Sacha Lord’s Events Firm Liquidated as Arts Council Seeks Grant Recovery

Primary Event Solutions (PES), a company co-owned by Manchester nightlife entrepreneur Sacha Lord, entered liquidation in September 2023. The firm was later dissolved on the scheduled date of 11 February 2026, leaving over £471,000 owed to unsecured creditors, including a £400,000 Arts Council England (ACE) grant that ACE is attempting to recover.

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During his tenure as Greater Manchester mayor, Andy Burnham appointed Lord as his first nighttime-economy adviser and praised his “wealth of experience.” In 2021, PES received a £400,000 Covid-era grant from ACE. ACE launched an investigation in 2022, and additional checks began in May 2024 after local outlet Manchester Mill raised questions about the firm’s role in creative events.

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ACE stated it has sought to recover £401,928 from PES, adding the council as a creditor to the liquidators’ filings. Lord emphasized that PES entered liquidation due to post-pandemic cost pressures, repaid its HMRC and Bounce-Back loans in full, and that he received no salary or dividends from the company after lockdown. He also noted he has no formal role in Burnham’s government, attending Downing Street as a “friend” of the Prime Minister.

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• £400,000 – ACE grant awarded to PES in 2021.

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• £401,928 – Amount ACE is pursuing for recovery.

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• >£600,000 – Funds raised by United We Stream Manchester, a pandemic-era initiative led by PES.

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• >£471,000 – Unsecured creditor debt reported by liquidators, including the ACE claim.

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• ACE receives >£500 million annually in government funding.

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• “Sacha is proud of the work PES did during the pandemic – in particular helping create United We Stream Manchester, which raised more than £600,000 for charities and freelancers in Greater Manchester.” — Sacha Lord, spokesperson

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