Either the Official Receiver (OR) or an insolvency practitioner is appointed trustee of a bankrupt's estate, following the making of a bankruptcy order against an insolvent individual. The statutory function of a trustee in bankruptcy, an insolvency office-holder, is to get in and realise the bankrupt's estate and distribute it to the creditors according to the Insolvency Act 1986 and Insolvency (England and Wales) Rules 2016.

The OR is generally appointed as first trustee in bankruptcy, immediately upon the making of the bankruptcy order. The trustee may apply to court for directions on administering the bankrupt's estate and is generally under the court's control.