Triad Regulatory News (TRD)

Triad Group Plc

AUDITED RESULTS FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 MARCH 2016

(Company number: 2285049)

Triad Group Plc is pleased to announce its final results for the year ended 31 March 2016. 

Enquiries:

Nick Burrows

Finance Director & Company Secretary

Triad Group Plc

01483 860222

Strategic report

Financial highlights

· Revenue for the year ended 31 March 2016: £28.3m (2015: £23.5m)

· Profit before tax: £0.86m (2015: £0.35m)

· Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA): £1.13m (2015: £0.54m)

· Profit after tax: £1.21m (2015: £0.35m)

· Gross profit as a percentage of revenue: 15.0% (2015: 14.1%)

Chairman's statement

Dr John Rigg, Executive Chairman

I am very pleased to report that the Group has built on the progress announced in the last interim results, delivering further growth in revenue and profit. Our improved business model has resulted in a significant increase in Triad teams of permanently employed consultants, associates and contractors delivering services to a growing number of key clients. This has generated a stronger and more balanced client portfolio and sales pipeline.

We believe that we are now in a position to undertake a significant strengthening of our base of permanently employed consultants. To this end, the numbers of permanent employees will be increased in order that the Group can receive the benefit of the natural longevity of their relationship with the Group, underpinned by contracts of permanent employment, share options and other benefits. Without altering the final price and therefore attractiveness of our offering to the client, this will enable the Group to retain a significantly higher proportion of gross profits. We also intend to move towards strengthening of top management in the area of permanent consultant operations. The public image of our permanent consultant operation will be significantly enhanced by attention to our marketing activities.

For the year to 31 March 2016 Group revenue has increased by 20.6% to £28.32m (2015: £23.48m). The Group reports a profit before tax in the year of £0.86m (2015: £0.35m), an increase of 145.2%. Profit after tax has increased to £1.21m (2015: £0.35m). Included in this figure is a £0.35m credit in recognition of a deferred tax asset relating to historical trading losses brought forward.

Our footprint across the public and private sectors has expanded, with new clients including UK Export Finance, Department for Business, Innovation & Skills and Highways England. In addition, we have been awarded new contracts to deliver additional services to long established clients including Home Office, Ministry of Justice, and IMServ. We have also secured substantial increases in the call-off limits for two of our central government contracts, providing us good visibility of potential work in to the next financial year.

Contract renewals and extensions are a key indicator of success, and the company has been very careful to maintain its excellent levels of service delivery whilst growing the business.

During the year the Group was involved in a wide range of assignments. This range needs to be further expanded in the coming year. We have been successful in securing a two-year call-off agreement with an existing Central Government client, allowing us to provide a range of resources around delivery management, development and webops/devops. This represented a substantial win, and the work we are doing on projects of national importance has helped us attract some of the country's leading talent.

Triad consultants developed a new search platform for the Electoral Commission, enabling interested parties to interrogate the Party Election Funding database to understand who has donated what to whom. The application used pioneering user research techniques to come up with a very intuitive system that matched the varied needs of its users, and it was accessed extensively during the period of the 2015 General Election.

Our involvement with a large central government department with a nationwide estate continues, helping them to digitise its services. As well as Agile development resources, we have also provided the bulk of the platform engineering team and a number of consultants involved in the wider programme activities. This on-going relationship also included tight collaboration with one of the largest System Integrators in the UK, with Triad being recognised for its exemplary ability to generate results from this multi-faceted team.

Frameworks within the public sector remain an important route to market, and the Group was successful in qualifying for both the Digital Services Framework 2 (DSF 2) and its successor, Digital Outcomes and Specialists (DOS). The advent of DOS within months of DSF 2 illustrates the need to stay abreast of the Government's ICT agenda, as did our successful participation in g-cloud 7. Presence on these frameworks has been crucial in terms of winning new business and competing for new services with existing clients, and Triad has established a significant position across the Government Digital Marketplace.

In the private sector Triad has reinforced its long-term relationship with one of the leading providers of GIS Engineering capability, establishing itself as the preferred provider of resources.

We have also been working with a long-standing client to develop a new platform for end-clients to use in relation to their energy consumption. This project is in its early stages and has significant on-going potential.

Triad has been successfully raising its profile throughout the year. Our presence on a number of key programmes has been the significant driver in this, together with our contribution at events including the Government Digital Services roadshow to promote DSF and g-cloud, and at a presentation run by the Association for Geographic Information (AGI) promoting careers in GIS for young people.

Outlook

Further to the progress achieved during the year we have started the new financial year with a strong order book and healthy pipeline of opportunities. Underpinning the Group's success will be our ability to develop new and existing accounts and deliver successful outcomes for our clients.

In order to capitalise on the opportunities being developed efforts to strengthen our business model continue. A key aspect is the need to increase the headcount across the business.

Employees

On behalf of the Board I would like to thank all our staff for their efforts during the past year.

John Rigg

Chairman

10 June 2016

Organisation overview

Triad Group Plc is engaged in the provision of IT resourcing, consultancy and solutions services to the public and private sectors.

Principal objectives

The principal objectives of the Company are to;

· Provide clients with industry leading service in our core skills.

· Achieve sustainable profitable growth across the business and increase long term shareholder value.

The key elements of our strategy to achieve our objectives are;

To provide a range of specialist services relevant to our clients' business

· Our services include consultancy, change leadership, project delivery, software development, mobility services and business insights. Further capacity and expertise is provided via our resourcing services.

· We continue to adopt a "business first, technology second" approach to solving our clients' problems. A cornerstone of our service offer is our consultancy model, offering advice and guidance to clients in terms of technology investments.

To develop long term client relationships across a broad client base

· Enduring client relationships fuel profitability. A hallmark of our recent improvements has been the frequency of repeat business, which itself has been a function of outstanding delivery and proactive business development within existing accounts.

· Our consistent track record in this regard is our major asset when developing propositions for new clients, along with the use of case studies and references.

· We have structured our service offering to enable clients to engage early, thus enabling the building of trust and confidence from the outset.

To work with partners

· Our strategy includes working with carefully chosen partners operating under their client frameworks in addition to the frameworks on which Triad is listed. This will expose more opportunities whilst reducing the cost of sale.

To leverage group capability and efficiency to increase profitability

· We continue to develop synergies across the Group's activities both externally and internally, driving better outcomes for clients whilst improving efficiency and effectiveness. The management team sets objectives to ensure that these synergies are exploited.

· We enable our clients to benefit from access to a full range of ICT services, delivered through a single, easy to access, point of sale.

· We will continue to strive to provide the highest quality of service through the provision of niche resources using market experts, and the supply of IT services though our team of skilled consultants.

· We will strengthen our pipeline of work through the development of fulfilling and productive client relationships.

Business model

The Group provides services to the public and private sectors in the provision of IT consultancy and solutions services, and IT resourcing (both contract and permanent). Typically, this entails the supply of our own permanent consultants, the supply of carefully chosen associates and contractors, or a combination of these.

The Group operates in the United Kingdom from offices in Godalming (registered office) and Milton Keynes.

Principal risks and uncertainties

The Group's business involves risks and uncertainties, which the Board systematically manages through its planning and governance processes.

The Board carries out a robust assessment of the principal risks facing the Group on an annual basis, examining the Group's operating environment, scanning for potential risks to the health and wellbeing of the organisation. The Directors factor into the business plan the likelihood and magnitude of risk in determining the achievability of the operational objectives. Where feasible, preventive and mitigating actions are developed for all principal risks.

Senior management review the risk register and track the status of these risk factors on an on-going basis, identifying any emerging risks as they appear.

The outputs of this management review form part of the Board's governance process, reviewed at regular Board meetings.

The principal risks identified are:

IT services market

The demand for IT services is affected by UK market conditions. The creation of new services, acquisition of new clients and the development of new commercial vehicles is important in protecting the Group from fluctuations in market conditions.

Revenue visibility

The pipeline of contracted orders for time and materials consultancy work can be relatively short. The Board carefully reviews forecasts to assess the level of risk arising from business that is forecast to be won.

Availability of staff

The ability to recruit and retain staff, and access to appropriately skilled resources are key to ensuring the ability to win and deliver IT services to our clients. The Group continues to recruit quality individuals, and ensures a resilient network of associate resources is maintained.

Competition

The Group operates in a highly competitive environment. The markets in which the Group operates are continually monitored to respond effectively to emerging opportunities and threats.

There are or may be other risks and uncertainties faced by the Group that the Directors currently deem immaterial, or of which they are unaware, that may have a material adverse impact on the Group.

Viability Statement

In accordance with provision C.2.2 of the 2014 Corporate Governance Code the Directors have assessed the Company's viability over the next five financial years.

This assessment of viability has been made with reference to the Group's current financial and operational positions, revenue projections, cash flows, availability of required finance, commercial opportunities and threats, and the Group's experience in managing adverse conditions in the past. The Company was founded in 1988 and has survived successfully since then.

The assessment also considered the impact of severe, yet plausible, scenarios based on the principal risks set out on page 4 above. Sensitivities around revenue growth, gross margins, and availability of funds to meet operational requirements were considered.

Based on this assessment the Directors have concluded that there is a reasonable expectation that the Company and Group will continue in operation and meet its liabilities as they fall due over the next five years.

Given the Group's business model and commercial and financial exposures the Directors consider that five years is an appropriate period for the assessment. The maximum period of visibility of commercial arrangements with clients is currently two years, however in considering the assessment period assumptions have been made beyond this immediate timeframe.

Performance assessment, financial review and outlook

Financial and non-financial key performance indicators (KPIs) used by the Board to monitor progress are revenue, profit from operations, gross margin, net borrowings and headcount. Financial KPIs are discussed in more detail in the Financial Review below. The outlook for the Group is discussed in the Chairman's statement on page 1.

The KPIs are as follows;

Corporate social responsibility

Our employees

The Group is committed to equal opportunities and operates employment policies which are designed to attract, retain and motivate high quality staff, regardless of gender, age, race, religion or disability. The Group has a policy of supporting staff in long term career development.

The Group recognises the importance of having effective communication and consultation with, and of providing leadership to, all its employees. The Group promotes the involvement of its employees in understanding the aims and performance of the business.

The following table shows the number of persons, by gender, who at 31 March 2016 were directors, senior managers or employees of the Company.

Environment and greenhouse gas reporting

The Group is committed to ensuring that the actual and potential environmental impact of its activities is understood and managed effectively.

The annual quantity of Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions for the period 1 April 2015 to 31 March 2016 in tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalents (tCO2e) is shown in the table below.

\* The calculation of tCO2e for each source has been prepared in accordance with DEFRA guidelines for GHG reporting.

Social, community and human rights issues

We do not report on social, community and human rights issues as the Group has no significant matters to report that would be required to understand the performance of the Group's business.

Financial review

Group performance

The Group reports the following results for the financial year ended 31 March 2016:

Group revenue has increased to £28.3m (2015: £23.5m) primarily due to growth in key accounts and an increase in the length of client engagements.

The Group reports an increase in profit from operations to £0.98m (2015: £0.46m). Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) is £1.13m (2015: £0.54m). The Group reports a profit after tax of £1.21m (2015: £0.35m). Included in this figure is a £0.35m credit in recognition of a deferred tax asset relating to historical trading losses brought forward.

Gross margin has increased to 15.0% (2015: 14.1%). The unified business model is enabling the Group to undertake more profitable projects in terms of the number of assigned staff, the rates charged, and assignment duration.

Cash and cash equivalents at the year-end have increased to £955,000 (2015: £390,000).

Overheads

Administrative expenses for the year have increased to £3.26m (2015: £2.85m). This is further to increases in staff costs, additional dilapidation provisions (see note 18) and the impairment charge relating to intangible assets (see below). There has also been an increase in marketing, recruitment and training costs associated with the increased activity across the business.

Staff costs have increased to £3.67m (2015: £3.40m). The average headcount for the year is unchanged at 52 (2015: 52), however strengthening our teams remains a top priority for the business.

Cash flows

Cash and cash equivalents at 31 March 2016 stood at £955,000 (2015: £390,000). There was a net cash inflow from operating activities of £621,000 (2015: £498,000). The net cash outflow from investing activities was £50,000 (2015: £107,000).

Tangible assets

Tangible assets were purchased totalling £42,000 (2015: £97,000).

Intangible assets

Amortisation relating to the internally developed software, Zubed was £0.03m (2015: £0.03m). An impairment charge of £0.07m has been recognised in the year further to a review undertaken at the year end. This has resulted in the Zubed intangible asset being written down to £nil (2015: £0.10m). There were no development costs capitalised during the year (2015: £nil).

Net assets

The net asset position of the Group at 31 March 2016 was £2,056,000 (2015: £839,000). The increase over the year was due to the profit for the year.

Share options

No options were granted during the year. An expense of £4,438 (2015: £8,229) has been recognised in the year relating to options granted in September 2014.

By order of the Board

NE Burrows

Finance Director

10 June 2016

Directors' Report

The Directors present their Annual Report on the activities of the Group, together with the financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2016. The Board confirms that these, taken as a whole, are fair, balanced and understandable, and that they provide the information necessary for shareholders to assess the company's position and performance, business model and strategy, and that the narrative sections of the report are consistent with the financial statements and accurately reflect the Group's performance and financial position.

The Strategic Report provides information relating to the Group's activities, its business and strategy and the principal risks and uncertainties faced by the business, including analysis using financial and other KPIs where necessary. These sections, together with the Directors' Remuneration and Corporate Governance Reports, provide an overview of the Group, including environmental and employee matters and give an indication of future developments in the Group's business, so providing a balanced assessment of the Group's position and prospects, in accordance with the latest narrative reporting requirements. The Group's principal subsidiary undertakings are disclosed in the notes to the financial statements.

Corporate Governance disclosures required with the Directors' Report have been included within our Corporate Governance Report beginning on page 12.

Share capital and substantial shareholdings

Share capital

As at 31 March 2016, the Company's issued share capital comprised a single class of shares referred to as ordinary shares. Details of the ordinary share capital can be found in note 19 to these financial statements.

Voting rights

The Group's articles provide that on a show of hands at a general meeting of the Company every member who (being an individual) is present in person and entitled to vote shall have one vote and on a poll, every member who is present in person or by proxy shall have one vote for every share held. The notice of the Annual General Meeting specifies deadlines for exercising voting rights and appointing a proxy or proxies to vote in relation to resolutions to be passed at the Annual General Meeting.

Transfer of shares

There are no restrictions on the transfer of ordinary shares in the Company other than as contained in the Articles:

· The Board may, in its absolute discretion, and without giving any reason for its decision, refuse to register any transfer of a share which is not fully paid up (but not so as to prevent dealing in listed shares from taking place) and on which the Company has a lien. The Board may also refuse to register any transfer unless it is in respect of only one class of shares, in favour of no more than four transferees, lodged at the Registered office, or such other place as the Board may decide, for registration, accompanied by a certificate for the shares to be transferred (except where the shares are registered in the name of a market nominee and no certificate has been issued for them) and such other evidence as the Board may reasonably require to prove the title of the intending transferor or his right to transfer the shares.

Certain restrictions may from time to time be imposed by laws and regulations, for example:

· Insider trading laws; and

· The Listing Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority whereby certain employees of the Group require the approval of the Company to deal in the Company's ordinary shares.

Appointment and replacement of directors

The Board may appoint Directors. Any Directors so appointed shall retire from office at the next Annual General Meeting of the Company, but shall then be eligible for re-appointment.

The current Articles require that at the Annual General Meeting one third of the Directors shall retire from office but shall be eligible for re-appointment. The Directors to retire by rotation at each Annual General Meeting shall include any Director who wishes to retire and not offer himself for re-election and otherwise shall be the Directors who, at the date of the meeting, have been longest in office since their last appointment or re-appointment.

A Director may be removed from office by the service of a notice to that effect signed by at least three quarters of all the other Directors.

Amendment of the Company's Articles of Association

The Company's Articles may only be amended by a special resolution passed at a general meeting of shareholders.

Substantial shareholdings

In addition to the disclosure on page 21 of the interests of Directors who held office at the end of the financial year, the Company is aware of the following holdings of 3% or more of the share capital of the Company at 31 March 2016 and at 1 June 2016, being the latest practicable date prior to the publication of this annual report and accounts:

Dividends

The Directors have neither declared an interim dividend nor do they recommend that a final dividend be paid in respect of the year ended 31 March 2016 (2015: nil per 1p ordinary share).

Financial instruments

The Board reviews and agrees policies for managing financial risk. These policies, together with an analysis of the Group's exposure to financial risks are summarised in note 3 of these financial statements.

Research and development activity

Research and development activities are undertaken with the prospect of gaining new technical knowledge and understanding, and developing new software.

Directors' interests in contracts

Directors' interests in contracts are shown in note 22 to the accounts.

Directors' insurance and indemnities

The Company maintains directors' and officers' liability insurance which gives appropriate cover for any legal action brought against its directors and officers. The Directors also have the benefit of the indemnity provisions contained in the Company's Articles of Association. These provisions, which are qualifying third-party indemnity provisions as defined by Section 236 of the Companies Act 2006, were in force throughout the year and are currently in force.

Disclosure of information to auditors

All of the current Directors have taken all the steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any information needed by the Company's auditors for the purposes of their audit and to establish that the auditors are aware of that information. The Directors are not aware of any relevant audit information of which the auditors are unaware.

Forward-looking statements

The Strategic Report contains forward-looking statements. Due to the inherent uncertainties, including both economic and business risk factors, underlying such forward-looking information, the actual results of operations, financial position and liquidity may differ materially from those expressed or implied by these forward-looking statements.

Going concern

The Group's business activities, together with the factors likely to affect its future development, performance and position, are set out in the Strategic Report. The financial position of the Group, its cash flows, liquidity position and borrowing facilities are described in the Strategic Report, and in note 17 to the financial statements. In addition, note 3 to the financial statements includes the Group's objectives, policies and processes for managing its capital, its financial risk management objectives, details of its financial instruments and hedging activities, and its exposure to credit risk and liquidity risk. As highlighted in note 17 to the financial statements, the Group meets its day to day working capital requirements through an invoice finance facility.

The Group's projections, taking account of reasonably possible changes in trading performance, show that the Group should be able to operate within the level of its current facility. The facility may be terminated by either party with one month's written notice. The Board receives regular cash flow and working capital projections to enable it to monitor its available headroom under this facility. These projections indicate that the Group expects to have sufficient resources to meet its reasonably expected obligations. The bank has not drawn to the attention of the Group any matters to suggest that this facility will not be continued on acceptable terms.

After making enquiries, the Directors have a reasonable expectation that the Group has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Accordingly, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the annual report and accounts.

Auditors

BDO LLP have indicated their willingness to continue in office. Accordingly, a resolution to reappoint BDO LLP as auditors of the Company will be proposed at the next Annual General Meeting.

Environment and greenhouse gas reporting

Carbon dioxide emissions data, is contained in the Corporate Social Responsibility section of the Strategic Report.

Statement of Directors' responsibilities

The Directors are responsible for preparing the annual report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations.

Company law requires the Directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year. Under that law the Directors are required to prepare the Group financial statements and have elected to prepare the Company financial statements in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as adopted by the European Union. Under company law the Directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the Group and Company and of the profit or loss for the Group and Company for that period.

In preparing these financial statements, the Directors are required to:

· select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;

· make judgements and accounting estimates that are reasonable and prudent;

· state whether they have been prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the European Union,, subject to any material departures disclosed and explained in the financial statements;

· prepare a Directors' Report, Strategic Report and Director's Remuneration Report which comply with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.

The Directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the company's transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the Company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006 and, as regards the Group financial statements, Article 4 of the IAS Regulation. They are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities.

The Directors are responsible for ensuring the annual report and the financial statements are made available on a website. Financial statements are published on the company's website in accordance with legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements, which may vary from legislation in other jurisdictions. The maintenance and integrity of the Company's website is the responsibility of the Directors. The Directors' responsibility also extends to the ongoing integrity of the financial statements contained therein.

The Directors confirm to the best of their knowledge:

· The Group financial statements have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as adopted by the European Union and Article 4 of the IAS Regulation and give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit and loss of the Group.

· The annual report includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and the financial position of the Group and the Parent Company, together with the description of the principal risks and uncertainties that they face.

By order of the Board

NE Burrows

Company Secretary 10 June 2016

Corporate governance report

The Board has considered the principles and provisions of the UK Corporate Governance Code 2014 ("the Code") as set out in the Listing Rules of the UK Listing Authority and applicable for this financial period. The following statement sets out the Group's application of the principles of the Code and the extent of compliance with the Code's provisions, made in accordance with the requirements of the Listing Rules.

The Board

The Directors who held office during the financial year were:

Executive Directors

John Rigg, Chairman

Nick Burrows, Finance Director

Adrian Leer, Commercial Director

Independent non-executive Directors

Alistair Fulton, senior independent non-executive Director

Steven Sanderson

John Rigg is Chairman. He is a Chartered Accountant. He was a founder of Marcol Group Plc and was its Managing Director from 1983 until 1988. Marcol was floated on the Unlisted Securities Market in 1987. He was Chairman of Vega Group plc from 1989 until 1996, holding the post of Chief Executive for much of this period. Vega floated on the main market in 1992. He was a founder shareholder of Triad and served as the Chairman of the Company from 1988 up to just before its flotation in 1996, when he resigned to develop new business interests overseas. He was appointed as non-executive Chairman in June 1999: in May 2004 he became part-time executive Chairman. Between 4 February 2005 and 5 September 2007 John was acting Group Chief Executive.

Alistair Fulton is a non-executive Director. He is a Chartered Engineer and member of the British Computer Society. He was the founding Managing Director of Triad. He continued in this role until February 1997 when he became non-executive Chairman, a position he retained until June 1999, when he took up his present position.

Steven Sanderson is a non-executive Director. He is a Chartered Accountant. He was appointed non-executive Director in January 2007. He has extensive experience at executive director level in the IT services and telecommunications sectors. His background includes public flotations, plc directorship, fund raising, acquisition and disposal activities.

Nick Burrows is the Finance Director. He is a Chartered Accountant who joined Triad in 2001 as Financial Controller of the Consulting & Solutions business. He was appointed Company Secretary in 2008 and executive Finance Director in October 2009.

Adrian Leer was appointed to the Board as Commercial Director on 3 March 2015. He initially joined Triad in 2009 in a consultative capacity, providing advice to the business regarding its fledgling geospatial product, Zubed, and helping to secure significant wins with major clients. In 2010, he became General Manager of Zubed Geospatial. In 2012 Adrian became Commercial Director of Triad Consulting & Solutions.

The Board exercise full and effective control of the Group and has a formal schedule of matters specifically reserved to it for decision, including responsibility for formulating, reviewing and approving Group strategy, budgets and major items of capital expenditure.

Regularly the Board will consider and discuss matters which include, but are not limited to:

· Strategy;

· Financial performance and forecast;

· Human resources; and

· City and compliance matters.

The Executive Chairman, John Rigg, is responsible for the leadership and efficient operation of the Board. This entails ensuring that Board meetings are held in an open manner, and allow sufficient time for agenda points to be discussed. It also entails the regular appraisal of each director, providing feedback and reviewing any training or development needs.

The Board meets regularly with senior management to discuss operational matters. The Non-Executive Directors must satisfy themselves on the integrity of financial information and that financial controls and systems of risk management are robust. Following presentations by senior management and a disciplined process of review and challenge by the Board, clear decisions on the policy or strategy are adopted. The responsibility for implementing Board decisions is delegated to management on a structured basis and monitored at subsequent meetings.

During the period under review, and to date, the Executive Chairman has not held any significant commitments outside the Group.

Alistair Fulton is the nominated senior independent non-executive Director. He has long standing industry experience. He is also free from any business or other relationship which could materially interfere with the exercise of his independent judgement. The Board benefits from this experience and independence, when he brings his individual judgement to Board decisions. He has been a non-executive Director for eighteen years but the Board consider that he continues to remain independent for the reasons stated above.

The Group has a procedure for Directors to take independent professional advice in connection with the affairs of the Group and the discharge of their duties as Directors.

The Board has an Audit Committee, comprised of the Executive Chairman John Rigg, and the independent non-executive Directors, Alistair Fulton and Steven Sanderson. The Committee is chaired by Alistair Fulton.

The Board has a Remuneration Committee, comprised of the Executive Chairman John Rigg, and the independent non-executive Directors, Alistair Fulton and Steven Sanderson. The Committee is chaired by Alistair Fulton.

The following table shows the attendance of Directors at scheduled meetings of the Board and Audit and Remuneration Committees during the year ended 31 March 2016 and shows that the Board are able to allocate sufficient time to the company to discharge their responsibilities effectively.

Audit Committee

The members of the Audit Committee are shown above.

The Board believe that John Rigg and Steven Sanderson, both Chartered Accountants with broad experience of the IT industry, and Alistair Fulton, who has been a Director of companies in the IT sector for over 20 years, have recent and relevant financial experience, as required by the Code.

The Audit Committee is responsible for reviewing the Group's annual and interim financial statements and other announcements. It is also responsible for reviewing the Group's internal financial controls and its internal control and risk management systems. It considers the appointment and fees of external auditors, and discusses the audit scope and findings arising from audits. The Committee is also responsible for assessing the Group's need for an internal audit function.

Consideration of significant Issues in relation to the financial statements

The Audit Committee have considered the following significant issues in relation to the preparation of these financial statements;

Revenue recognition: The Committee has considered revenue recognised in consultancy and development projects during, and active at the end of, the financial year to ensure revenue has been recognised correctly.

Going concern: The Committee has reviewed budgets and cash flow projections against borrowing facilities available to the Group to ensure the going concern basis of preparation of the results remains appropriate.

Meetings with auditors and senior finance team

The Audit Committee met with the auditors prior to commencement of the year end audit to discuss;

· Audit scope, strategy and objectives

· Key audit and accounting matters

· Independence and audit fee

Further meetings were held following completion of the audit with the senior finance team and the auditors to assess the effectiveness of the audit and discuss audit findings.

Effectiveness of external audit process

The Committee conducts an annual review of the effectiveness of the annual report process. Inputs into the review include feedback from the finance team, planning and scope of the audit process and identification of risk, the execution of the audit, communication by the auditor with the Committee, how the audit adds value and a review of auditor independence and objectivity. Feedback is provided to the external auditor and management by the Committee, with any actions reviewed by the Committee.

Auditor independence and objectivity

The Committee has procedures in place to ensure that independence and objectivity is not impaired. These include restrictions on the types of services which the external Auditor can provide, in line with the FRC Ethical Standards on Auditing. The external auditors themselves have safeguards in place to ensure that objectivity and independence is maintained and the Committee regularly reviews independence taking into consideration relevant UK professional and regulatory requirements. The external auditors are required to rotate audit partners responsible for the Group audit every five years.

Non-audit fees

The Committee reviews all non-audit work to ensure it is appropriate and the fees justified. In relation to the non-audit services provided by BDO LLP during the year, the Committee reviewed and approved management's reasons for selecting BDO LLP as the best placed adviser on a case-by-case basis. This decision was typically based on the merit of using BDO's existing knowledge of the Group.

Appointment of external auditor

BDO LLP was appointed external auditor in 2006 following a tendering process.

BDO LLP has confirmed to the Committee that they remain independent and have maintained internal safeguards to ensure that the objectivity of the engagement partner and audit staff is not impaired.

The Committee has considered the level of non-audit fees and the nature of non-audit services provided and is satisfied that auditor independence has been maintained.

Internal audit

The Audit Committee has considered the need for a separate internal audit function this year but does not consider it appropriate in view of the above controls, and in light of the size of the Group. The Group is certified to ISO 9001: 2008.

Internal controls and risk management

The Board has applied the internal control and risk management provisions of the Code by establishing a continuous process for identifying, evaluating and managing the significant risks faced by the Group. The Board regularly reviews the process, which has been in place from the start of the year to the date of approval of this report and which is in accordance with Internal Control: Revised Guidance for Directors on the Combined Code. The Board is responsible for the Group's system of internal control and for reviewing its effectiveness. Such a system is designed to manage rather than eliminate risk of failure to achieve business objectives, and can only provide reasonable and not absolute assurance against misstatement or loss.

In compliance with the Code, the Audit Committee regularly reviews the effectiveness of the Group's systems of internal financial control and risk management. The Board's monitoring covers all controls, including financial, operational and compliance controls and risk management. It is based principally on reviewing reports from management to consider whether significant weaknesses and risks are effectively managed and, if applicable, considering the need for more extensive monitoring.

The Board has also performed a specific assessment for the purpose of this annual report. This assessment considers all significant aspects of internal control and risk management arising during the period covered by the report.

The key elements of the internal control and risk management systems are described below:

· Clearly documented procedures contained in a series of manuals covering Group operations and management, which are subject to internal project audit and external audit as well as regular Board review.

· An appropriate budgeting process where the business prepares budgets for the coming year, which are approved by the Board.

· Close involvement in the day to day management of the business by the executive Directors.

· Regular meetings between the executive Chairman, executive Director and senior managers to discuss and monitor potential risks to the business, and to implement mitigation plans to address them.

Remuneration Committee

The Remuneration Committee is responsible for setting remuneration for executive directors and the Chairman in accordance with the remuneration policy below. In addition, the Committee is responsible for recommending and monitoring the level and structure of remuneration for senior management.

The Group's Remuneration Committee is authorised to take appropriate counsel to enable it to discharge its duty to make recommendations to the Board in respect of all aspects of the remuneration package of Directors.

The Directors Remuneration Report can be found on page 18.

Whistleblowing

Staff may contact the senior independent non-executive Director, in confidence, to raise genuine concerns of possible improprieties in financial reporting or other matters.

Directors' training

Any new Board members are made fully aware of their duties and responsibilities as Directors of listed companies, and are supported in understanding and applying these by established and more experienced Directors. Further training is available for any Director at the Group's expense should the Board consider it appropriate in the interests of the Group.

Relations with shareholders

Substantial time and effort is spent by Board members on meetings with and presentations to existing and prospective investors. The views of shareholders derived from such meetings are disseminated by the Chairman to other Board members.

Private shareholders are invited to attend and participate at the Annual General Meeting.

Terms of reference

The terms of reference of the Audit and Remuneration Committees are available on request from the Company Secretary.

Statement of compliance

The Board considers that it has been compliant with the provisions of the Code for the whole of the period, except as detailed below:

By order of the Board

NE Burrows

Company Secretary

10 June 2016

Directors' Remuneration report

On the following pages we set out the Remuneration Report for the year ended 31 March 2016. The members of the Remuneration Committee are shown in the Corporate Governance Report on page 12.

This report has been prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 2006 and the new requirements of the Large and Medium Sized Companies and Groups (Accounts and Reports) (Amendment) Regulations 2014, and is split into two sections as follows;

1. The Directors' remuneration policy. This will be subject to a binding shareholder vote at this years' Annual General Meeting.

2. The Annual report on remuneration. This will be subject to an advisory shareholder vote at this years' Annual General Meeting.

No major decisions or changes were made to Directors' remuneration during the year.

Directors' remuneration policy

The remuneration policy sets out the framework within which the Company remunerates its Directors. The Company's remuneration policy was put to a shareholder vote at the 2015 Annual General Meeting of the Company and was approved by 100% of shareholders. There is no requirement to vote on the policy in 2016 unless any changes to the policy are proposed, and the Committee does not intend making any changes to the policy at this time.

 Policy table - executive Directors

The award of share options is at the discretion of the Remuneration Committee: there is no scheme providing entitlement to share options, and there is no long-term incentive scheme. The Group does not believe that performance related bonuses are appropriate at the present time. The Executive Directors' existing interests in shares and share options are expected to align their interests with those of shareholders.

Policy table - non-executive Directors

The remuneration of the non-executive Directors is agreed by the Board. However, no Director is involved in deciding their own remuneration.

Approach to recruitment remuneration

The Group's remuneration policy is to provide remuneration packages which secure and retain management of the highest quality. Therefore, when determining the remuneration packages of new executive Directors, the Remuneration Committee will structure a package in accordance with the general policy for executive Directors as shown above. In doing so the Committee will consider a number of factors including:

· the salaries and benefits available to executive Directors of comparable companies;

· the need to ensure executive Directors' commitment to the continued success of the Group;

· the experience of each executive Director; and

· the nature and complexity of the work of each executive Director.

Directors' service contracts and policy

The details of the Directors' contracts are summarised as follows:

All contracts are for an indefinite period. No contract has any provision for the payment of compensation upon the termination of that contract.

Illustrations of application of remuneration policy

As there are currently no performance related or variable elements of executive director remuneration it is not appropriate to prepare illustrations required under the legislation.

Policy on payment for loss of office

It is the Group's policy in relation to Directors' contracts that:

· executive Directors should have contracts with an indefinite term providing for a maximum of six months' notice by either party.

· non-executive Directors should have terms of engagement for an indefinite term providing for one month notice by either party.

· there is no provision for termination payments to Directors.

Consideration of employment conditions elsewhere in group

In setting the executive Directors' remuneration the Committee takes into account the pay and employment conditions applicable across the Group in the reported period. As with employees elsewhere in the Group there were no substantial increases to Directors' remuneration terms since the prior year. No consultation has been held with employees in respect of executive Directors' remuneration.

Consideration of shareholders views

The policy is unchanged from the previous year as endorsed by the unanimous vote in favour of the approval of the Directors' Remuneration Report at the Annual General Meeting in August 2015.

Annual report on remuneration (audited)

Directors' remuneration - single total figure of remuneration

The remuneration of each of the Directors for the period they served as a Director are set out below:

Benefits in kind include the provision of company car and medical insurance.

Pension includes a 5% employer contribution together with contributions made under a employee salary sacrifice scheme.

No performance measures or targets were in place for either the year ended 31 March 2016, or any prior financial year, upon which any variable pay elements could become payable during the year.

Two Directors are members of a money purchase scheme into which the Group made contributions during the year.

Payments to past Directors

There were no payments to past Directors during the year.

Payment for loss of office

There were no payments for loss of office during the year.

Directors' interests in shares

The Directors who held office at the end of the financial year had the following beneficial interests in the ordinary shares of the Company. No change has occurred between the year end and the date of this report.

Directors' share options

The interests of executive Directors in share options were as follows:

175,000 share options were exercisable at the end of the year (2015: 195,000)

Share options are exercisable provided that the relevant performance requirement has been satisfied.

· that the Group shall have achieved positive earnings per share in any financial year commencing at least one year after the date of grant of the option. This performance requirement is the same as that applying to employee share options granted at the same time.

The total share based payment expense recognised in the year in respect of Directors' share options is £1,585 (2015: £1,005).

The market price of the Company's shares was 29p at 31 March 2016 and the range during the year was between 11p and 41p.

Annual Report on Remuneration (Unaudited)

Performance graph

The following graph shows the Group's performance, measured by total shareholder return, compared with the performance of the FTSE Fledgling Index ("FTSEFI") also measured by total shareholder return ("TSR"). The FTSEFI has been selected for this comparison because it is an index of companies with similar current market capitalisation to Triad Group Plc.

Chief executive remuneration

There have been no changes to the remuneration of the Executive Chairman during the year.

Relative importance of spend on pay

During the year there were no dividends or other cash distributions to shareholders (2015: £nil). The total employee remuneration (including directors) during the year was £3.308m (2015: £3.045m).

Consideration of matters related to directors' remuneration

During the year there were no meetings held relating to directors' remuneration other than to review the remuneration policy for inclusion in the 2016 Annual Report and Accounts.

Statement of voting at last general meeting

At the last annual general meeting the Directors' Remuneration Report was approved with 78.17% of votes cast in favour of the resolution. There were 4,520,451 votes withheld.

Alistair Fulton

Chairman, Remuneration Committee

10 June 2016

Independent auditors' report to the members of Triad Group Plc

Opinion on the financial statements

In our opinion:

· the financial statements give a true and fair view of the state of the Group's and the Parent Company's affairs as at 31 March 2016 and of the Group's and Parent's profit for the year then ended;

· the Group financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as adopted by the European Union; and

· the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006; and, as regards the Group financial statements, Article 4 of the IAS Regulation.

The financial statements of Triad Group Plc for the year ended 31 March 2016 comprise:

· The Group and Parent Company statement of comprehensive income;

· The Group and Parent Company statements of financial position;

· The Group and Parent Company statements of changes in equity;

· The Group and Parent Company statements of cash flows; and

· The notes to the financial statements.

The financial reporting framework that has been applied in the preparation of the Group and Parent Company financial statements is applicable law and IFRSs as adopted by the European Union.

This report is made solely to the Company's members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Company's members those matters we are required to state to them in an auditor's report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility to anyone other than the Company and the Company's members as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we have formed.

Respective responsibilities of Directors and auditors

As explained more fully in the statement of directors' responsibilities, the directors are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view. Our responsibility is to audit and express an opinion on the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland). Those standards require us to comply with the Financial Reporting Council's (FRC's) Ethical Standards for Auditors.

Scope of the audit of the financial statements

A description of the scope of an audit of financial statements is provided on the FRC's website at www.frc.org.uk/auditscopeukprivate.

Auditor commentary

Our application of materiality

The objective of our audit is to obtain reasonable assurance about whether the financial statements as a whole are free from material misstatements, whether due to fraud or error, thereby enabling us to express an opinion on whether the financial statements are prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with an applicable financial reporting framework. We apply the concept of materiality in assessing the risks of material misstatement and in determining the nature, timing and extent of our audit procedures to gather sufficient appropriate audit evidence. For the purposes of determining whether the financial statements are free from material misstatement we define materiality as the magnitude of misstatement that makes it probable that the economic decisions of a reasonably knowledgeable person, relying on the financial statements would be changed or influenced. Based on out professional judgement, we determined materiality for the Group financial statements as a whole to be £282,000, which approximates to 1% of revenues.

We agreed with the Audit Committee that we would report to them misstatements identified during our audit above £6,000 as well as misstatements below that amount that in our view warranted reporting for qualitative reasons.

An overview of the scope of our audit

The Group financial statements are a consolidation of six companies made up of one trading company (the Parent Company) which provides consultancy and development services and five dormant companies. In establishing the overall approach to the Group audit, we determined the type of work that needed to be performed on each company. The Group operates solely in the United Kingdom. Our Group audit was scoped by obtaining an understanding of the Group and its environment, including the Group's system of internal control, and assessing the risks of material misstatement in the financial statements at the Group level.

Based on our assessment we performed an audit of the complete financial information of the Parent Company as the only trading company.

In our audit, we tested and examined information, using sampling and other auditing techniques, to the extent we considered necessary to provide a reasonable basis for us to draw conclusions. Our audit evidence was largely obtained through substantive procedures.

Our assessment of risks of material misstatement

In preparing the financial statements, the Directors made a number of subjective judgements around significant accounting estimates which involved making assumptions on future events which are inherently uncertain. Our assessed risks of material misstatements include those areas of particular subjective judgement and had the greatest impact on the audit strategy and the allocation of resources in the audit.

The following risk of material misstatement identified were discussed with the Audit Committee and are included within their report on those matters they considered to be significant issues in relation to the financial statements set out on page 14.

Opinion on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006

In our opinion:

· the part of the directors' remuneration report to be audited has been properly prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 2006; and

· the information given in the Strategic Report and the Directors' Report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with the financial statements.

Statement regarding the directors' assessment of principal risks, going concern and longer term viability of the company

We have nothing material to add or to draw attention to in relation to:

· the directors' confirmation in the annual report that they have carried out a robust assessment of the principal risks facing the entity, including those that would threaten its business model, future performance, solvency or liquidity;

· the disclosures in the annual report that describe those risks and explain how they are being managed or mitigated;

· the directors' statement in the financial statements about whether they considered it appropriate to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing them and their identification of any material uncertainties to the entity's ability to continue to do so over a period of at least twelve months from the date of approval of the financial statements; or

· the directors' explanation in the annual report as to how they have assessed the prospects of the entity, over what period they have done so and why they consider that period to be appropriate, and their statement as to whether they have a reasonable expectation that the entity will be able to continue in operation and meet its liabilities as they fall due over the period of their assessment, including any related disclosures drawing attention to any necessary qualifications or assumptions.

Matters on which we are required to report by exception

We have nothing to report in respect of the following:

Under the ISAs (UK and Ireland), we are required to report to you if, in our opinion, information in the annual report is:

· materially inconsistent with the information in the audited financial statements; or

· apparently materially incorrect based on, or materially inconsistent with, our knowledge of the Group acquired in the course of performing our audit; or

· is otherwise misleading.

In particular, we are required to consider whether we have identified any inconsistencies between our knowledge acquired during the audit and the directors' statement that they consider the annual report is fair, balanced and understandable and whether the annual report appropriately discloses those matters that we communicated to the audit committee which we consider should have been disclosed.

Under the Companies Act 2006 we are required to report to you if, in our opinion:

· adequate accounting records have not been kept by the parent company, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received from branches not visited by us; or

· the parent company financial statements and the part of the directors' remuneration report to be audited are not in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or

· certain disclosures of directors' remuneration specified by law are not made; or

· we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.

Under the Listing Rules we are required to review:

· the directors' statements, set out on pages 5 and 10, in relation to going concern and in relation to longer-term viability; and

· the part of the corporate governance statement relating to the Company's compliance with the provisions of the UK Corporate Governance Code specified for our review.

We have nothing to report in respect of these matters.

Anna Draper (senior statutory auditor)

10 June 2016

For and on behalf of BDO LLP, statutory auditor

London

United Kingdom

Statements of comprehensive income and expense

for the year ended 31 March 2016

All amounts relate to continuing activities.

Statements of changes in equity

for the year ended 31 March 2016

Share capital represents the amount subscribed for share capital at nominal value.

The share premium account represents the amount subscribed for share capital in excess of the nominal value.

The capital redemption reserve represents the nominal value of the purchase and cancellation of its own shares by the Company in 2002.

Retained earnings represents the cumulative net gains and losses recognised in the statement of comprehensive income and expense.

Statements of financial position

at 31 March 2016

Registered number: 2285049

The financial statements on pages 28 to 52 were approved by the Board of Directors and authorised for issue on 10 June 2016 and were signed on its behalf by:

NE Burrows AM Fulton

Director Director

Triad Group Plc is registered in England and Wales with registered number 2285049.

Statements of cash flows

for the year ended 31 March 2016

Notes to the financial statements

for the year ended 31 March 2016

1. Principal accounting policies

Basis of preparation

The principal accounting policies adopted in the preparation of the financial statements are set out below. The policies have been consistently applied to all the years presented, unless otherwise stated.

These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRS and IFRIC interpretations), as adopted by the European Union (EU), issued by the International Accounting Standards Board (IASB) and with those parts of the Companies Act 2006 applicable to companies preparing their accounts under IFRS.

These financial statements have been prepared on a going concern basis.

These financial statements have been prepared on a historical cost basis and are presented in sterling, the functional currency of the Company.

Basis of consolidation

Where the Company has control over an investee, it is classified as a subsidiary. The Company controls an investee if all three of the following elements are present: power over the investee, exposure to variable returns from the investee and the ability of the investor to use its power to affect those variable returns. The consolidated financial statements present the results of the Company and its subsidiaries ("the Group") as if they formed a single entity. Intercompany transactions and balances between Group companies are therefore eliminated in full.

Property, plant and equipment

Property, plant and equipment are stated at cost, net of accumulated depreciation and any impairment in value.

Depreciation is calculated so as to write off the cost of assets, less their estimated residual values, on a straight line basis over the expected useful economic lives of the assets concerned. The principal annual rates used for this purpose are:

Intangible assets

Expenditure on internally developed products is capitalised if it can be demonstrated that:

· it is technically feasible to develop the product so that it will be available for use or sale;

· adequate resources are available to complete the development;

· there is an intention to complete the product and use or sell it;

· it is able to be used or sold;

· the product will generate future economic benefits, internally and/or externally; and

· expenditure attributable to the development of the product can be measured reliably.

Intangible assets are stated at cost, net of accumulated amortisation and any impairment in value. The cost of internally developed software is the attributable salary costs and directly attributable overheads.

Amortisation is calculated so as to write off the cost of assets, less their estimated residual values, on a straight line basis over the expected useful economic lives of the assets concerned. Amortisation is charged to administration expenses in the statement of comprehensive income and expense. The principal annual rates used for this purpose are:

Impairment of non-financial assets

Non-financial assets are subject to impairment tests whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that their carrying amount may not be recoverable. Where the carrying value of an asset exceeds its recoverable amount the asset is written down accordingly. Impairment is charged to administration expenses in the statements of comprehensive income and expense.

Trade and other receivables

Trade and other receivables are recognised initially at fair value, and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method, less provision for impairment.

Amounts are charged to an impairment account when there is objective evidence that an impairment loss has occurred. Amounts are written off against the carrying amount of trade receivables when it is certain that the receivable will not be realised.

Cash

Cash in the balance sheet comprises cash held on demand with banks. For the purpose of the consolidated cash flow statement, cash and cash equivalents consist of cash, as defined above, net of bank borrowings due on demand.

Trade and other payables

Trade and other payables are recognised initially at fair value, and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.

Borrowings

Borrowings are recognised initially at fair value, and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.

Leases

Costs in respect of operating leases are charged to the statement of comprehensive income and expense on a straight line basis over the lease term.

Finance lease payments are apportioned between the finance charge and the reduction of the outstanding liability. The finance charge is allocated so as to produce a constant periodic rate of interest on the remaining balance of the liability.

Foreign currencies

Assets and liabilities expressed in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the exchange rate ruling on the balance sheet date. Transactions in foreign currencies are recorded at the exchange rate ruling as at the date of the transaction. All differences on exchange are taken to the statement of comprehensive income and expense in the year in which they arise.

Revenue

Revenue, which excludes value added tax, represents the invoiced value of goods and services supplied: where a service has been provided, but not yet invoiced, the amount is included in the financial statements as accrued income.

Income from consultancy contracts, which are on a time hire basis, is recognised as the services are provided.

Income from maintenance and fixed price consultancy and development contracts, is recognised over the life of the contract, using the percentage of completion method, and is deferred to the extent that it has not been earned.

Income from the sale of Zubed licences, or the Zubed licence component of any contract, is fully recognised at the point of sale, less any amounts attributable to maintenance and support, which are recognised over the life of the licence.

Exceptional items

Items which are both material and non-recurring are presented as exceptional items within their relevant category in the statement of comprehensive income and expense. The separate reporting of exceptional items helps to provide a better indication of the Group's underlying business performance. Events which may give rise to the classification of items as exceptional, if of a significantly material value, include non-routine movements in provisions, litigation and similar settlements, and asset impairments.

Taxation

The charge for taxation is based on the profit or loss for the year as adjusted for disallowable items. It is calculated using tax rates that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the balance sheet date.

Full provision is made for deferred tax on all temporary differences resulting from the difference between the carrying value of an asset or liability and its tax base, and on tax losses carried forward indefinitely. Deferred tax assets are recognised to the extent that it is probable that the deferred tax asset will be recovered in the foreseeable future. Deferred tax is calculated at the tax rates that are expected to apply to the period when the asset is realised or liability is settled.

Pension costs

Contributions to defined contribution plans are charged to the statements of comprehensive income and expense as the contributions accrue.

Share-based payments

Share-based incentive arrangements are provided to employees under the Group's share option scheme. Share options granted to employees are valued at the date of grant using an appropriate option pricing model and are charged to operating profit over the performance or vesting period of the scheme. The annual charge is modified to take account of shares forfeited by employees who leave during the performance or vesting period and, in the case of non-market related performance conditions, where it becomes unlikely the option will vest.

Provisions

A provision is recognised when the Group has a legal or constructive obligation as a result of a past event and it is probable that an outflow of economic benefits will be required to settle the obligation. If the effect is material, expected future cash flows are discounted using a current pre-tax rate that reflects the risks specific to the liability. Calculations of these provisions require judgements to be made. The Group has provided for property dilapidation and vacant property as detailed in note 18.

New standards and interpretations

The Group has adopted with effect from 1 April 2015 certain mandatory new standards, amendments and interpretations. Adoption of these standards, amendments and interpretations did not have any impact on the results, cash flows or financial position of the Group or their presentation.

There are also certain standards, amendments and interpretations which have been issued but which are not yet mandatory (and in some cases had not yet been adopted by the EU). The Group has not applied these standards and interpretations in the preparation of these financial statements.

IFRS 16 was published in January 2016 and will be effective for the Group from 1 April 2019, replacing IAS 17 'Leases' subject to EU endorsement. The standard requires lessees to recognise assets and liabilities for all leases unless the lease term is 12 months or less or the underlying asset is of low value. The impact of future adoption of IFRS 16 is under review.

The Directors do not anticipate that the adoption of other standards and amendments will have a material impact on the Group's financial statements in the period of initial application.

2. Critical accounting estimates and judgements

Estimates and judgements are continually evaluated based on historical experience and other factors, including expectations of future events that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances. The Group makes estimates and assumptions concerning the future. The resulting accounting estimates will, by definition, seldom equal the related actual results. The estimates and assumptions that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the next financial year are discussed below.

Surplus property

Provision has been made to meet the estimated liabilities of any property surplus to the requirements of the business. All ongoing costs net of estimated future rental income are charged to the provision. The provision is discounted, unless the effect of the time value of money is not material (see note 18).

Management exercises judgement in estimating costs, rental incomes and the discount rate used in the calculation of the provision.

Were the discount rate to increase or decrease by 1% this would increase or decrease net income and equity by £7,000.

Were 50% of the vacant property to be let through to the end of the lease at a rent that was the same as the rent paid, this would increase net income and equity by £232,000.

Deferred tax asset

A deferred tax asset of £350,000 (2015: £nil) has been recognised in accordance with the accounting policy on page 35. A deferred tax asset of £1,081,000 (2015: £1,646,000) has not been recognised due to the assumptions and judgments made by management on the certainty and timing of future profits.

3. Financial risk management

The Group uses financial instruments that are necessary to facilitate its ordinary purchase and sale activities, namely cash, bank borrowings in the form of a receivables finance facility and trade payables and receivables: the resultant risks are foreign exchange risk, interest rate risk, credit risk and liquidity risk. The Group does not use financial derivatives in its management of these risks.

The Board reviews and agrees policies for managing these risks and they are summarised below. These policies are consistent with last year.

3.1 Financial risk factors

Foreign exchange risk

There are a small number of routine trading contracts with both suppliers and clients in euros. In all such circumstances the "back to back" contracts with supplier and client will be in the same currency thereby mitigating the Group's exposure to movements in exchange rates. Payments and receipts are made through a bank account in the currency of the contract therefore balances held in any foreign currency are to facilitate day to day transactions. With a functional currency of sterling there are the following foreign currency net assets:

Any change in currency rates would have no significant effect on results.

Interest rate risk

The Group's interest rate risk arises from its borrowings, which are at a rate that fluctuates in relation to movements in bank base rate. This facility, as detailed in note 17, is secured by way of a debenture over all assets. At the year end borrowing under this facility totalled £nil (2015: £nil).

Cash balances are held in short term interest bearing accounts, repayable on demand: these attract interest rates which fluctuate in relation to movements in bank base rate. This maintains liquidity and does not commit the Group to long term deposits at fixed rates of interest.

A 1% change in interest rates would have changed net income and equity by £4,000 (2015: £4,000).

Credit risk

The Group is mainly exposed to credit risk from credit sales. It is Group policy to assess the credit risk of new customers before entering into contracts. Each new customer is assessed, using external ratings and relevant information in the public domain, before any credit limit is granted. In addition, trade receivables balances are monitored on a regular basis to minimise exposure to bad debts. The amount charged to the income statement during the year in respect of bad debts was £12,000 being 0.04% of revenue (2015: £28,000).

The Group is also exposed to credit risk from accrued income, being revenue earned but not yet invoiced (note 14).

Financial assets that are past due but not impaired are analysed in note 14. Each balance has been reviewed by management to assess its recoverability.

The Group also has credit risk from cash deposits with banks (note 15). The Group only banks with financial institutions with a good credit rating.

The Group's maximum exposure to credit risk is:

Liquidity risk

The Group's liquidity risk arises from its management of working capital. The Group has a facility to borrow an amount up to 90% of approved trade debtors subject to a maximum limit of £2.5m. The facility may be terminated by either party with one month's written notice. The Board receives regular cash flow and working capital projections to enable it to monitor its available headroom under this facility. At the balance sheet date these projections indicated that the Group expected to have sufficient liquid resources to meet its reasonably expected obligations. Maturity of financial liabilities is set out in notes 16 and 17.

Capital risk management

The Group's capital comprises both borrowings and shareholders' equity. Its objectives when managing capital are to safeguard the Group's ability to continue as a going concern in order to maximise shareholder value. To maintain or adjust the capital structure the Group may adjust the dividend payment to shareholders, return capital to shareholders, issue new shares or alter the level of borrowings.

3.2 Fair value estimation

The carrying value of financial assets and liabilities approximate their fair values.

4. Revenue

The Group operates solely in the UK. All material revenues are generated in the UK.

40% (2015: 26%) of revenue was generated in the public sector. The largest single customer contributed 24% (2015: 35%) of Group revenue and was in the private sector.

5. Profit from operations

6. Finance expense

7. Employees and directors