Corporate recovery experts at Begbies Traynor have successfully sold a business out of administration that keeps one of the West Midlands’ best known family business names alive.

The Francis Graves Partnership LLP is the new name of the business that has emerged from The Graves Partnership which went into administration on the appointment of Nigel Price and John Kelly of Begbies Traynor as joint administrators on Friday, October 9.

The new owner is Henry Riley, a construction consultancy formed in 1890 which has its head office in Croydon and offices in Bolton, Bristol, Croydon, Cambridge, Hamilton, Huddersfield, London, Newcastle, Peterborough and Reading.

The new business is part of Riley Consulting, a multi-disciplinary construction and property consultancy consisting of ten businesses that share ownership and management with more than 180 staff across the UK.

The deal rescues the jobs of the remaining 10 employees of The Graves Partnership in Birmingham including Mark Bevan, the former managing director of The Graves Partnership.

The original practice was founded by Frank Graves in 1956 and was, historically, one of the most successful property consultancies in the region, with offices in Birmingham and London. Frank’s son, Richard, took over the practice in 1993 and was a prominent figure in the property world.

The practice was sold to the Erinaceous Group in July 2005. Following difficulties within that group, Richard Graves bought back the business out of the Erinaceous administration in April 2008. Shortly afterwards, he was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer and died in July this year.

Richard’s forced and prolonged absence from the business, combined with the worsening economic climate, left the practice with financial difficulties, culminating in the appointment of Nigel Price and John Kelly of Begbies Traynor as joint administrators in October.

Nigel Price said: “We are delighted that we have managed to achieve a sale in what is a difficult climate for construction consultancies and many other professional businesses. The new business not only saves a welcome number of jobs but keeps alive a famous West Midlands name and the memory of a man sorely missed by many of us in and around Birmingham.”