HERTFORDSHIRE CATERING LIMITED

• ◆

  5 officer resignations in last 12 months

  Multiple officers have left the board recently — see the People section for who.

Values shown as filed in the company's annual accounts. — indicates the figure wasn't present under that line item in that period. About these numbers

Margins divide P&L lines by turnover. Gearing is liabilities over total assets. Current ratio is current assets over creditors falling due within one year. Interest cover is operating profit over absolute finance costs. Sector-distribution context coming next.

Accounting basis

FRS 102

Reporting scope

Standalone (parent only)

Auditor

Hillier Hopkins LLP

Audit opinion

Unqualified (clean)

Going concern

Affirmed

“In auditing the financial statements, we have concluded that the directors' use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate. Based on the work we have performed, we have not identified any material uncertainties relating to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the Company's ability to continue as a going concern for a period of at least twelve months from when the financial statements are authorised for issue.”

Significant events

• “Second consecutive profitable year following the challenges of Covid and the turbulent years between 2020 - 2023.”
• “Reduction in trading days lost to strikes and additional Bank Holidays.”
• “Changes to National Living Wage and Employers National Insurance (NI) announced in the 2024 Autumn Statement foreshadowed a major financial pressure facing the business in 2025-26.”
• “Improved financial outturn position achieved through strong performance in the Secondary School Sector, as well as savings and underspends on central costs.”
• “Provision of extended Free School Meals to all KS2 pupils in London entered its second year in September 2024.”
• “Business continued embedding its recent transformational change and insourcing, with core HR, Finance and IT processes and teams all now operating within HCL.”
• “Significant leadership changes occurred, with Ian Hamilton retiring and John Want appointed as new CEO in October 2024.”

Auditor, going-concern and subsidiary information is drawn from the narrative of the latest annual accounts. About these numbers

Filings

14

last 12 months

Capital events

0

last 24 months

Officers appointed

6

last 12 months

Officers resigned

5

last 12 months

Direct counts from the register. No score, no rating — see the Filing timeline for the underlying events.

• Turnover

  +4%

  £42,522,379 → £44,227,529

• Cash

  +28.6%

  £2,317,000 → £2,980,331

• Net assets

  +28.4%

  £3,144,734 → £4,036,620

• Employees

  -2.6%

  1,678 → 1,634

• Operating profit

  +55.2%

  £492,098 → £763,853

• Profit before tax

  +54.8%

  £547,601 → £847,755

• Wages

  +8.2%

  £21,525,365 → £23,288,129

Each % is (latest − prior) ÷ |prior| for the line item as filed. The comparison is only shown when the latest and prior accounts cover broadly equal-length periods — short or long stubs (typical around incorporation or a year-end change) are suppressed rather than misrepresented. Lines a company doesn't report are omitted. About these numbers