| REGISTERED NUMBER: |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED |
| FINANCIAL STATEMENTS |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| REGISTERED NUMBER: |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED |
| FINANCIAL STATEMENTS |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 00029043) |
| CONTENTS OF THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| Page |
| Company Information | 1 |
| Abridged Balance Sheet | 2 |
| Notes to the Financial Statements | 3 |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED |
| COMPANY INFORMATION |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| DIRECTORS: |
| REGISTERED OFFICE: |
| REGISTERED NUMBER: |
| AUDITORS: |
| Chartered Accountants |
| & Statutory Auditors |
| 531 Denby Dale Road West |
| Calder Grove |
| Wakefield |
| West Yorkshire |
| WF4 3ND |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 00029043) |
| ABRIDGED BALANCE SHEET |
| 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| 2025 | 2024 |
| Notes | £ | £ | £ | £ |
| FIXED ASSETS |
| Tangible assets | 4 |
| Investments | 5 |
| Investment property | 6 |
| CURRENT ASSETS |
| Debtors |
| Cash at bank and in hand |
| CREDITORS |
| Amounts falling due within one year |
| NET CURRENT ASSETS |
| TOTAL ASSETS LESS CURRENT LIABILITIES |
| PROVISIONS FOR LIABILITIES | ( |
) |
| PENSION ASSET | 10 |
| NET ASSETS |
| CAPITAL AND RESERVES |
| Called up share capital |
| Retained earnings | 8 |
| The financial statements were approved by the Board of Directors and authorised for issue on |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 00029043) |
| NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| 1. | STATUTORY INFORMATION |
| The Barnsley Chronicle Limited is a |
| The presentation currency of the financial statements is the Pound Sterling (£). |
| 2. | ACCOUNTING POLICIES |
| Basis of preparing the financial statements |
| This 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: |
| - 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 each category of financial instrument; 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 financial statements of the company are consolidated in the financial statements of Acredula Group Limited. These consolidated financial statements are available from its registered office, 47 Church Street, Barnsley, S70 2AS. |
| At the time of approving the financial statements, with the continued financial support of the parent undertaking, the directors have a reasonable expectation that the company 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. |
| Significant judgements and estimates |
| In the application of the company's accounting policies, the directors are required to make judgements estimates and assumptions about the carrying 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 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 the period of the revision and future periods where the revision affects both current and future periods. |
| Key sources of estimation uncertainty |
| 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: |
| Pension assumptions |
| The assumptions used by the actuary are chosen from a range of possible actuarial assumptions which, due to the timescale covered, may not necessarily be borne out in practice. |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 00029043) |
| NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| 2. | ACCOUNTING POLICIES - continued |
| Turnover |
| Turnover is measured at the fair value of the consideration received or receivable, excluding discounts, rebates, value added tax and other sales taxes. |
| Tangible fixed assets |
| Freehold property | - |
| Plant and machinery | - |
| Motor vehicles | - |
| Investment property |
| Investment property is shown at most recent valuation. Any aggregate surplus or deficit arising from changes in fair value is recognised in profit or loss. |
| Taxation |
| Taxation for the year comprises current and deferred tax. Tax is recognised in the Income Statement, except to the extent that it relates to items recognised in other comprehensive income or directly in equity. |
| Current or deferred taxation assets and liabilities are not discounted. |
| Current tax is recognised at the amount of tax payable using the tax rates and laws that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the balance sheet date. |
| Deferred tax |
| Deferred tax is recognised in respect of all timing differences that have originated but not reversed at the balance sheet date. |
| Timing differences arise from the inclusion of income and expenses in tax assessments in periods different from those in which they are recognised in financial statements. Deferred tax is measured using tax rates and laws that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the year end and that are expected to apply to the reversal of the timing difference. |
| Unrelieved tax losses and other deferred tax assets are recognised only to the extent that it is probable that they will be recovered against the reversal of deferred tax liabilities or other future taxable profits. |
| Foreign currencies |
| Assets and liabilities in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the rates of exchange ruling at the balance sheet date. Transactions in foreign currencies are translated into sterling at the rate of exchange ruling at the date of transaction. Exchange differences are taken into account in arriving at the operating result. |
| Hire purchase and leasing commitments |
| Rentals paid under operating leases are charged to profit or loss on a straight line basis over the period of the lease. |
| Pension costs and other post-retirement benefits |
| Payments to the defined contribution retirement benefit schemes are charged as an expense as they fall due. |
| The defined benefit scheme details can be found at note 11. |
| 3. | EMPLOYEES AND DIRECTORS |
| The average number of employees during the year was |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 00029043) |
| NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| 4. | TANGIBLE FIXED ASSETS |
| Freehold | Plant and | Motor |
| property | machinery | vehicles | Totals |
| £ | £ | £ | £ |
| COST |
| At 1 January 2025 |
| Additions |
| Disposals | ( |
) | ( |
) | ( |
) |
| At 31 December 2025 |
| DEPRECIATION |
| At 1 January 2025 |
| Charge for year |
| Eliminated on disposal | ( |
) | ( |
) | ( |
) |
| At 31 December 2025 |
| NET BOOK VALUE |
| At 31 December 2025 |
| At 31 December 2024 |
| Included in cost of freehold property is land of £204,994 (2024: £204,994) which is not depreciated. |
| 5. | FIXED ASSET INVESTMENTS |
| Information on investments other than loans is as follows: |
| Totals |
| £ |
| COST |
| At 1 January 2025 |
| and 31 December 2025 | 617 |
| NET BOOK VALUE |
| At 31 December 2025 | 617 |
| At 31 December 2024 | 617 |
| 6. | INVESTMENT PROPERTY |
| Total |
| £ |
| FAIR VALUE |
| At 1 January 2025 |
| and 31 December 2025 |
| NET BOOK VALUE |
| At 31 December 2025 |
| At 31 December 2024 |
| Investment property comprises 39-51 Church Street, Barnsley, S70 2AS. The fair value of the investment property has been arrived at on the basis of a valuation carried out at 15 August 2020 by SM Commercial Chartered Surveyors, who are not connected with the company. The valuation was made on an open market value by reference to market evidence of transaction prices for similar properties. |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 00029043) |
| NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| 7. | LEASING AGREEMENTS |
| Minimum lease payments under non-cancellable operating leases fall due as follows: |
| 2025 | 2024 |
| £ | £ |
| Within one year |
| Between one and five years |
| 8. | RESERVES |
| Retained |
| earnings |
| £ |
| At 1 January 2025 |
| Deficit for the year | ( |
) |
| Actuarial changes related to obligations |
10,000 |
| At 31 December 2025 |
| 9. | DISCLOSURE UNDER SECTION 444(5B) OF THE COMPANIES ACT 2006 |
| The Report of the Auditors was unqualified. |
| for and on behalf of |
| 10. | EMPLOYEE BENEFIT OBLIGATIONS |
| The company operates a defined benefit scheme for qualifying employees. This is a separate trustee administered fund holding the pension scheme assets to meet long term liabilities. |
| The most recent actuarial valuation of plan assets and the present value of the defined benefit obligations were carried out at 31 December 2025 by Paul Pritchard of Atkin Pensions, Fellow of the Institute and Faculty of Actuaries. The present value of the defined benefit obligation, the related current service cost and past service cost were measured using the projected unit credit method. |
| The amounts recognised in profit or loss are as follows: |
| Defined benefit |
| pension plans |
| 2025 | 2024 |
| £ | £ |
| Current service cost |
| Net interest from net defined benefit asset/liability |
(53,000 |
) |
(26,000 |
) |
| Past service cost |
| (53,000 | ) | (26,000 | ) |
| Actual return on plan assets |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 00029043) |
| NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| 10. | EMPLOYEE BENEFIT OBLIGATIONS - continued |
| Changes in the present value of the defined benefit obligation are as follows: |
| Defined benefit |
| pension plans |
| 2025 | 2024 |
| £ | £ |
| Opening defined benefit obligation |
| Interest cost |
| Actuarial losses/(gains) | ( |
) |
| Benefits paid | ( |
) | ( |
) |
| Changes in the fair value of scheme assets are as follows: |
| Defined benefit |
| pension plans |
| 2025 | 2024 |
| £ | £ |
| Opening fair value of scheme assets |
| Contributions by employer |
| Expected return | 306,000 | 270,000 |
| Actuarial gains/(losses) | ( |
) |
| Benefits paid | (477,000 | ) | (363,000 | ) |
| The amounts recognised in other comprehensive income are as follows: |
| Defined benefit |
| pension plans |
| 2025 | 2024 |
| £ | £ |
| Return on scheme assets excluding interest income |
( |
) |
| Actuarial changes related to obligations | 159,000 | (231,000 | ) |
| 10,000 | 346,000 |
| The major categories of scheme assets as amounts of total scheme assets are as follows: |
| Defined benefit |
| pension plans |
| 2025 | 2024 |
| £ | £ |
| Equities |
| Debt instruments | 4,105,000 | 3,743,000 |
| Cash | 68,000 | 116,000 |
| 5,971,000 | 5,947,000 |
| THE BARNSLEY CHRONICLE LIMITED (REGISTERED NUMBER: 00029043) |
| NOTES TO THE FINANCIAL STATEMENTS - continued |
| FOR THE YEAR ENDED 31 DECEMBER 2025 |
| 10. | EMPLOYEE BENEFIT OBLIGATIONS - continued |
| Principal actuarial assumptions at the balance sheet date (expressed as weighted averages): |
| 2025 | 2024 |
| Discount rate |
| RPI |
| CPI |
| Future pension increases (ave) |
| Other assumptions: |
| Mortality | 2025 | 2024 |
| Assumed life expectations on retirement at age 65: | Years | Years |
| Retiring today |
| - Males | 21.1 | 20.8 |
| - Females | 23.4 | 23.3 |
| Retiring in 20 years |
| - Males | 22.4 | 22.1 |
| - Females | 24.8 | 24.7 |
| 11. | ULTIMATE CONTROLLING PARTY |
| The company is a subsidiary of Acredula Group Limited which is the ultimate parent company incorporated in England and Wales. |