Our staff are fundamental to the successful operation of the business. The Company is committed to a policy of equal opportunities for all and aim to be a responsible employer in the approach we take towards pay and benefits that our employees receive. We continue to develop an environment where employees feel valued and engaged in the business through regular communication and consultation.
Our ultimate shareholder, Bidco 3 Limited, is in constant contact with the Company via our group head office and are fully engaged in the plans for the year and the longer-term strategy.
Through dedicated account management, regular communication and discussion, demand planning, regular site visits, technology partnerships and sustainability strategy.
Engagement via a clearly defined purchasing policy, regular communication and trading updates and the creation of long-term trusted partnerships.
The Company will review its policies each year to ensure that they are consistent with the long-term business aims including its environmental policy. The Company looks for and implements ways of reducing its impact on the environment and holds a number of environmental accreditations.
The results for the year are shown on page 13 and the balance sheet is shown on page 15. The company's profit before tax for the year ended 31 March 2025 amounted to £0.6m (2024: profit of £0.4m).
Revenue for the year ended 31 March 2025 was £81.3m (2024: £85.8m) a decrease of 5.2% on the prior year. Gross profit for the year was £24.0m (2024: £24.3m), a decrease of 1.2% on the prior year.
The UK the business was affected by a cyber attack in February 2025 which impacted all 7 UK factories with production being stopped for between 3 and 14 weeks depending on site and process complexity. All factories are now fully functional; however, IT development was restricted as resources were deployed to the cyber incident and this impact will continue throughout the next financial year. Group volumes would have been much nearer last year’s levels had this event not occurred. Revenue saw a reduction of 5.8% as, in addition to the reduced volume, the mix of sales moved towards customers who provide their own paper resulting in less being charged to customers in their selling prices
The directors are satisfied with the company's performance for the year and consider that the state of the company's affairs is satisfactory. The directors believe that the company will continue to trade profitably in the future.
As noted above, the UK group was affected by a cyber attack in February 2025. Our cyber insurance policy provided the business both with financial cover and also technical support to minimize the impact of the incident. As part of the recovery, significant improvements have been made to our cyber security leaving the business in a more robust position than before the attack.
The directors are satisfied that the company is well placed to react to the external market forces mentioned above. The company's strategy continues to be focused on optimising processes in line with the broader CPI Group strategy, including investment in new print technologies where appropriate.
Principal Risks
The principal risks of the business revolve around the Group’s ability to maintain order intake, high quality production to pre-agreed deadlines and management of costs and overheads in a highly competitive environment. The increase in orders coupled with reducing run lengths is a key challenge for the industry. The company will continue to focus on maintaining operational efficiency despite these challenges.
The group manages its liquidity risk through long term borrowings and a factoring facility for trade debtors which enables the group to increase cash resources in line with activity. The UK group also operates a cash pooling arrangement covering all UK group companies.
Key Performance Indicators
The company considers its key performance indicators to be turnover and gross profit, and regularly monitors its performance by measuring these figures against budgets and forecasts. Turnover and gross profit are reflected in the profit and loss account. The Board and management team also regularly monitor the performance of the company through a range of key performance indicators, which are related to health and safety performance, and a number of operational metrics related to efficiencies and output.
Greenhouse gas emissions, energy consumption and energy efficiency
CPI Books Limited is fully committed to preventing pollution, and making continual improvements to minimise our effect on the environment. The figures below detail the environmental impact of our production, office and transport activities within the UK.
The CPI Group recognises that its business activities interact with the environment in a variety of ways, such as use of energy, generation of waste, solvent emissions, noise & raw materials. The company recognises its responsibility to help protect the environment, be a responsible neighbour and provide a comfortable environment for its employees. The company is committed to:
Continual improvement in the environmental impact of its business activities
Complying with all relevant legal, customer, and other third party requirements
Adopting best practices applicable to its activities wherever possible
The Company will achieve these commitments by:
Continuing with the ISO14001:2015 certification.
Continuing with the Team Sustainability and tracking progress against commitments.
Dedicating management time and resources to environmental topics.
Continuing to engage with a 3rd party company to verify scope 1-3 reporting and recommend reduction actions.
Participating in industry-wide forums to better understand the issues faced by the media and print industry and publishers’ concerns and creating links with suppliers and customers to work together to achieve reductions.
Continuing with ethical assessments for all divisions on a regular basis.
Participate in the Book Chain Project Portal and complete annual environmental questionnaires which began 2020 onwards which publisher members can consult.
Continuing to complete annual company-wide environmental reporting Scopes 1, 2 and 3.
Implement sustainability-driven projects that will help to achieve significant reductions by 2050.
Actions & Targets
To reduce the carbon footprint there is a particular focus on the reduction in use of fossil fuels, gas and electricity which accounts for the majority of scope 1, 2 & 3 emissions. The company aims to achieve this by embedding carbon management in all activities and working with a third party on target setting towards net zero.
The CPI Group has recently completed the following projects in FY25:
Continued its commitment to purchasing renewable energy - renewed electricity contract sourcing 100% from renewable sources (wind, solar, geo thermal).
Company car scheme continued to move to hybrid/electric – in FY25 4.17% Petrol, 20.83% electric and 75.00% hybrid. (FY24 3.85% Petrol, 23.08% electric and 73.08%).
CPI continues to expand on reporting, now including all grey fleet for business travel of employees in personal owned cars.
CPI Books has completely removed propane from its Chatham site by electrifying the extensive forklift fleet.
CPI Group completed reporting in FY25 for the third compliance period of ESOS
CPI Group successfully completed the new compliance reporting for Extended producer responsibility for 2024
Further initiatives include:
CPI signed up to SBTi and is working with a consultant to achieve verification by March 2026 for all factories under Cameron France Holdings SAS.
Continuing to onboard suppliers onto new database which incorporates agreeing to terms of CPI Group’s code of conduct and helps identify joint environmental projects / targets.
Engagement with external platforms measuring the company’s performance including environmental, labour and ethical standards. (CDP platform – C rating, Ecovadis – Bronze rating).
CPI is continuing to work on customer reporting for Scope 1, 2 and 3 across the group as it is looking to be more transparent and enable publishers to make informed choices.
On behalf of the board
The directors present their annual report and financial statements for the year ended 31 March 2025.
The results for the year are set out on page 13.
The directors paid a dividend of £Nil (2024:Nil).
No preference dividends were paid
The directors who held office during the year and up to the date of signature of the financial statements were as follows:
Details regarding engagement with suppliers, customers and others in a business relationship with the company are shown in the Strategic Report on page 1.
The company's details of the accounting policy on going concern are set out in note 1.2.
The auditor, KPMG LLP, are deemed to be reappointed under section 487(2) of the Companies Act 2006.
We have audited the financial statements of CPI Books Limited (“the company”) for the year ended 31 March 2025 which comprise the profit and loss account, the statement of comprehensive income, the balance sheet, the statement of changes in equity and related notes, including the accounting policies in note 1.
Basis for opinion
Going concern
The directors have prepared the financial statements on the going concern basis as they do not intend to liquidate the company or to cease its operations, and as they have concluded that the company’s financial position means that this is realistic. They have also concluded that there are no material uncertainties that could have cast significant doubt over its ability to continue as a going concern for at least a year from the date of approval of the financial statements (“the going concern period”).
In our evaluation of the directors’ conclusions, we considered the inherent risks to the company’s business model and analysed how those risks might affect the company’s financial resources or ability to continue operations over the going concern period.
Our conclusions based on this work:
we consider that the directors’ use of the going concern basis of accounting in the preparation of the financial statements is appropriate;
we have not identified, and concur with the directors’ assessment that there is not, a material uncertainty related to events or conditions that, individually or collectively, may cast significant doubt on the company's ability to continue as a going concern for the going concern period.
However, as we cannot predict all future events or conditions and as subsequent events may result in outcomes that are inconsistent with judgements that were reasonable at the time they were made, the absence of reference to a material uncertainty in this auditor's report is not a guarantee that the company will continue in operation.
Fraud and breaches of laws and regulations – ability to detect
Identifying and responding to risks of material misstatement due to fraud
To identify risks of material misstatement due to fraud (“fraud risks”) we assessed events or conditions that could indicate an incentive or pressure to commit fraud or provide an opportunity to commit fraud. Our risk assessment procedures included:
Enquiring of directors as to the Company’s high-level policies and procedures to prevent and detect fraud, as well as whether they have knowledge of any actual, suspected or alleged fraud.
Reading Board minutes.
Considering remuneration incentive schemes and performance targets for senior management and directors.
Using analytical procedures to identify any unusual or unexpected relationships
We communicated identified fraud risks throughout the audit team and remained alert to any indications of fraud throughout the audit. As required by auditing standards, and taking into account possible pressures to meet profit targets and our overall knowledge of the control environment, we perform procedures to address the risk of management override of controls and the risk of fraudulent revenue recognition, in particular the risk that revenue is recorded in the wrong period, and the risk that Company’s management may be in a position to make inappropriate accounting entries.
As required by auditing standards, we perform procedures to address the risk of management override of controls, in particular the risk that management may be in a position to make inappropriate accounting entries. On this audit we do not believe there is a fraud risk related to revenue recognition because revenue constitutes a high volume of individually low items, the majority of which involve no estimation, judgement or complexity.
We did not identify any additional fraud risks.
We performed procedures including:
Identifying journal entries to test based on risk criteria and comparing the identified entries to supporting documentation. These included those posted with unusual account pairings.
Identifying and responding to risks of material misstatement due to non-compliance with laws and regulations
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 (as required by auditing standards), and from inspection of the Company’s regulatory and legal correspondence and discussed with the directors and other management the policies and procedures regarding compliance with laws and regulations.
We communicated identified laws and regulations throughout our team and remained alert to any indications of non-compliance throughout the audit.
The potential effect of these laws and regulations on the financial statements varies considerably.
Firstly, the Company is subject to laws and regulations that directly affect the financial statements including financial reporting legislation (including related companies legislation), distributable profits legislation, and taxation legislation. We assessed the extent of compliance with these laws and regulations as part of our procedures on the related financial statement items.
Secondly, the Company is subject to many other laws and regulations where the consequences of non-compliance could have a material effect on amounts or disclosures in the financial statements. We identified the following areas as those most likely to have such an effect: health and safety, data protection laws, anti-bribery, employment law, and certain aspects of company legislation recognising the nature of the Company’s activities.
Auditing standards limit the required audit procedures to identify non-compliance with these laws and regulations to enquiry of the directors and inspection of regulatory and legal correspondence, if any. Therefore, if a breach of operational regulations is not disclosed to us or evident from relevant correspondence, an audit will not detect that breach.
Strategic report and director's report
The directors are responsible for the strategic report and the directors’ report. Our opinion on the financial statements does not cover those reports and we do not express an audit opinion thereon.
Our responsibility is to read the strategic report and the directors’ report and, in doing so, consider whether, based on our financial statements audit work, the information therein is materially misstated or inconsistent with the financial statements or our audit knowledge. Based solely on that work:
we have not identified material misstatements in the strategic report and the directors’ report;
in our opinion the information given in those reports for the financial year is consistent with the financial statements; and
in our opinion those reports have been prepared in accordance with the Companies Act 2006.
A fuller description of our responsibilities is provided on the FRC's website at www.frc.org.uk/auditorsresponsibilities.
The purpose of our audit work and to whom we owe our responsibilities
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.
The profit and loss account has been prepared on the basis that all operations are continuing operations.
The notes on pages 18 to 42 form part of these financial statements.
CPI Books Limited is a private company limited by shares incorporated and domiciled in England and Wales. The registered office is 110 Beddington Lane, Croydon, CR0 4TD.
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.
On the 4th of October 2024 the bank reviewed and removed existing covenants. Therefore, the Group has no banking covenants in place for its borrowings.
Given the uncertain trading environment particularly in relation to volatility in inflation across Europe, and the potential for the market to reduce in size in the coming months, management has prepared a severe but plausible downside scenario to 31 March 2027. The downside scenario assumes a 5% decline in volumes for Germany and Moravia However, for the purposes of this downside scenario, the FY26 improvement has been removed. We have also assumed that in this scenario CAPEX spending continues and there is no reduction in overheads.
In this severe but plausible downside scenario the group has sufficient liquidity for the period forecast to 31 March 2027 and can continue repayments of loan commitments of the Group. Consequently, the Directors are confident that the Company and the Group will have sufficient funds to continue to meet its liabilities as they fall due for at least 12 months from the date of approval of these financial statements and therefore have prepared the financial statements on a going concern basis.
Intangible assets compromise primarily licence fees paid for the advance use of trade marks and technology. Such assets are defined as having finite useful lives and the costs are amortised on a straight line basis over their estimated useful lives of 3 years. Intangible assets are stated at cost less amortisation and are reviewed for impairment whenever there is an indication that the carrying value may be impaired.
Depreciation is charged to the profit and loss account on a straight-line basis over the estimated useful lives of each part of an item of tangible fixed assets. Land is not depreciated. The estimated useful lives are as follows:
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.
Depreciation methods, useful lives and residual values are reviewed at each balance sheet date.
Financial assets (including trade and other debtors)
A financial asset not carried at fair value through profit or loss is assessed at each reporting date to determine whether there is objective evidence that it is impaired. A financial asset is impaired if objective evidence indicates that a loss event has occurred after the initial recognition of the asset, and that the loss event had a negative effect on the estimated future cash flows of that asset that can be estimated reliably.
An impairment loss in respect of a financial asset measured at amortised cost is calculated as the difference between its carrying amount and the present value of the estimated future cash flows discounted at the asset’s original effective interest rate. For financial instruments measured at cost less impairment an impairment is calculated as the difference between its carrying amount and the best estimate of the amount that the Company would receive for the asset if it were to be sold at the reporting date. Interest on the impaired asset continues to be recognised through the unwinding of the discount. When a subsequent event causes the amount of impairment loss to decrease, the decrease in impairment loss is reversed through profit or loss.
Non-financial assets
The carrying amounts of the Company’s non-financial assets, other than stocks and deferred tax assets, are reviewed at each reporting date to determine whether there is any indication of impairment. If any such indication exists, then the asset’s recoverable amount is estimated.
The recoverable amount of an asset or cash-generating unit is the greater of its value in use and its fair value less costs to sell. In assessing value in use, the estimated future cash flows are discounted to their present value using a pre-tax discount rate that reflects current market assessments of the time value of money and the risks specific to the asset. For the purpose of impairment testing, assets that cannot be tested individually are grouped together into the smallest group of assets that generates cash inflows from continuing use that are largely independent of the cash inflows of other assets or groups of assets (the “cash-generating unit”).
An impairment loss is recognised if the carrying amount of an asset or its CGU exceeds its estimated recoverable amount. Impairment losses are recognised in profit or loss. Impairment losses recognised in respect of CGUs are allocated first to reduce the carrying amount of any goodwill allocated to the units, and then to reduce the carrying amounts of the other assets in the unit (group of units) on a pro rata basis.
In respect of other assets, impairment losses recognised in prior periods are assessed at each reporting date for any indications that the loss has decreased or no longer exists. An impairment loss is reversed if there has been a change in the estimates used to determine the recoverable amount. An impairment loss is reversed only to the extent that the asset's carrying amount does not exceed the carrying amount that would have been determined, net of depreciation or amortisation, if no impairment loss had been recognised.
IFRS 13 establishes a single source of guidance for all fair value measurements. IFRS 13 does not change when an entity is required to use fair value, but rather provides guidance on how to measure fair value under IFRS when fair value is required or permitted. The company is exempt under FRS 101 from the disclosure requirements of IFRS 13. There was no impact on the company from the adoption of IFRS 13.
Tax on the profit or loss for the year comprises current and deferred tax. Tax is recognised in the profit and loss account except to the extent that it relates to items recognised directly in equity or other comprehensive income, in which case it is recognised directly in equity or other comprehensive income.
Current tax is the expected tax payable or receivable on the taxable income or loss for the year, using tax rates enacted or substantively enacted at the balance sheet date, and any adjustment to tax payable in respect of previous years.
Deferred tax is provided on temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and the amounts used for taxation purposes. The following temporary differences are not provided for: the initial recognition of goodwill; the initial recognition of assets or liabilities that affect neither accounting nor taxable profit other than in a business combination, and differences relating to investments in subsidiaries to the extent that they will probably not reverse in the foreseeable future. The amount of deferred tax provided is based on the expected manner of realisation or settlement of the carrying amount of assets and liabilities, using tax rates enacted or substantively enacted at the balance sheet date.
A deferred tax asset is recognised only to the extent that it is probable that future taxable profits will be available against which the temporary difference can be utilised.
Defined contribution plans
A defined contribution plan is a post-employment benefit plan under which the company pays fixed contributions into a separate entity and will have no legal or constructive obligation to pay further amounts. Obligations for contributions to defined contribution pension plans are recognised as an expense in the profit and loss account in the periods during which services are rendered by employees.
Defined benefit plans
A defined benefit plan is a post-employment benefit plan other than a defined contribution plan. The Company’s net obligation in respect of defined benefit pension plans is calculated by estimating the amount of future benefit that employees have earned in return for their service in the current and prior periods; that benefit is discounted to determine its present value, and the fair value of any plan assets (at bid price) are deducted. The Company determines the net interest on the net defined benefit liability/(asset) for the period by applying the discount rate used to measure the defined benefit obligation at the beginning of the annual period to the net defined benefit liability/(asset).
The discount rate is the yield at the reporting date on bonds that have a credit rating of at least AA that have maturity dates approximating the terms of the Company’s obligations and that are denominated in the currency in which the benefits are expected to be paid.
Remeasurements arising from defined benefit plans comprise actuarial gains and losses, the return on plan assets (excluding interest) and the effect of the asset ceiling (if any, excluding interest). The Company recognises them immediately in other comprehensive income and all other expenses related to defined benefit plans in employee benefit expenses in profit or loss.
The calculation of the defined benefit obligations is performed by a qualified actuary using the projected unit credit method. When the calculation results in a benefit to the Company, the recognised asset is limited to the present value of benefits available in the form of any future refunds from the plan or reductions in future contributions and takes into account the adverse effect of any minimum funding requirements.
Short-term benefits
Short-term employee benefit obligations are measured on an undiscounted basis and are expensed as the related service is provided. A liability is recognised for the amount expected to be paid under short-term cash bonus or profit-sharing plans if the Company has a present legal or constructive obligation to pay this amount as a result of past service provided by the employee and the obligation can be estimated reliably.
Termination benefits
Termination benefits are recognised as an expense when the company is demonstrably committed, without realistic possibility of withdrawal, to a formal detailed plan to either terminate employment before the normal retirement date, or to provide termination benefits as a result of an offer made to encourage voluntary redundancy. Termination benefits for voluntary redundancies are recognised as an expense if the company has made an offer of voluntary redundancy, it is probably that the offer will be accepted, and the number of acceptances can be estimated reliably. If benefits are payable more than 12 months after the reporting date, then they are discounted to their present value.
At the inception of a contract, the Company assesses whether a contract is, or contains, a lease. A contract is, or contains, a lease if the contract conveys the right to control the use of an identified asset for a period of time in exchange for consideration. IFRS 16.
As a lessee
At commencement or on modification of a contract that contains a lease component, along with one or more other lease or non-lease components, the Company accounts for each lease component separately from the non-lease components. The Company allocates the consideration in the contract to each lease component on the basis of its relative stand-alone price and the aggregate stand-alone price of the non-lease components.
The Company recognises a right-of-use asset and a lease liability at the lease commencement date. The right-of-use asset is initially measured at cost, which comprises the initial amount of the lease liability adjusted for any lease payments made at or before the commencement date, plus any initial direct costs incurred, less any lease incentives received.
The right-of-use asset is subsequently depreciated using the straight-line method from the commencement date to the end of the lease term, unless the lease transfers ownership of the underlying asset to the Company by the end of the lease term or the cost of the right-of-use asset reflects that the Company will exercise a purchase option. In that case the right-of-use asset will be depreciated over the useful life of the underlying asset, which is determined on the same basis as those of property and equipment. In addition, the right-of-use asset is periodically reduced by impairment losses, if any, and adjusted for certain remeasurements of the lease liability.
The lease liability is initially measured at the present value of the lease payments that are not paid at the commencement date, discounted using the interest rate implicit in the lease or, if that rate cannot be readily determined, the Company's incremental borrowing rate.
Lease payments included in the measurement of the lease liability comprise the following:
fixed payments, including in-substance fixed payments;
variable lease payments that depend on an index or a rate, initially measured using the index or rate as at the commencement date
amounts expected to be payable under a residual value guarantee; and
the exercise price under a purchase option that the Company is reasonably certain to exercise,
lease payments in an optional renewal period if the Company is reasonably certain to exercise an extension option, and
penalties for early termination of a lease unless the Company is reasonably certain not to terminate early.
The lease liability is measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method. It is remeasured when there is a change in: future lease payments arising from a change in an index or rate; the company's estimate of the amount expected to be payable under a residual value guarantee; or the company's assessment of whether it will exercise a purchase, extension or termination option. When the lease liability is remeasured in this way, a corresponding adjustment is made to the carrying amount of the right-of-use asset, or is recorded in profit or loss if the carrying amount of the right-of-use asset has been reduced to zero.
Short-term leases and leases of low-value assets
The Company has elected not to recognise right-of-use assets and lease liabilities for lease of low-value assets and short-term leases. The Company recognises the lease payments associated with these leases as an expense on a straight-line basis over the lease term.
Expenses
Interest receivable and Interest payable
Interest payable and similar charges include interest payable.
Interest income and interest payable is recognised in profit or loss as it accrues, using the effective interest method.
Financial Instruments
Non-derivative financial instruments comprise trade and other debtors, cash and cash equivalents, and trade and other creditors.
Trade and other debtors
Trade and other debtors are recognised initially at fair value. Subsequent to initial recognition they are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method, less any impairment losses.
Trade and other creditors
Trade and other creditors are recognised initially at fair value. Subsequent to initial recognition they are measured at amortised cost using the effective interest method.
Cash and cash equivalents
Cash and cash equivalents comprise cash balances and call deposits. Bank overdrafts that are repayable on demand and form and integral part of the Company's cash management are included as a component of cash and cash equivalents.
In the application of the company’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, if the revision affects only that period, or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both current and future periods.
The estimates and assumptions which have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amount of assets and liabilities are outlined below.
Stock and work in progress is valued at the lower cost and net realisable value. Net realisable value includes, where necessary, provisions for slow moving and obsolete stocks.
The Company enters a provision for expected credit losses of trade receivables based on discussion with the customer, account manager and the Group CFO.
The discount rate used to calculate the lease liability is the incremental borrowing rate. Incremental borrowing rates are determined based on a series of inputs including: the term of the arrangement; the amount of funds 'borrowed'; a country-specific risk adjustment based on the economic environment, currency and date at which the lease is entered into; and an adjustment for the company's credit risk.
Pensions
Actuarial assumptions are made in valuing future defined benefit pension obligations as set out in note 19, and could be subject to significant variation. A sensitivity analysis based on changes to the assumptions is contained within that note.
An analysis of the company's turnover is as follows:
The average monthly number of persons (including directors) employed by the company during the year was:
Their aggregate remuneration comprised:
The charge for the year can be reconciled to the profit per the profit and loss account as follows:
In addition to the amount charged to the profit and loss account, the following amounts relating to tax have been recognised directly in other comprehensive income:
An increase in the UK corporation tax rate from 19% to 25% (effective 1 April 2023) was substantively enacted on 24 May 2021. The deferred tax asset at 31 March 2025 has been calculated at 25%, reflecting the expected timing of reversal of the related timing difference (2024: 25%).
Tangible fixed assets includes right-of-use assets, as follows:
Raw material and work in progress recognised as cost of sales in the year amount to £18,410,365 (2024: £22,868,536).
There was no write down of stocks in the current or previous year.
The directors consider that the carrying amount of debtors is approximately equal to their fair value.
Trade debtors are due within one year. The impairment of trade debtors reflects the level of expected losses on the customer portfolio from the outset of the receivable. The non-collection risk on trade debtors is minimal, and this is reflected in the level of the allowance, which 16% of gross receivables at the end of 2025 (2024: 8%). At the year end the Company has no significant trade debtors overdue but not impaired.
Included in debtors is a loan to Elpis Books BV, an existing Group company. Interest is accruing on the loan at a rate of 3.5%, during the year the total interest charge was £74,166 (2024: £74,369). The total balance outstanding at the year end was £2,583,770 (2024: £2,509,604) which falls due after more than one year.
CPI Books Ltd have a £4m loan agreement with Close Brothers Investment Finance. The loan is repayable in monthly instalments over three years from the date of the initial drawdown. Interest is charged at 4% above base rate.
The £6.19m (2024: £6.97m) above is made up of the outstanding loan balance of £0.56m with Close Brothers and a short term funding agreement for the construction of a warehouse of £5.64m.
Lease obligations are classified based on the amounts that are expected to be settled within the next 12 months and after more than 12 months from the reporting date, as follows:
The fair value of the company's lease obligations is approximately equal to their carrying amount.
Included in other creditors there is £5,222,266 (2024: £6,403,177) which is secured against the trade debtors of the company. The loan is repayable on demand.
The amounts included within amounts due to group undertakings are interest free and repayable on demand.
The following are the major deferred tax liabilities and assets recognised by the company and movements thereon during the current and prior reporting period.
Deferred tax assets and liabilities are offset in the financial statements only where the company has a legally enforceable right to do so.
The total costs charged to income in respect of defined contribution plans is £477,000 (2024: £418,000).
The company operates a defined pension plan, the CPI (UK) Employee Benefit Plan. This is an approved funded pension plan. The assets of the Plan are held separately from the assets of the company in trustee administered funds.
Contributions to the Plan are assessed in accordance with the advice of a qualified actuary.
The latest full actuarial valuation was carried out on 31 December 2021 and was updated for FRS 101 purposes to 31 March 2024 by a qualified actuary.
The actuarial valuation for 31 December 2024 is due and is currently ongoing.
The Company expects to pay £195,000 in contributions to its defined benefit plans in 2026.
The Board of Trustees alone is responsible of the management, investment and governance of each scheme. In exercising their duties the Trustees take their advice from their own legal advisors, actuary, consultant and investment managers, each of which is independent of the sponsoring employer.
The pension scheme remains open to new members.
The Pension Protection Fund Levy for 2024 was £462 (2024: £5,114).
In June 2023, the High Court handed down a decision in the case of Virgin Media Limited v NTL Pension Trustees II Limited and others relating to the validity of certain historical pension changes due to the lack of actuarial confirmation required by law. On 2 September 2025, the Government published draft amendments to the Pensions Scheme Bill which would give affected pension schemes the ability to retrospectively obtain written actuarial confirmation that historic benefit changes met the necessary standards. The draft legislation will need to be agreed by both Houses of Parliament before it passes into law.
Following the publication of draft legislation, the Directors do not expect the Virgin Media rultng to give rise to any additional liabilities and so the DBO has not been adjusted and continues to reflect the benefits currently being administered.
Following the updated actuarial valuation, and accelerated payment, a revised contribution schedule has
been agreed with the Trustees and is detailed below.
The Statutory Funding Objective is defined in Section 222 of the Pensions Act 2004. Every scheme must have a sufficient and appropriate assets to cover its technical provisions.
Contributions to be paid towards the Plan from 6 April 2019 to 5 April 2028
By Active Members
The active members will pay contributions at the following rates, expressed as a percentage of Pensionable Salaries (or at such other rate as is agreed by the Trustees and the Employer):
Plan P members: 7.5%
Plan Q members: 6.0%
Plan R members: 0%
Pension risks to the company
The key risk to the company posed by the pension scheme is the potential for the past service deficit to increase despite the recovery plan, under which the company makes contributions to fund the past service deficit. The trustees of the scheme obtain and act upon investment advice from the scheme actuary, and professional investment and fund managers in order to mitigate this risk.
Assumed life expectations on retirement at age 65:
Amounts recognised in the profit and loss account
Amounts recognised in other comprehensive income
The amounts included in the balance sheet arising from the company's obligations in respect of defined benefit plans are as follows:
Movements in the present value of defined benefit obligations
The weighted average duration of the defined benefit obligation at the end of reporting period is 11 years (2024: 13 years).
The defined benefit obligations arise from plans funded as follows:
Movements in the fair value of plan assets:
The calculation of the defined benefit obligation is sensitive to the assumptions set out above. The impact on the defined benefit obligation of changes in the significant assumptions is shown approximately below:.
The fair value of plan assets at the reporting period end was as follows:
The above sensitivities are based on the average duration of the benefit obligation determined at the date of the last full actuarial valuation at 31 December 2021 and are applied to adjust the defined benefit obligation at the end of the reporting period for the assumptions concerned. Whilst the analysis does not take account of the full distribution of cash flows expected under the plan, it does provide an approximation to the sensitivity of the assumptions shown.
The plan assets do not include any company's financial instruments and any property occupied by, or other assets used by, the company
The convertible ordinary preference shares rank pari passu between theselves and the ordinary shares of the company for participation in the profits of the company and they entitle the members to attend and vote at any general meeting. They also rank equally on winding-up.
The capital contribution reserve has arisen as a result of the write off of a loan with an associated company that has now been liquidated, resulting in a capital contribution from the immediate parent undertaking.
During the year, CPI Books Limited entered into transactions with the following related parties within Bidco 3 Limited Group.
Management charges from fellow group companies £1,106,000 (2024: £1,014,000).
The amount receivable and payable to group companies can be seen in Note 14 and Note 17.
The Company is a subsidiary undertaking of Bidco 3 Limited which is the ultimate parent company incorporated in the United Kingdom.
The largest group in which the results of the Company are consolidated is that headed by Bidco 3 Limited, 14th Floor, 82 King Street, Manchester, M2 4WQ, United Kingdom. No other group financial statements include the results of the Company.
The consolidated financial statements of this group are available to the public and may be obtained from 14th Floor, 82 King Street, Manchester, M2 4WQ, United Kingdom.