Board appointment

Board appointment

12th November 2015

Silence Therapeutics plc

Silence Therapeutics plc, AIM: SLN ('Silence' or 'the Company'), a leader in the discovery, development and delivery of novel RNA interference (RNAi) therapeutics for the treatment of serious diseases, is pleased to announced the appointment of Alistair Gray as Non-Executive Director of the Company, with immediate effect. Alistair will also Chair the Audit Committee.

Alistair brings with him a wealth of consultancy and business experience. Having trained as an accountant, his early career was in senior management positions with Unilever and John Wood Group PLC. Alistair was a Director of Arthur Young (now Ernst and Young) Management Consultants and PA Consulting Group. Alistair founded Genesis Consulting and, most recently, Renaissance & Company, a strategic management consultancy working with clients across business and sport.

Alistair has served as Executive Chairman of the Winning Scotland Foundation and previously served as Chair of British Swimming and British Basketball, leading significant change in both sports. Alistair is currently Chairman of Edrington's Pension Trustees, responsible for management of a major private pension fund and also Chair of the trading division of John Hogg & Company. Alistair chaired the Audit and Remuneration committees of AorTech International PLC and Highland Distillers PLC, as well as the Pension Trustee Board. Alistair also served as a Fellow of the Institute of Directors and Institute of Consultants.

Stephen Parker Ph.D.  Non-Executive Chairman of Silence Therapeutics, said:

"We are delighted to welcome Alistair to the Board of Silence Therapeutics. His expertise in strategic leadership will be invaluable as we continue to expand our business and seek to deliver value to our shareholders."

Alistair William Gray, age 67, holds no shares in the Company. He holds or has held the following directorships within the last five years:

Current

Renaissance & Company Limited

Past

Winning Scotland Foundation (formerly The Scottish Institute of Sport Foundation)

British Swimming Limited

High Performance Swimming Limited

pmpgenesis Limited

Genesis Consulting Limited - dissolved

Genesis Research Limited - dissolved

Genesis Subsidiary Limited - dissolved

Genesis Red Limited - dissolved

Genesis Consulting Ltd, a company founded in 1992 by Alistair Gray was put into compulsory liquidation in February 2010. The associated companies were also dissolved.

Save as set out above, there are no further disclosures pursuant to paragraph (g) of Schedule 2 of the AIM Rules.

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Notes to Editors

About Silence Therapeutics plc

Our technology harnesses the body's natural mechanisms to create therapeutic effects within its own cells. This technology can selectively silence or replace any gene in the genome, modulating gene expression up as well as down in a variety of organs and cell types, in vivo.

We have developed proprietary modifications to improve the robustness of RNA sequences, together with advanced liposomal chemistries to enhance the delivery of therapeutics. This allows the development of therapeutics for diseases with high unmet medical need. In 2015 Silence announced interim results from a Phase 2a pancreatic cancer trial using its compound, Atu027, in combination with gemcitabine.