Employees of the defunct Homeform group - the owner of Sharps, Dolphin and Moben - are still left nearly £190,000 out of pocket a year after the company went into administration.

And the administrator said it is likely that there will never be funds available to pay preferential or unsecured creditors.

In a progress report marking the year anniversary, the administrator extended its involvement for another 12 months as it continued to manage the company's affairs - including trying to find a buyer for its brands.

When the administrators were appointed a year ago, the business and assets of the Sharps division of Homeform were sold in a pre-packaged deal to a new stand-alone company Sharps Bedrooms Ltd. It was backed by former Homeform directors and Sun Capital Partners, the same investment group that owned Homeform.

In this most recent update, the administrator confirmed that the remaining brands of Moben, Dolphin and Kitchens Direct are still up for sale, with "a number of firm offers" received to date and one party is currently in "advanced negotiations" with a view to finalising a sale "in due course".