The directors present the strategic report for the year ended 31 December 2025.
We aim to present a balanced review of the development and performance of the business during the year and its position at year end. Our review is consistent with the size and relatively non-complex nature of our business and is produced in the context of risks and uncertainties we face.
Performance in the Year
The year under review saw turnover achieved of £21.3m (2024: £22.7m) attributable primarily to income receivable (in the form of royalties) stemming from the selling and distribution of pharmaceutical products linked to the companies licences.
Shareholders' funds at 31st December 2025 amounted to £13.8m (2024 : £3.2m). The directors consider the state of affairs of the company to be satisfactory.
Overall, the directors are satisfied with the Group's performance during the year and are confident of the Group's future.
Price risk
The Company is exposed to a certain level of price risk, which is managed by its supply partners holding a wide range of products held as stock for sale to customers.
Foreign exchange risk
The company is exposed to moderate foreign exchange risks in the normal course of business and mainly with Euro and INR currency suppliers. Some volatility in markets particularly in light of the geo-political situation in 2025 has created an additional risk and one which is constantly being evaluated for the future. There are no forward exchange contracts as at 31st December 2025.
Credit risk
The company is exposed to moderate credit risk and maintains a well-controlled credit process to mitigate this risk. All new customers are credit checked prior to offering credit and Morningside Healthcare works closely with a professional ratings company to monitor the risk. There is ongoing review of customer accounts and their credit history, both inside and outside the company.
Liquidity risk
Working capital requirements and cash flow are constantly monitored and updated by management to ensure sufficient funds are available. The Company manages its trade creditors by ensuring sufficient funds are available to meet liabilities as they become due, or pay in advance as may be required in some contracts.
Political risk
The changes to the NHS that have come from the new Labour Government are expected to provide additional funding and focus on improving care and removing waiting times through additional investment. Whilst we expect there to be some continued changes to the NHS and ways of working, we have proven to be able to use this as an opportunity to develop our commercial expertise and delivery and deliver successful outcomes.
The VPAS (rebate/levy on branded medicines) ended in 2023 and the new Voluntary Scheme (VPAG) is in place for period of 5 years. The new scheme gives clarity for this period and as expected had a neutral impact to the group once it was fully embedded on new methods from Q2 2024 (Q1 being a transitionary period). The group is a Member of two industry bodies that both lobby on behalf of their members (EMIG – Ethical Medicines Industry Group) and the UK Medicines (Formerly - British Generics Medicines Association).
The conflict in the Middle East has had an immaterial impact on group operations to date, owing to outsourced distribution and manufacturing activities, strong supply contracts and relationships that protect the group from sudden material cost challenges.
Competition risk
High competition levels will continue to be a factor in the sector, particularly in the generics arena. Competitors are looking to emulate our successful business model in certain areas of our business, and we continue to look for and invest in ways to protect these assets. To that end, we continue to differentiate and strive to create and develop new commercial models and opportunities meeting customers and patient’s needs.
The group has three overseas subsidiary companies, Aspire Pharma (Malta) Limited, Aspire Healthcare Pharma (India) Private Limited and Morningside Healthcare Australia Pty Ltd.
Aspire Pharma (Malta) Limited holds certain licences for EU territories; Aspire Healthcare Pharma (India) Private Limited employs certain team members, working in India, who support development activities; and Morningside Healthcare Australia Pty Ltd holds certain licenses in Australia.
All three subsidiary companies are 100% owned by Morningside Healthcare Limited. Further information about these companies can be found in the accounts.
A director of a company must act in the way he/she considers, in good faith, would be most likely to promote the success of the company for the benefit of its members, and in doing so have regard (amongst other matters) to:
1. The likely consequences of any decision in the long term
The Board of Directors have the future of the company at the forefront of all decisions. The development and investment strategy (enhanced by the ownership of H.I.G.) is in place to future-proof the business and provide it with a continuous flow of new products and opportunities, while still focusing on what we believe to be sustainable and high quality, in line with Aspire’s strengths and performance to date. The Board and senior leadership team meet regularly to discuss all matters related to the business and, where relevant, specific matters are raised with the board and ultimate controlling party, H.I.G.
2. The interests of the company's employees
The Company is committed to being a responsible employer and the culture is supported by the core values of the group, generated with direct input from employees. These being, Accountability, Integrity, Innovation, Collaboration and Inclusivity.
Our behavior is aligned with our core values and the expectations of our staff, customers, patients, shareholders and communities as a whole. People are at the heart of our business, and to succeed we manage performance, develop, and bring through talent whilst operating as efficiently as possible. Our core benefits continue to be enhanced and we remain at mid-point or above benchmarks.
Good communication underpins the Company culture, which is focused on developing an innovative and ideas- led environment. To keep colleagues informed the Company has a people-first approach, where any changes/ updates are communicated through a number of channels including: parent company townhalls, company intranet, all colleague emails and regular 1:1 meetings.
3. The need to foster the company's business relationships with suppliers, customers and others
Our strategy prioritises the development of niche and innovative products “to make a difference in the lives of patients through the development and supply of innovative products and medicines throughout the world”.
Aspire’s success would not have occurred without the strong relationships and support of key stakeholders. We maintained focus on high service levels throughout 2025 and see our key customers and suppliers as partners, working with them to ensure sufficient stock levels are maintained so patient access is not disrupted.
We continue to add new business development partnerships, and through integration of the acquisitions made, ensure that those partnerships in place are nurtured. We ensure all customers and NHS stakeholders are engaged at the point any issues are known and as a result have further built our trust and reputation as an honest and reliable partner for the NHS.
4. The impact of the company's operations on the community and the environment
Environmental, Social & Governance (ESG)
The Board identified the need for Aspire to gain a better understanding of its ESG impact and strategy, so embarked on a project to instil ESG policies and processes throughout the company. At the end of 2021, an ESG committee was established that is sponsored by a Director and led by the Compliance & Sustainability Manager.
Aspire have partnered with an independent specialist ESG audit and consulting firm called Sustainable Advantage who provided and initial assessment and score of the policies and processes in place across the business. The company continues to approve its metrics and the level of reporting with the support of Sustainable Advantage across 2025, whilst incorporating the wider group of Morningside since 2023.
The outputs of this work are reported to the ultimate owners of the group (H.I.G. Capital) and also provide outputs that are used to support tendering and procurement requirements in the NHS. The ESG committee work alongside the CSR team who are specifically focussed on the work for charities and programs in the community.
NHS Net Zero
The NHS is a key stakeholder of the company and has initiated a large-scale project working towards a target of being the world’s first net zero national health service by 2045. The objective includes any emissions that can be controlled directly, as well as those that can be influenced. As suppliers to the NHS, we are eager to engage with them and support this goal and as part of the ESG Committee’s goals, we Aspire to better understand its own emissions and carbon footprint, identify what we may be able to influence externally and using this data, set our own carbon emissions targets that support the NHS objectives.
Corporate, Social Responsibility
As part of the business' approach to creating positive change for people and communities, Morningside focuses its corporate social responsibility (CSR) activities on a number of core areas, including:
• Skills, education and preparing young people for the world of work;
• Supporting learning through sport, team work and promoting healthy living;
• Community, health and mental health - both in the UK and internationally;
• Promoting the benefits of innovation, Research & Development (R&D) and international trade.
To deliver against these aspirations the group provides substantial financial support to charities and communities in the UK and around the world. Examples of this include its involvement in local and national community awards, the sponsorship of Chichester/Leicestershire Pride coming from a group wide team focussed on the groups CSR activities. As part of the integration with Aspire, all staff members are encouraged to dedicate and take part in two CSR days per annum. The group has also partnered with Hospice UK as its charity of choice again for 2025, enabling a dedication of effort and resource to build a stronger relationship with a single charity and support the great things they are doing for people across the UK.
5. The desirability of the company maintaining a reputation for high standards of business conduct
The board and senior management team places the company’s reputation at the centre of every important decision. Being a key supplier to the NHS and to patients, it is paramount to ensure that we continue to deliver a transparent, reliable and good value service, maintaining and building on the good reputation we have today. The company has also developed an ESG strategy, supported by a focussed ESG Committee of employee volunteers and a specialist independent external party.
6. The need to act fairly as between members of the company.
The company remains privately owned with an institution (H.I.G.) now holding a majority shareholding, the previous shareholders and management team holding a minority share interest in the parent company of the group. It is at this level were significant points regarding the operations, challenges, key decisions, and strategies of the company are discussed and voted upon. All decisions are made in line with the Articles of Association of the company. Board quorum is represented by members of the H.I.G. team, the previous majority shareholders and founder and senior members of the Aspire management team (with one specifically nominated as a representative of management team holding minority shares). This dynamic ensures are made with all views and considerations of the minority members shared.
The Company endeavours to behave responsibly toward all shareholders and employees and to treat them fairly and equally, so they benefit from the successful delivery of the business plan.
On behalf of the board
The directors present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2025.
The results for the year are set out on page 15.
No ordinary dividends were paid. The directors do not recommend payment of a further dividend.
The directors who held office during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were as follows:
There have been no significant events affecting the Group since the year end.
The Group will strive to continue to launch new niche products for future revenue while maintaining robust supply chains and look to bring continued improvements to the way each group business operates.
TC Group have indicated their willingness to be reappointed for another term and appropriate arrangements have been put in place for them to be deemed to be reappointed as auditors in the absence of an Annual General Meeting.
This report has been prepared in accordance with the provisions applicable to companies entitled to the medium-sized companies exemption.
We have audited the financial statements of Aitma Limited (the 'parent company') and its subsidiaries (the 'group') for the year ended 31 December 2025 which comprise the group statement of comprehensive income, the group balance sheet, the company balance sheet, the group statement of changes in equity, the company statement of changes in equity, the group statement of cash flows and notes to the financial statements, including significant accounting policies. The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and United Kingdom Accounting Standards, including Financial Reporting Standard 102 The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland (United Kingdom Generally Accepted Accounting Practice).
Basis for opinion
Conclusions relating to going concern
Other information
Opinions on other matters prescribed by the Companies Act 2006
As explained more fully in the directors' responsibilities statement, the directors are responsible for the preparation of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view, and for such internal control as the directors determine is necessary to enable the preparation of financial statements that are free from material misstatement, whether due to fraud or error. In preparing the financial statements, the directors are responsible for assessing the parent company's ability to continue as a going concern, disclosing, as applicable, matters related to going concern and using the going concern basis of accounting unless the directors either intend to liquidate the parent company or to cease operations, or have no realistic alternative but to do so.
Irregularities, including fraud, are instances of non-compliance with laws and regulations. The extent to which our procedures are capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud, is detailed below.
Extent to which the audit was considered capable of detecting irregularities, including fraud
The objectives of our audit, in respect to fraud, are: to identify and assess the risks of material misstatement of the financial statements due to fraud; to obtain sufficient appropriate audit evidence regarding the assessed risks of material misstatement due to fraud, through designing and implementing appropriate responses; and to respond appropriately to fraud or suspected fraud identified during the audit. However, the primary responsibility for the prevention and detection of fraud rests with both those charged with governance of the entity and its management.
Our approach was as follows:
We identified areas of laws and regulations that could reasonably be expected to have a material effect on the financial statements from our general commercial and sector experience, and through discussion with the directors and other management (as required by auditing standards), and discussed with the directors and other management the policies and procedures regarding compliance with laws and regulations;
We considered the legal and regulatory frameworks directly applicable to the financial statements reporting framework (FRS 102 and the Companies Act 2006), the relevant tax compliance regulations in the UK, and the relevant waste regulations in the UK (including the Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2011);
We considered the nature of the industry, the control environment and business performance, including the key drivers for management’s remuneration;
We communicated identified laws and regulations throughout our team and remained alert to any indications of non-compliance throughout the audit;
We considered the procedures and controls that the company has established to address risks identified, or that otherwise prevent, deter and detect fraud; and how senior management monitors those programmes and controls.
Based on this understanding we designed our audit procedures to identify non-compliance with such laws and regulations. Where the risk was considered to be higher, we performed audit procedures to address each identified fraud risk. These procedures included: testing manual journals; reviewing the financial statement disclosures and testing to supporting documentation; performing analytical procedures; and enquiring of management, and were designed to provide reasonable assurance that the financial statements were free from fraud or error.
Owing to the inherent limitations of an audit, there is an unavoidable risk that we may not have detected some material misstatements in the financial statements, even though we have properly planned and performed our audit in accordance with auditing standards. For example, the further removed non-compliance with laws and regulations (irregularities) is from the events and transactions reflected in the financial statements, the less likely the inherently limited procedures required by auditing standards would identify it. The risk is also greater regarding irregularities occurring due to fraud rather than error, as fraud involves intentional concealment, forgery, collusion, omission or misrepresentation. We are not responsible for preventing non-compliance and cannot be expected to detect non-compliance with all laws and regulations.
A further description of our responsibilities is available on the Financial Reporting Council’s website at: https://www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities. This description forms part of our auditor’s report.
Use of our report
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.
As permitted by s408 Companies Act 2006, the company has not presented its own profit and loss account and related notes. The company’s profit for the year was £0 (2024 - £22,700,000 profit).
Aitma Limited (“the company”) is a private limited company domiciled and incorporated in England and Wales. The registered office is Nene House, 4 Rushmills, Northampton, England, NN4 7YB.
The group consists of Aitma Limited and all of its subsidiaries.
These financial statements have been prepared in accordance with FRS 102 “The Financial Reporting Standard applicable in the UK and Republic of Ireland” (“FRS 102”) and the requirements of the Companies Act 2006.
The financial statements are prepared in sterling, which is the functional currency of the company. Monetary amounts in these financial statements are rounded to the nearest £'000.
The financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention. The principal accounting policies adopted are set out below.
The company is a qualifying entity for the purposes of FRS 102, being a member of a group where the parent of that group prepares publicly available consolidated financial statements, including this company, which are intended to give a true and fair view of the assets, liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the group. The company has therefore taken advantage of exemptions from the following disclosure requirements for parent company information presented within the consolidated financial statements:
Section 7 ‘Statement of Cash Flows’: Presentation of a statement of cash flow and related notes and disclosures;
Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instrument Issues: Interest income/expense and net gains/losses for financial instruments not measured at fair value; basis of determining fair values; details of collateral, loan defaults or breaches, details of hedges, hedging fair value changes recognised in profit or loss and in other comprehensive income;
Section 26 ‘Share based Payment’: Share-based payment expense charged to profit or loss, reconciliation of opening and closing number and weighted average exercise price of share options, how the fair value of options granted was measured, measurement and carrying amount of liabilities for cash-settled share-based payments, explanation of modifications to arrangements;
Section 33 ‘Related Party Disclosures’: Compensation for key management personnel.
The consolidated group financial statements consist of the financial statements of the parent company Aitma Limited together with all entities controlled by the parent company (its subsidiaries).
All financial statements are made up to 31 December 2025. Where necessary, adjustments are made to the financial statements of subsidiaries to bring the accounting policies used into line with those used by other members of the group.
All intra-group transactions, balances and unrealised gains on transactions between group companies are eliminated on consolidation. Unrealised losses are also eliminated unless the transaction provides evidence of an impairment of the asset transferred.
Subsidiaries are consolidated in the group’s financial statements from the date that control commences until the date that control ceases.
At the time of approving the financial statements, the directors have a reasonable expectation that the group has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. Thus the directors continue to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the financial statements.
Turnover represents royalty and licensing income receivable in the ordinary course of business, stated net of value added tax and other sales-related taxes.
Turnover is measured at the fair value of the consideration received or receivable and is recognised to the extent that it is probable that the economic benefits will flow to the company and the amount can be measured reliably.
Royalty and licensing income
Morningside Healthcare Limited holds marketing authorisations and related rights in respect of pharmaceutical products. Turnover principally comprises royalty income arising from sales of those products by Morningside Pharmaceuticals Limited under the terms of the intercompany trading arrangement.
Royalty income is recognised on an accruals basis in the period in which the underlying product sales occur and the company becomes entitled to consideration under the relevant agreement. Where the royalty is determined by reference to a share of profit or other agreed product-specific return, revenue is recognised when the underlying amounts can be measured reliably and collection is considered probable.
The company uses the wider group's policy of capitalisation of development expenditure to the extent that the technical, commercial and financial feasibility can be demonstrated.
These costs are capitalised as intangible assets and split into three categories; product acquisitions, development costs and marketing authorisations, and are subject to the intangible fixed assets accounting policy set out below.
The gain or loss arising on the disposal of an asset is determined as the difference between the sale proceeds and the carrying value of the asset, and is recognised in the profit and loss account.
Equity investments are measured at fair value through profit or loss, except for those equity investments that are not publicly traded and whose fair value cannot otherwise be measured reliably, which are recognised at cost less impairment until a reliable measure of fair value becomes available.
In the parent company financial statements, investments in subsidiaries are initially measured at cost and subsequently measured at cost less any accumulated impairment losses.
A subsidiary is an entity controlled by the group. Control is the power to govern the financial and operating policies of the entity so as to obtain benefits from its activities.
At each reporting period end date, the group reviews the carrying amounts of its tangible and intangible assets to determine whether there is any indication that those assets have suffered an impairment loss. If any such indication exists, the recoverable amount of the asset is estimated in order to determine the extent of the impairment loss (if any). Where it is not possible to estimate the recoverable amount of the cash-generating unit to which the asset belongs
The group has elected to apply the provisions of Section 11 ‘Basic Financial Instruments’ and Section 12 ‘Other Financial Instruments Issues’ of FRS 102 to all of its financial instruments.
Financial instruments are recognised in the group's balance sheet when the group becomes party to the contractual provisions of the instrument.
Financial assets and liabilities are offset and the net amounts presented in the financial statements when there is a legally enforceable right to set off the recognised amounts and there is an intention to settle on a net basis or to realise the asset and settle the liability simultaneously.
Basic financial assets, which include debtors and cash and bank balances, are initially measured at transaction price including transaction costs and are subsequently carried at amortised cost using the effective interest method unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the transaction is measured at the present value of the future receipts discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial assets classified as receivable within one year are not amortised.
Financial assets, other than those held at fair value through profit and loss, are assessed for indicators of impairment at each reporting end date.
Financial assets are impaired where there is objective evidence that, as a result of one or more events that occurred after the initial recognition of the financial asset, the estimated future cash flows have been affected. If an asset is impaired, the impairment loss is the difference between the carrying the amount and the present value of the estimated cash flows discounted at the asset's original effective interest rate. The impairment loss is recognised in profit or loss.
If there is a decrease in the impairment loss arising from an event occurring after the impairment was recognised, the impairment is reversed. The reversal is such that the current carrying amount would have been, had the impairment not previously been recognised. The impairment reversal is recognised in profit or loss
Financial liabilities and equity instruments are classified according to the substance of the contractual arrangements entered into. An equity instrument is any contract that evidences a residual interest in the assets of the group after deducting all of its liabilities.
Basic financial liabilities, including creditors, bank loans and loans from fellow group companies, are initially recognised at transaction price unless the arrangement constitutes a financing transaction, where the debt instrument is measured at the present value of the future payments discounted at a market rate of interest. Financial liabilities classified as payable within one year are not amortised.
Debt instruments are subsequently carried at amortised cost, using the effective interest rate method.
Trade creditors are obligations to pay for goods or services that have been acquired in the ordinary course of business from suppliers. Amounts payable are classified as current liabilities if payment is due within one year or less. If not, they are presented as non-current liabilities. Trade creditors are recognised initially at transaction price and subsequently measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.
Equity instruments issued by the group are recorded at the proceeds received, net of transaction costs. Dividends payable on equity instruments are recognised as liabilities once they are no longer at the discretion of the group.
The tax expense represents the sum of the tax currently payable and deferred tax.
The tax currently payable is based on taxable profit for the year. Taxable profit differs from net profit as reported in the profit and loss account because it excludes items of income or expense that are taxable or deductible in other years and it further excludes items that are never taxable or deductible. The group’s liability for current tax is calculated using tax rates that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the reporting end date.
Deferred tax liabilities are generally recognised for all timing differences and deferred tax assets are recognised to the extent that it is probable that they will be recovered against the reversal of deferred tax liabilities or other future taxable profits. Such assets and liabilities are not recognised if the timing difference arises from goodwill or from the initial recognition of other assets and liabilities in a transaction that affects neither the tax profit nor the accounting profit.
Deferred tax is calculated at the tax rates that are expected to apply in the period when the liability is settled or the asset is realised. Deferred tax is charged or credited in the profit and loss account, except when it relates to items charged or credited directly to equity, in which case the deferred tax is also dealt with in equity. Deferred tax assets and liabilities are offset if, and only if, there is a legally enforceable right to offset current tax assets and liabilities and the deferred tax assets and liabilities relate to taxes levied by the same tax authority.
The costs of short-term employee benefits are recognised as a liability and an expense, unless those costs are required to be recognised as part of the cost of stock or fixed assets.
The cost of any unused holiday entitlement is recognised in the period in which the employee’s services are received.
Termination benefits are recognised immediately as an expense when the company is demonstrably committed to terminate the employment of an employee or to provide termination benefits.
Payments to defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due.
Rentals payable under operating leases, including any lease incentives received, are charged to profit or loss on a straight line basis over the term of the relevant lease except where another more systematic basis is more representative of the time pattern in which economic benefits from the leased asset are consumed.
Transactions in currencies other than pounds sterling are recorded at the rates of exchange prevailing at the dates of the transactions. At each reporting end date, monetary assets and liabilities that are denominated in foreign currencies are retranslated at the rates prevailing on the reporting end date. Gains and losses arising on translation in the period are included in profit or loss.
In the application of the group’s accounting policies, the directors are required to make judgements, estimates and assumptions about the carrying amount of assets and liabilities that are not readily apparent from other sources. The estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and other factors that are considered to be relevant. Actual results may differ from these estimates.
The estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis. Revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in which the estimate is revised where the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods.
The following judgements (apart from those involving estimates) have had the most significant effect on amounts recognised in the financial statements.
The group capitalises development expenditure where the recognition criteria in FRS 102 Section 18 are met. The assessment of whether a project meets these criteria requires management judgement, including consideration of:
• technical feasibility of completing the asset;
• the intention and ability to complete and use or sell the asset;
• the existence of probable future economic benefits;
• the availability of adequate technical, financial and other resources; and
• the ability to measure reliably the expenditure attributable to the asset.
This assessment is inherently judgemental, particularly in relation to pharmaceutical development projects where regulatory approval, technical progress and future commercial success are key considerations. Only expenditure incurred once management concludes that the Section 18 recognition criteria are satisfied is capitalised.
The estimates and assumptions which have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amount of assets and liabilities are as follows.
The group’s intangible assets include product acquisitions, marketing authorisations and development costs.
Intangible assets are initially measured at cost. Following initial recognition, finite life intangible assets are amortised over their estimated useful economic lives.
The determination of useful economic life requires management judgement. In assessing the appropriate life of product acquisitions, marketing authorisations and development costs, management considers a range of factors including:
• the remaining legal or contractual life of the asset, where relevant;
• expected product life cycle and commercial longevity;
• likely future competition, including generic or alternative products;
• regulatory and market developments; and
• the expected period over which future economic benefits will be generated.
For product acquisitions and marketing authorisations, the legal or contractual life of the asset is an important consideration, but the useful economic life may be shorter or longer depending on the specific commercial circumstances of the product concerned. For development costs, the useful economic life is determined primarily by reference to the expected commercial life of the underlying product or project once available for use.
Intangible assets are reviewed for impairment where events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying amount may not be recoverable. In performing such reviews, management is required to estimate the future economic benefits expected to arise from the relevant asset or cash-generating product portfolio. This involves judgement over assumptions such as future sales volumes, pricing, margins, market conditions and the timing of expected cash flows.
Changes in these assumptions may affect both the amortisation charge recognised in the period and the carrying value of intangible assets in the balance sheet.
The calculation of the company’s corporation tax charge requires management to make estimates at the date the financial statements are authorised for issue. In particular, this includes judgement over the expected availability and allocation of group relief from fellow group entities and the measurement of amounts recoverable in respect of research and development claims.
These estimates are dependent on the finalisation of tax positions and submissions across the wider group and may therefore differ from the amounts ultimately agreed. As disclosed in note 7, the company recorded a current tax adjustment in the year following the finalisation of group relief and research and development claims, arising principally because the actual surrender of losses and value of research and development claims was different than previously estimated.
Changes in the assumptions applied in determining these tax balances may affect the current tax charge and related current tax assets or liabilities recognised in the financial statements.
The average monthly number of persons employed by the group and company during the year was:
Their aggregate remuneration comprised:
The directors were remunerated by other group and related entities during the period.
The actual charge for the year can be reconciled to the expected charge for the year based on the profit or loss and the standard rate of tax as follows:
Impairment tests have been carried out where appropriate and the following impairment losses have been recognised in profit or loss:
The impairment losses in respect of financial assets are recognised in other gains and losses in the profit and loss account and related to development projects assessed as no longer being commercially viable due to changes in circumstance.
Details of the company's subsidiaries at 31 December 2025 are as follows:
The following are the major deferred tax liabilities and assets recognised by the group and company, and movements thereon:
Deferred tax liabilities have been calculated at the current corporation tax rate of 25% in order to accurately reflect the tax implications of the unwinding of deferred tax from this date.
A defined contribution pension scheme is operated for all qualifying employees. The assets of the scheme are held separately from those of the group in an independently administered fund.
At the reporting end date the group had outstanding commitments for future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases, which fall due as follows:
The remuneration of key management personnel (including directors) is as follows.
During the year the group entered into the following transactions with related parties:
The following amounts were outstanding at the reporting end date:
The company has taken exemption under Section 33.1A of FRS102 from disclosing transactions between wholly owned members of the same group.
The company has provided guarantees in respect of loans held by another company within the group. No losses are anticipated as a result of these guarantees, which total £349.4m (2024 - £336.2m).