Council says Polaska put its BVI arm into administration as part of a restructuring the council itself required, and the rebuild is unaffected.

Croydon Council says the administration of the company behind the Purley Pool rebuild has “no impact” on the project, because the developer put the company into administration deliberately, as part of a restructuring the council itself required.

The statement, published on the council’s newsroom on 16 September, is the council’s first public comment on the insolvency. It came five and a half weeks after administrators were appointed, and days after the administration became public through the official insolvency notices.

We reported on 14 September that administrators from Opus Restructuring had been appointed over Polaska Assets Limited, the British Virgin Islands company that held the long lease on the Purley Pool site, on 6 August (The Gazette, notice 5191248).

What the council says happened

According to the council’s statement, the administration is housekeeping rather than failure. Its account runs like this:

  • Before planning permission for the approved scheme can be formally issued, a Section 106 legal agreement has to be completed and signed
  • The council asked Polaska to register a UK-based company for it to contract with, rather than the British Virgin Islands company
  • “Polaska UK” has been created, and the Section 106 agreement will be signed with that company
  • The leasehold interest in the site has been assigned to the UK company
  • “As part of the restructuring needed to create the UK entity, to meet the Council’s requirements, Polaska has placed the British Virgin Islands entity into administration”

“Polaska BVI being in administration has no impact on the Purley Pool project as the Council’s legal relationship is with Polaska UK,” the statement says. The lease assignment, it adds, is what “allows the Section 106 agreement to be finalised and the planning permission formally issued.”

Executive Mayor Jason Perry said: “Before the planning permission can be formally issued, there are still some legal and land registration matters that need to be completed. Whilst these are not directly within the Council’s control, we are working closely with Polaska on the programme for delivery of the project.”

What the public record shows

The council’s account is consistent with the insolvency record in one respect: the Gazette notice describes the BVI company as a “non-trading property development vehicle”, not an operating business that collapsed.

The statement does not name the new UK company or give a company number. Companies House lists one active UK company called Polaska Assets Limited, number 14316454, incorporated on 24 August 2022 and registered for buying and selling its own real estate. It has one director and has filed dormant company accounts for every year to 31 August 2025, which is what you would expect of a vehicle that has not yet traded.

The administration itself still runs its legal course. The administrators, Mark Boast and Allister Manson of Opus Restructuring, must send their proposals to the BVI company’s creditors within eight weeks of the 6 August appointment, which falls at the start of October.

Step diagram of the route back to a Purley pool as Croydon Council sets it out: the BVI leaseholder is placed in administration on 6 August 2026, the lease is assigned to the new UK company Polaska UK, the Section 106 agreement is signed with that company, the council formally issues the planning permission granted in February 2025, and construction can then start, with no date yet published for the last three steps
The route back to a Purley pool, as the council sets it out. No dates are published for the remaining steps. Graphic by Croydon Today.

What was approved, again

The scheme granted by the Planning Committee in February 2025, application 24/00775/FUL, would replace the leisure centre, the empty former supermarket and the multi-storey car park with four linked blocks containing a leisure centre with a 25 metre, six lane pool, a training pool, an 80 station gym, studio space, a café and soft play, plus later living homes, a care home and a new public square. The council’s statement confirms the Greater London Authority has reviewed and supported the proposals.

Purley Pool closed in March 2020 and has never reopened. The rebuild is the only route back with planning consent.

What it means for you

  • The council’s position is now on the record. After our report noted the council had published nothing on the administration, it has: the administration was planned, the project is unaffected, and the S106 is the next step.
  • The dates are still missing. No timetable is published for signing the S106, issuing the permission or starting demolition. The Mayor’s statement says the outstanding legal and land registration matters are “not directly within the Council’s control”.
  • Early October is the next fixed point. The administrators’ proposals to creditors are due within eight weeks of their 6 August appointment. Those proposals should confirm, from the insolvency side, the account the council has given.
  • The site’s planning history is searchable via our Croydon planning applications guide, and our planning news page follows the borough’s big schemes.

Sources