The trustees of the now-defunct charity Kids Company have submitted a winding up petition to the High Court in London, the Charity Commission has confirmed.

A spokesman for the Charity Commission, which is currently investigating the management of Kids Company, said he was aware that a winding up application had been submitted to the court, but that he could make no further comment.

Kids Company, which claimed to provide help for 36,000 poverty-stricken and vulnerable young people, closed on August 5, despite securing a £3m bailout from the Government.

The money, which was used partly to pay the salaries of nearly 650 employees, was only granted to the charity by the Cabinet Office on the proviso that Camilla Batmanghelidjh, the charity’s founder, step down as the organisation’s chief executive.

The winding up application has been made to the bankruptcy and companies court, which forms part of the Royal Courts of Justice in London.

This will dash any hopes that Camilla Batmanghelidjh, the founder of the collapsed charity, may be able to bring the organisation back.

In an interview published by The Times on August 12, Batmanghelidjh hinted that she might try and relaunch Kids Company, after the media storm around allegations of financial mismanagement which lead to its closure, died down.

The interview came two days after band Coldplay, who had themselves donated around £8m to the charity over the years, were said to be in talks with other philanthropists to save the charity’s service.