dedicated to people
shaping better places
annual report and accounts report 2008
supporta plc
3 kingmaker court 
warwick technology park 
warwick cv34 6ut
t 01926 516600 
f 01926 516699
w wwwsupportaplccom 
e betterlivessupportaplccom
supporta plc annual report and accounts report 2008 supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008
the directors’ report on pages 18 to 20 have been drawn up in accordance with the requirements of english law and liability in respect thereof is also governed by english 
law in particular the responsibility of the directors for these reports is owed solely to supporta plc 
the directors submit to the members their annual report and financial statements of the group for the year ended 31 march 2008 pages 1 to 16 and page 77 including the 
financial highlights chairman’s statement financial director’s report corporate governance statement company information and directors’ report form part of the 
report of the directors 
supporta care provides support to elderly frail and 
disabled people in the uk to allow them to continue 
living in their own home in comfort with dignity
supporta professional services provides partnership 
support and technology services to leading public and 
private sector organisations across the uk
each day the work we undertake has a 
profound impact on the quality of life  
for the people our services touch
contents
financial highlights 1
supporta care  2
professional services 4
timeline 6
chairman’s statement 8
chief executive’s report  10
finance director’s report  13
board of directors 16
directors’ report 18
corporate governance statement 21
report of the independent auditor 23
consolidated income statement 24
consolidated statement of  
recognised income and expense 25
consolidated balance sheet 26
consolidated cashflow statement 27
accounting policies – group 28
notes to the condensed  
consolidated financial information 35
reconsiliation between uk gaap and ifrs 61
five year summary 67
parent company financial statements 68
report to the independent auditor  
to the members of supporta plc 69
company balance sheet 70
company accounting policies 71
notes to the company financial information 72
company information  77 supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 1
financial highlights

operational highlights
revenue increased by 19 to £5076m 2007 £4271m •	
operating profit before sharebased payment charge •	
amortisation and exceptional items increased by 14 
to £403m 2007 £353m
operating profit of £102m 2007 loss of £147m •	
loss before tax of £037m 2007 £253m •	
adjusted basic earnings per share reduced by 30  •	
to 266p 2007 378p
supporta care
contract wins •	 start date
harrow dec 07 4000 hrs
hertfordshire apr 08 3000 hrs
liverpool jul 07 1000 hrs
stockton apr 08 1000 hrs
surrey sep 08 1000 hrs
bristol extracare jan 08 500 hrs
kensington  chelsea jan 08 500 hrs
11000 hrs
supporta professional services
contract wins •	 start date
 tfl  property asset register mapping services sep 07
 cross london rail links  land referencing and property 
information management services feb 08 and to 
provide a webbased property register as a hosted 
service apr 08
 oxford radcliffe hospitals nhs trust  extension of  
the medical records data storage contract mar 08
 taylor wimpey  webbased strategic land database  
as a hosted service jan 08
implementation of new structure •	
annualised runrate cost reduction of approximately •	
£17m arising from new structure
operating profit reducing by 4 to £212m  •	
2007 £221m
operating margin reduced from 181 to 125 •	
new care system implementation •	
new regional management team •	
organic revenue growth 10 •	
operating profit increasing 35 to £396m  •	
2007 £294m
hallam acquisition completed and performing  •	
to expectations
operating margin increased from 96 to 115 •	
basic loss per share of 091p 2007 loss 368p •	
cash generated from operations reduced by 45  •	
to £190m 2007 £343m
banking facilities renegotiated •	
successful placing raising £418m and additional •	
£108m of shares issued as deferred consideration
 before sharebased payment charge amortisation and exceptional items

all numbers quoted in financial highlights represent continuing operations
financial highlights 
for the year ended 31
st 
march 2008
£5076m
revenue
£m
£186m
profit before tax
£m
£403m
operating profit
£m
167p
basic earnings 
per share p
5076
403
263
266
4271
353
247
378
2188
162
121
168
2047
075
059
161 
983
008
000
0262
‘04 ‘04 ‘04 ‘04 ‘05 ‘05 ‘05 ‘05 ‘06 ‘06 ‘06 ‘06 ‘07 ‘07 ‘07 ‘07 ‘08 ‘08 ‘08 ‘08 2 supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008
supporta care
supporta care is one of the largest 
and most experienced providers 
of care at home in the country 
currently working with 47 local 
authorities and providing care to 
over 4000 service users
at supporta care we are dedicated to people 
employing over 2000 staff providing over 60000 
hours of care per week to communities across the 
uk 24 hours a day 7 days a week 365 days a year 
supporta care have been providing care services for 
over 15 years and provide a variety of care services 
ranging from fortnightly shopping calls through to 
intensive 24 hour services
as well as offering the traditional home care service  
we also provide the following specialist services
livein care
livein care offers a real care alternative to nursing 
or residential care and the opportunity for couples 
to remain together at home 
our livein services also offer respite care for 
shorter periods enabling relatives to enjoy a break 
our livein care service is offered accross the 
country and is managed from two sites one in 
dudley and the other in loughton essex
palliative care
supporta care provides a tailormade service 
designed to offer professional flexible and 
sympathetic care to the terminally ill and 
their families 
this service offers real choice for patients to receive 
the care they need in the comfort of their own 
home if a patient is in hospital we can offer support 
to assist in an early discharge and allow them to 
receive appropriate care at home this service is 
provided in a senstive manner by staff who have 
received appropriate training by supporta care
supporta angels 
supporta angels – provides a tailormade platinum 
service dedicated to improving customers’ lifestyles 
and helping them live their lives their way  
we provide care solutions for people of all ages who 
are looking to maintain or regain their independence  
they may be recovering from an operation or illness 
and trying to readjust to life at home they may 
need occasional assistance with everyday tasks or 
are just looking for additional support through a 
difficult period in their life  
whatever their needs supporta angels offers the 
care they need in the comfort of their own home 
rapid response
this service is provided at short notice to enable 
speedy hospital discharges or prevent admissions 
which can be a significant problem for health and 
social care services
supporta care have trained staff on standby to 
cover referrals at short notice and the service is 
managed locally and supported by our outof
hours provision
this service can be linked to providing a care service 
to people who have had a fall for example before 
discharge from hospital supporta care staff will 
help ease the patient into receiving care assistance 
at home this service could also allow the patient to 
gain confidence by returning home for short time 
periods prior to discharge  supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 3
 
12 35
shortterm and longterm  
respite services
livein care offers a real care alternative to nursing 
or residential care and the opportunity for couples 
to remain together at home 
our livein services also offer respite care for 
shorter periods enabling relatives to enjoy a break 
our livein acre service is offered accross the 
country and is managed from two sites one in 
dudley and the other in loughton essex
continuing care
supporta’s continuing care service is designed to 
support and care for people with complex and 
unpredictable health needs 
supporta care 
dedicated to people
2006
2007
2004
2005
2008
2006
2007
2008
2004
2005
£036m
£001m
£113m
£294m
£396m
 £455m
£829m
£1628m
£3052m
£3433m
operating profit turnover
before sharebased payment charge  
amortisation and exceptional items supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 4 4 supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008
professional services
supporta professional services 
deliver a comprehensive and unique 
portfolio of business services to a 
wide range of organisations across 
the public and private sectors
our services and solutions support organisations in 
overcoming their business challenges across  architecture 
and civil  structural engineering more effective use of 
land and property assets physical and online document 
solutions and general and specialist consultancy
our management team has significant experience in 
meeting and exceeding client expectations and delivering 
on key projects with a pedigree of service delivery 
spanning over thirty years
we work with
mo •	 re than half of the uk’s local authorities
more than 50 infrastructure and regeneration •	
organisations
more than 20 government agencies •	
7 utilities companies •	
more than 50 private sector clients •	
supporta professional services wealth of knowledge and 
experience secured a place on the geographic information 
services and solutions giss catalist framework agreement 
with ogcbuyingsolutions having been successful during a 
competitive procurement process
our architecture practice is one of the panel architects  
to the home office’s  prisons build programme
we operate in a £46bn market forecast to grow by 9  
to 10 between 2007 and 2010
we specialise in
supporta terraquest
the business supplies services which enable more 
effective use of land and property in the uk through the 
application of knowledge expertise and technology to 
the following market segments
local authorities  regeneration agencies
there are over 400 local authorities in the uk our 
focus is on those with large land and property 
portfolios but with significant underutilisation of land 
and property assets 
we address these authorities’ need for better 
utilisation of land and property assets by providing 
asset management land acquisition and town 
planning services
there are thirty regeneration agencies working at 
national regional and local levels to complement  
and support local authorities in their economic 
development and associated regeneration aspirations
the business addresses the needs of these agencies to 
accelerate development by providing development 
opportunity identification and land acquisition services
transport and utilities
these developers are responsible for highway rail air 
and water transportation power water communications 
and waste transmission they generally need to secure 
the land and powers needed to provide new 
infrastructure by following statutory procedures
the business addresses their needs by providing services 
which secure possession and title to the land we also 
enable infrastructure developers to manage their land 
portfolios more effectively
property developers
there are a very large number of property developers 
in both the public and private sectors some operate 
nationally others regionally or locally some specialise 
in specific types of development eg housing and retail 
whilst others cover a range of development types
the business is focussing on those property developers 
who have large land holdings and provides webbased 
management information services aimed at enabling 
them to maximise the return on their investment
devolved government
devolved government focuses on the devolved 
governments of northern ireland scotland and wales
the business has two major contracts for  
devolved government – one in scotland and one  
in northern ireland 
further major business opportunities in devolved 
government are being pursued with bt supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 5 supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 5
 
before sharebased payment charge  
amortisation and exceptional items
† 
 includes results for discontinued  
payroll operation
60
turnover operating profit
4
supporta professional services
shaping better places
2006
†
2007
2004
†
2005
†
2004
†
2005
†
2006
†
2007
2008
2008
 £151m
£874m
£1282m
£1219m
£1701m
£025m
£135m
£280m
£221m
£212m
supporta services
document solutions
sps document solutions provide specialist records 
document management and imaging services to  local 
and central government the nhs legal utilities 
pharmaceutical and publishing organisations
operating from an ex nato airbase in oxfordshire 
offering highly secure physical record storage and the 
latest in digital conversion process and access systems
architecture
providing architectural design and planning 
consultancy services to the public and private sectors  
we are licensed to audit the breeam code for 
sustainable homes and are ecohomes assessors
we are one of the market leaders in prison design as 
evidenced by our national framework contract with the 
ministry of justice  
consultant engineers
we provide civil structural and environmental 
engineering to public and private organisations these 
design and consultant projects range from £500k to 
large scale regeneration schemes of up to £100m 
construction value
our clients include central government departments 
major developers in the commercial residential 
industrial and regeneration sectors 
healthcare consultancy
our experienced team of consultants provide a range 
of general and specialist consultancy services from 
business process reviews systems implementation and 
procurement management  care staff conference
may 2007
1st annual collective 
conference held  
in warwick 
liverpool care  
contract start
june 2007
start of the new contract with 
liverpool city council
new nomad
june 2007
brewin dolphin securities 
limited appointed as  
nominated advisor  
and broker
stockton  
contract award
december 2007
award of block and  
spot contract with  
stockton council 
harrow  
contract start
december 2007
start of the new block 
contract with london 
borough of harrow 
bt relationship 
june 2007
bt relationship extended to 
include local government
supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 6
dft asset 
management plan
september 2007
award of contract  
by department  
for transport to  
assist in developing 
a property asset 
management plan
timeline
the story of 2008
catalist framework 
appointment
december 2007
sps secured a place on the 
geographic information 
services and solutions giss 
catalist framework agreement 
with ogcbuyingsolutions
nottinghamshire care 
contract start
april 2007
start of new spot contract   
in nottinghamshire  
county council
terraquest deffered 
consideration
december 2007
26m shares issued  
in part settlement  
of terraquest  
acquisition deferred 
consideration
harrow care  
contract award
june 2007
award of block contract in 
london borough of harrow
placing
december 2007
placing of 115m 
ordinary shares  
of supporta plc raising 
£44m before expenses hertfordshire  
contract award
january 2007
award of block contract with 
hertfordshire county council 
january 2008
oxford radcliffe  
contract award
march 2008
extension of the medical 
records data storage  
contract with the oxford 
radcliffe hospitals nhs  
trust for a further 2 years  
to january 2011
supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 7
cross rail contract award
february 2008
award of five year contract 
by cross london rail links 
to provide land referencing 
and property information 
management services
hammersmith   
fulham pilot award
march 2008
carers emergency support 
pilot scheme awarded by 
hammersmith and fulham
surrey care  
contract award
march 2008
award of spot contract with 
surrey county council
nottinghamshire  
extra care award
january 2008
award of contract at vale 
view extra care scheme in 
nottinghamshire county 
council
cross rail  
contract award
march 2008
award of five year contract 
by cross london rail links to 
provide a webbased property 
register as a hosted service
hallam acquisition
january 2008
acquisition of  
hallam healthcare east 
midlands limited for a 
total consideration of up  
to £47m supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 8
chairman’s statement
i am pleased to present the results for 
the year ended 31 march 2008  the 
highlights set out earlier reveal the 
mixed fortunes of the two divisions 
over the course of the last year 
our care division has continued to develop strongly 
principally through organic growth with an outstanding year 
of new contract wins secured  it continues to operate within 
what we believe to be an extremely buoyant marketplace 
and is well placed to benefit from further organic growth and 
anticipated consolidation within this sector 
the professional services division results have been impacted 
significantly by the performance of our architectural practice 
and specifically by the charge as an exceptional item of 
the writeoff of £077m of accrued income which had been 
recognised in the previous year’s accounts  there have 
nonetheless been some significant developments within the 
division  the terraquest acquisition has performed ahead 
of management expectations whilst the engineering and 
records management businesses continued to perform in 
line with expectations  
corporate activity
the board notes the announcement made by romac 
investments limited ‘romac’ on 13 june 2008 and can 
confirm that on 23 april 2008 it received a letter from 
romac outlining an indicative conditional proposal 
regarding a possible offer for the issued and to be issued 
share capital of supporta
on receipt of this letter the board entered into a dialogue 
with romac seeking to clarify uncertainties surrounding its 
conditional indicative proposal including in respect of the 
financing of any offer the board and its advisors also had a 
number of conversations with alternative offerors and 
received an indicative proposal from a third party which 
placed a significantly higher value on the group than that 
set out by romac in their letter of 23 april 2008 this 
higher indicative proposal was conditional on receiving the 
support of gingko investments limited ‘gingko’ the 
wholly owned subsidiary of romac in any offer by the third 
party following discussions with the third party gingko 
informed supporta that it would not support the higher 
indicative offer and hence the third party formally 
withdrew from discussions regarding an offer for supporta
on 5 june 2008 the board informed romac that it placed a 
significantly higher value on supporta than that set out in 
romac’s proposal and that it felt unable to progress matters 
on the basis of romac’s letter of 23 april 2008
the supporta board also informed romac that it would 
welcome an alternative proposal from romac that placed 
an appropriate value on the company a position it 
continues to adopt
the board has actively been evaluating strategic options for 
the company and remains committed to taking action to 
deliver value for all shareholders
in addition to these recent developments the group disposed 
of its payroll business to the mckesson corporation in 
may 2007 for a total consideration of £35 million in cash 
and it acquired the entire share capital of hallam healthcare 
services east midlands limited for a maximum total 
consideration of £47 million in january 2008
strategic review
the board conducted a full strategic review during the 
course of the year to strengthen the focus of the group 
and ensure that shareholders realised the underlying and 
potential value  the board in conjunction with its financial 
advisers concluded that
the best way to optimise shareholder value is to •	
continue to grow the supporta care business both 
organically and with earnings enhancing acquisitions
the cost reduction exercise within supporta professional •	
services should position that business to produce 
enhanced returns
the board will also continue to review whether the two 
businesses are better positioned to take advantage of 
growth opportunities as separate businesses
the board reached these conclusions after taking into 
account the following factors
the supporta care division has market opportunity •	
through both acquisition and organic growth initiatives
the current stock market valuation of the group does •	
not accurately reflect the value of the component parts 
of the group and
the current m  a environment has been adversely •	
impacted by the weakness in credit markets 
the directors believe that in this environment the value 
which potential acquirers would place on the group’s 
divisions would be negatively affected over the shortterm
performance in 200708
the financial year was adversely impacted by the performance 
of our architectural practice  this underperformance led to us 
issuing a trading statement on the 23 january 2008
in december 2007 supporta completed a placing which 
raised £418m net of expenses at this time it was the board’s 
expectation that any underperformance arising from its 
dr clive grace
nonexecutive chairman
“our care division has continued to 
develop strongly whilst the professional 
services division results have 
been impacted significantly by the 
performance of our architecture practice”
 before exceptional items goodwill amortisation and impairment 9
 
we believe that the group 
is well positioned to deliver 
underlying organic growth
supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008
architectural practice would be offset by stronger 
performance from the other businesses which comprise 
the professional services division such that market 
expectations of operating performance could be achieved
towards the end of january 2008 it became clear that 
the results of supporta bay associates would be impacted 
by contract delays as a result on 23 january 2008 the 
board issued a trading statement explaining that the 
earnings before interest taxation exceptional items and 
amortisation for the year to 31 march 2008 would not 
be less than £295 million the revised lower target as set 
out in this release has been achieved
the underperformance of the architectural practice 
in the financial year to 31 march 2008 has arisen in 
part following a review of all accrued income and 
a recognition that income previously recognised in 
the prior year’s financial statements was no longer 
considered recoverable together with a more rigorous 
policy on revenue recognition in the current financial 
year  as a result of the underperformance in the 
architectural practice the management of that business 
unit was changed
michael curran has taken on the role of divisional 
managing director of the supporta professional services 
division  the finance team for the division has also been 
significantly strengthened since this time
a new divisional structure for professional services 
has been implemented with the appointment of john 
gannon to lead the terraquest business and john fynn 
heading up the services business  alongside these two 
business streams lie a sales and marketing team led by 
simon read and a corporate services support function 
headed up by trevor fayers
banking facilities   
as a result of the weak trading performance from the 
group’s architectural practice the board successfully 
renegotiated the terms of its term loan facility with its 
bank barclays plc the board has agreed with the bank 
a revised covenant and repayment profile
trading outlook   
trading for the year to date is in line with management’s 
expectations and the directors believe that the group is 
well positioned to deliver underlying organic growth in 
the year  supporta care continues to perform very 
positively and the directors believe that it has excellent 
opportunities for growth  we will continue to monitor 
the development of supporta professional services and is 
confident that 200809 will be a year of positive growth
core values
we aspire to be both the supplier and the employer of 
choice for our customers and employees  these core 
values underpin our entire business 
supporta now has an impressive list of customers 
predominantly in the public sector  we provide a 
range of critical services which enhance peoples’ lives 
on a daily basis  we acknowledge this burden of 
responsibility and accountability and strive to put in 
place quality controls to ensure that every customer’s 
experience of supporta is both positive and mutually 
rewarding  the board regularly receives reports on 
customer satisfaction and customer feedback reflecting 
the importance which it attaches to meeting and 
exceeding their expectations
to be the employer of choice we need a highly 
professional trained and motivated workforce  we 
aim to reward staff competitively for the roles they 
undertake  we also realise that for many of our staff 
their roles are vocations rather than simply jobs  we 
aim to enrich their work life through training and 
development which helps them meet their aspirations 
and also improves the quality of our services  we 
monitor feedback from staff and seek ways in which 
their working lives can be even more rewarding
our staff continue to show exceptional dedication to 
their roles and make a huge contribution to the quality 
of life of many thousands of people often some of the 
most vulnerable in the united kingdom  on this note i 
would like to thank on behalf of the board all supporta 
staff who have helped deliver these results and customer 
satisfaction for the past year
changes to the board   
stephen whiting left the business on 27 november 2007 
to pursue opportunities outside of the group  
michael curran took over the role of leading supporta 
professional services forward and simon birks was 
appointed as company secretary  simon is a qualified 
solicitor and takes on his new role after three years 
service with the group most recently as group 
commercial manager
the board of directors has the drive and determination to 
achieve our ambitious strategic objectives
  
dr clive grace
nonexecutive chairman 
23 june 2008 supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 10
chief executive’s statement
strategic review
during the course of the year the board considered a 
number of strategic options for the group  these can be 
broadly classified as
status quo •	
focus on supporta care •	
focus on supporta professional services •	
demerger of the two divisions into two separate  •	
aim listed companies
the board concluded that supporta care had the better 
prospects for delivering value to shareholders  additionally 
the board acknowledged that management diversion by 
trying to concentrate on the delivery of such a wide range 
of services was likely to dilute shareholder value in the 
short to mediumterm
as noted in more detail below the group was approached 
by a private equity house to acquire supporta professional 
services at an acceptable price in the summer of 2007 
and conducted negotiations to an advanced stage which 
were ultimately unsuccessful  during this time period the 
credit conditions in the market were adversely affected and 
the impact of the underperformance of the architectural 
business meant that the group’s value aspirations were 
unlikely to be met in the shortterm  as a consequence 
the board has decided to concentrate on driving value out 
of the existing businesses until market conditions change 
when the situation will be reviewed again
supporta care
during 200708 the directors believe that supporta 
care has enhanced its reputation as a quality provider 
of domiciliary care services  our reputation for delivery 
of quality services has resulted in another year of solid 
organic growth with enhanced margins being achieved 
within the business
the strategy for our care division is to continue to grow 
a national brand for provision of home care services 
mainly to the public sector across the uk  the directors 
believe that we are well placed as the fifth largest private 
provider of these services to benefit from the continued 
consolidation of this market place driven by increased 
complexity and regulation
care market
there is an ageing population in the uk within which 
there is a more demanding expectation on choice and 
quality for the delivery and support of care for the elderly 
shaped towards individual need the number of people aged 
65 and over in the uk in 2006 based on ons data was 
81 million the government’s actuary’s forecasts suggest 
this could increase to 98 million by 2016 this represents 
an increase of approximately 21 per cent in addition to 
the accelerating growth of the elderly population life 
expectancy at birth is also increasing at a rate of two years 
every decade as a result of these demographic trends 
it is likely that a larger proportion of the population will 
require some form of residential or domiciliary care for a 
longer period of time the directors believe that the ageing 
population will be a key driver in the allocation of local 
authority care budgets and the demand for domiciliary care 
services in the foreseeable future
the domiciliary care market remains highly fragmented with 
4735 suppliers registered in england on 31 march 2007 
the top five uk quoted suppliers including supporta care 
account for approximately 15 percent of the total market  
in 2006 independent sector agencies delivered in excess 
of 75 percent of total home care hours the combination 
of independent smaller agencies local authorities moving 
towards preferred provider type arrangements increased 
cost pressures and competition and regulatory and training 
requirements means that in our opinion there will be a 
natural consolidation in the market
the directors believe that smaller independent domiciliary 
care providers will struggle to compete in delivering a cost 
effective quality service whilst simultaneously retaining 
appropriately skilled staff and that larger independent 
providers however are able to offer cost effective 
solutions based on economies of scale and increased 
efficiency in their investment towards quality
local authority purchasing power has a major impact on 
the independent domiciliary care sector it is estimated 
that 60 per cent of independent providers are thought to 
rely on local authorities for more then 75 per cent of their 
business with almost 15 per cent of providers dependent 
on their local authority as their only customer  
john jasper
group chief executive
“during 200708 supporta care 
enhanced its reputation as a quality 
provider of domiciliary care services”
 before exceptional items goodwill amortisation and impairment 11 supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008
 
during the year the care division has secured renewed 
or extended the following contracts
client
term 
years type of contract
brighton and hove 1 spot
dudley 1 block
durham pct 1 spot
hammersmith and fulham 1 block
harrow 5 cost and volume
hertfordshire 7 block
lambeth pct palliative care 1 spot
norfolk 1 block
north lanarkshire 1 spot
nottinghamshire extra care 
vale view 3 block
richmond 1 block
stockton on tees 3 block
sunderland 2 spot
surrey 2 spot
sutton 1 block
supporta care’s forward order book at 31 march 2008 
increased by 36 to £889m compared to £652m in 
march 2007
we are currently working on a number of further 
opportunities with various local authorities and would 
hope to be able to communicate positively about these 
in the near future
supporta professional services
the board took the decision to create the supporta 
professional services division with effect from 
1 april 2007  this new division was formed from  
the previous property and services divisions  
in november and december 2007 the board 
implemented a cost savings plan within the supporta 
professional services division that is expected to save 
the group approximately £17m on an annualised 
basis the implementation of this significant cost 
saving initiative had a £08m positive impact on 
this current financial year’s results of the £17m 
savings approximately £05m of this relates to the 
architectural business  the board delayed making 
these savings whilst an approach for the supporta 
professional services division from a private equity 
house was being considered these negotiations 
despite being at an advanced stage did not result 
in a successful disposal subsequent restructuring 
led to the departure of the managing director of 
the supporta professional services division and the 
managing director chief architect and financial 
controller of the architectural practice
michael curran was appointed managing director 
of the supporta professional services division on 
27 november 2007  since then he has conducted a 
full review of the division’s activities and prospects  
following this review we decided to organise the 
division into two principal units supporta terraquest 
headed up by john gannon and supporta services 
headed up by john fynn  supporta terraquest is now 
responsible for the division’s management consultancy 
and business process outsourcing activities  supporta 
services has four principal trading units architecture 
engineering healthcare and records management
the 200708 revenue and operating profit before 
sharebased payment charge amortisation and 
exceptional items for each of these units is set out in 
the following table
revenue
£’000
operating 
profit
supporta terraquest 8398 2426
supporta services
architecture 2198 6
engineering 2435 534
healthcare 1813 380
records management 2169 586
8615 1494
overheads – 1799
supporta professional services 17013 2121
the board has implemented a 
£17m cost savings plan within 
supporta professional services  supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 12
chief executive’s statement continued
the focus for the division during the course of the next 
financial year will be to improve sales performance and 
secure longer term contracts  the directors believe that 
this should begin to reduce the risk in the division as 
currently we enter the financial year with approximately 
two thirds of our forecast income for the year unsecured
the focus on sales performance is already beginning to yield 
benefits  we have secured a number of contracts recently 
which should help to improve the prospects for the division
supporta terraquest relationship with bt extended to •	
include local government 
appointed by transport for london to mapping services •	
framework for property asset register 
secured a place on the geographic information services •	
and solutions giss catalist framework agreement with 
ogcbuyingsolutions
award of a contract by cross london rail links to •	
provide land referencing and property information 
management services 
award of a contract by cross london rail links  •	
to provide a web based property register as a  
hosted service 
appointed by taylor wimpey to provide a webbased •	
strategic land database as a hosted service
appointed by department for transport to undertake •	
a property recording review across the department 
including all executive agencies and nondepartmental 
public bodies
the forward order book for professional services is £65m 
2007 £81m with additional anticipated revenues from 
framework agreements of £123m 2007 £80m
the management of supporta has further identified 
synergies and crossselling opportunities for the division 
which it anticipates will lead to further organic growth in 
200809 and beyond
john jasper
group chief executive  
23 june 2008
 before sharebased payment charge amortisation and exceptional items
supporta terraquest
supporta services
civil  structural engineering 
architecture
document solutions
healthcare consultancy
supporta professional services 
revenue
4936
1432
1292
1275
1065
supporta terraquest
supporta services
document solutions
civil  structural engineering 
healthcare consultancy
supporta professional services 
operating profit
968
136
1492
6180
 before allocation of central overhead 13
finance director’s report
this year’s annual report presents the group’s 
results for the first time using the recognition and 
measurement principles of international financial 
reporting standards ifrs as adopted by the 
european union  a reconciliation of the results 
between uk and ifrs financial reporting standards 
uk gaap is set out on pages 61 to 66
the group’s accounting policies under ifrs are set 
out in more detail on pages 28 to 35
the group’s overall results from continuing operations 
for the year ended 31 march 2008 and percentage 
change from year ended 31 march 2007 show
revenue £5076m 19
operating profit £102m 169
operating profit margin 20 158
loss before tax from  
continuing operations £037m 85
cash generated from operations £190m 45
loss per share from  
continuing operations 091p 75
revenue
in 2008 group revenue from continuing operations 
increased by 19 to £5076m 2007 £4271m 
growth has been generated both from acquisitions 
and from underlying organic revenue growth of 
1  the acquisitions contributing to growth in 
2008 include the full year effect from datacare 
business systems limited bay associates limited 
and terraquest solutions limited acquired in the 
previous year  additionally the hallam healthcare 
east midlands limited acquisition completed during 
the year
the disposal of supporta’s payroll business completed 
on 4 may 2007 and consequently the results 
presented here do not include any contribution from 
that business
operating profit
the group’s operating profit before sharebased 
payment charge amortisation and exceptional items 
profit from continuing operations increased by 14 
to £403m 2007 £353m including £014m from the 
hallam healthcare acquisition
the group incurred a number of exceptional charges 
during the year relating principally to the writeoff of 
accrued revenue in architecture restructuring of the 
business and redundancy which are summarised in 
note 4 to the financial statements
during the course of the year it became apparent that 
£077m of accrued revenue which had been recognised 
in 200607 was not recoverable  this arose from a 
policy in the business to recognise revenue where 
work had taken place but no order had been secured  
we have taken a more prudent approach to income 
recognition in this financial year and only revenue in 
relation to prison service work is now recognised in 
this manner which historically has been collectable    
taxation
corporation tax of £028m 2007 credit of £016m 
has been provided for which is equivalent to an 
effective tax rate of 74 2007 6  this charge 
and high apparent effective tax rate is impacted by a 
number of disallowable items including sharebased 
payment charge amortisation and timing differences 
earnings per share
adjusted earnings per share reduced by 30 to 
266p 2007378p
the reported loss after taxation for the year was 
£159m 2007 loss of £606m which equates to a loss 
per share for the year of 224p 2007 loss of 940p
cash flow
net cash outflow for the group in the year was 
£178m compared to an outflow in 2007 of £175m 
cash inflow from operating activities reduced by 
45 to £190m in the year 2007 £343m inflow  
this was driven by financing the group’s growth in 
the final quarter of the year and settling creditors 
carried over from the previous year  financing 
activities raised £401m in the year 2007 £870m 
of which £526m net of expenses came from new 
share issues £276m from the drawdown of banking 
facilities offset by loan repayments of £310m and 
a repayment of loan notes amounting to £089m  
the net cash outflow from investing activities was 
£542m 2007 £1234m
supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008
“this year’s annual report uses 
the principles of international 
financial reporting standards 
for the first time”
darren xiberras
group finance director
 before sharebased payment charge amortisation and exceptional items supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 14
finance director’s report continued
treasury management  
and financial instruments
financial instruments include all assets and liabilities 
of a financial nature such as cash loans finance leases 
overdrafts and longterm liabilities  all such instruments 
play an important part in the operations of the group to 
enable it to operate smoothly and effectively and to pay its 
obligations as they fall due  they also enable the group to 
fulfill its investment strategy including making appropriate 
acquisitions  the group’s objectives are twofold to use 
financial instruments to minimise the cost of capital at an 
acceptably low financial risk and to maximise flexibility to 
take advantage of investment and acquisition opportunities 
as they arise  
the group is primarily a uk provider of outsourced services 
to the public sector and does not have significant foreign 
exchange risks  
in march 2008 the group renegotiated its banking facilities 
with barclays plc in order to give it greater headroom in 
relation to its covenants and to reduce the repayments due 
under its term loans
at the end of the year the group had net borrowings  
of £1740m
the group’s policy is and has been throughout the year 
that no trading in financial instruments is undertaken
the volatility in 3 month libor the basis for interest 
charging for the group’s floating debt has impacted 
adversely the level of interest incurred through this year’s 
consolidated income statement
the group entered into a hedging arrangement in may 
2008 to fix the remainder of the group’s current term 
debt at a fixed rate of 5445 for four years  the group’s 
current margin applicable over and above the fixed rate is 
25 increasing to 30 in september 2008 which then 
reduces as the ratio of net debt to earnings before interest 
tax and amortisation falls
risks
supporta has identified the five most significant 
operational risks faced by the business  and measures to 
counterbalance them  as follows
staff recruitment and retention – •	 our business needs 
access to appropriately skilled employees to enable us 
to grow in a sustainable fashion  we have implemented 
our employer of choice initiative to mitigate this 
risk  in addition to progress already made on training 
and development we will continue to review our 
remuneration and employment policies to ensure we can 
maintain good staff retention within our businesses
quality failure – •	 the business provides life critical 
services to many thousands of people in the uk in 
often complex and challenging situations  within our 
businesses as part of our supplier of choice initiative 
we have implemented best practice procedures and 
manuals health and safety working practices customer 
service initiatives and relationship management 
procedures  these are regularly reinforced through staff 
training and development  during the year we intend 
to invest significantly in our care operational it systems 
to further strengthen our commitment to quality  the 
operational management team meets regularly to review 
operational quality issues and items of a significant 
nature are reported to the board on a regular basis
longterm contracts – •	 a number of our subsidiaries 
enter into longterm contracts  these involve significant 
elements of subjectivity in relation to revenue 
recognition and can be subject to delays as a result of 
external factors for instance planning permission  we 
will implement improved controls over the course of the 
year to ensure that rigour is applied in areas requiring 
judgment we will also continue regular client progress 
review meetings to ensure that visibility of future 
earnings are based upon the best possible information 15
 
uncontracted revenue – •	 some of our businesses 
within the supporta professional services division 
commence work prior to the receipt of a signed 
order from customers  such work is recognised 
within accrued income  our experience of 
dealing with these customers shows that there is 
limited risk in relation to recovering such income 
however the board will continue to monitor the 
appropriateness of this practice and policy
exposure to uk property sector – •	 a large 
part of our professional services division’s 
revenue is derived from the uk property sector  
approximately 36 of divisional revenues are 
derived from the private sector property industry  
whilst in recent history this has been an area 
of significant economic activity the current 
slowdown in this sector will inevitably impact 
on our activity in this area  alongside this 
private sector exposure we also run a significant 
element of work on behalf of the public sector 
and we aim to shift resources into this sector 
as economic activity in the private sector 
slows  however we will continue to monitor the 
resourcing levels of the affected businesses and 
flex them appropriately
darren xiberras
group finance director 
23 june 2008
operating profit improved 
by 174 to £11m
supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008
elderly
specialist
private patients
agency
supporta care  
service provision
7330
1690
770
210
36581770
‘09 ‘10 ‘11 ‘12 ‘13
supporta care 
order book
‘14 ‘15
23787362
10505978
6409839
6213484
2671485
2738272 board of directors
dr clive grace
nonexecutive chairman
john jasper
group chief executive
darren xiberras
group finance director
bernadette walsh
managing director supporta care
michael curran
managing director supporta professional services
nick scholte
nonexecutive director
supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 16 17 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008
 
dr clive grace
nonexecutive chairman
clive is an honorary research fellow at cardiff business 
school where he researches financial reporting public 
services leadership and governance he is a wellrespected 
consultant and leadership coach with a wealth of public 
services improvement experience
chair of the board of the solace foundation imprint clive 
is also an active member of cipfa and serves on its council 
and management committee
he has held a number of senior executive positions in the 
public sector most recently as deputy auditor general for 
wales and director general of the audit commission for 
wales he holds a dphil from oxford university in law and 
sociology an ma in government from the university of 
california and a diploma in business administration from 
the open university
clive is also a qualified solicitor
john jasper
group chief executive
john is a pioneer of outsourced services with vast 
experience in the sector and a clear vision of the future
he was a member of the capita group board for six years 
and subsequently in the role of group chief executive 
officer established hbs formerly hyder business services 
a company which is now a leading provider of outsourced 
services to the public sector
since joining supporta in august 2004 john has transformed 
the group into a fast growing and profitable organisation 
john is also a fellow of the british computer society
darren xiberras
group finance director
darren is a chartered certified accountant a graduate 
of the advanced development programme of cranfield 
university’s school of management and holds a bachelor’s 
degree in economics from cardiff university
darren has extensive financial management experience 
with fastgrowing companies in the support services sector 
including operational financial management business 
acquisitions and disposals acquisition integration system 
implementations public private partnership contract 
negotiations and management sales support and pricing of 
large outsourcing contracts
prior to joining supporta he held the roles of divisional 
finance director at tribal education limited a subsidiary of 
the tribal group plc and regional finance director of hbs 
business services limited where he was responsible for 
business units with up to £75m annual turnover he trained 
as an accountant within the utilities industry
bernadette walsh
managing director supporta care
bernadette has over twenty two years’ experience in the 
delivery of outsourced homecare services and solutions to 
the public sector she has an outstanding reputation and 
an excellent track record with local authorities in providing 
very high standards of service prior to her appointment as 
managing director of supporta care bernadette was md 
of medico  one of the social care brands within nestor plc 
and a director of grosvenor nursing ltd
michael curran
managing director supporta professional services
michael has a wealth of experience in delivering outsourced 
managed services to the public sector a founding director 
of the parys snowdon group he brings over eighteen years’ 
experience as a service provider to the nhs 
before his appointment as managing director 
supporta professional services michael was deputy 
chief executive chief operating officer for the group 
businesses and prior to that was managing director of 
the supporta services division which now forms part of 
supporta professional services
nick scholte
nonexecutive director
nick is chief executive of the nhs business services 
authority nhs bsa which provides a wide range of key 
support services to nhs contractors managers and users 
it was formed in april 2006 out of the merger of the nhs 
prescription pricing authority dental practice board nhs 
pensions authority nhs logistics authority and the nhs 
counter fraud  security management service
nick is one of the most highly regarded senior officers in the 
nhs and has considerable experience of reorganising and 
restructuring highvolume transaction processing businesses supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 18
the directors present their report together with financial statements for the year ended 31 march 2008
principal activities
the principal activities of the group are the provision of outsourcing services to the public sector
the principal activity of the company is to act as a holding company
business review
there was a loss for the year after taxation amounting to £159m 2007 £606m the directors do not recommend 
payment of a dividend 2007 £nil principal business risks are discussed on page 14 a detailed review can be found in the 
chief executive’s statement set out on pages 10 to 12 
directors
the membership of the board during the year and subsequently is set out below 
appointed resigned
c grace – –
j jasper – –
m curran – –
d xiberras 23 may 2007 –
b walsh 1 june 2007 –
s whiting 1 june 2007 27 november 2007
n scholte – –
d jackson – 23 may 2007
the annual base salaries and beneficial interests of the directors in the shares of the company at 1 april 2007 and 
31 march 2008 or the date of appointment to the board if later were as follows
annual base salary ordinary shares
31 march 2008 
£
01 april 2007 
or date of 
appointment if later 
£
31 march 2008 
no
1 april 2007 
no
c grace 50000 30000 100000 30000
j jasper 175000 175000 400000 351728
m curran 100000 100000 2963680 3853680
d xiberras 100000 100000 10000 –
b walsh 100000 100000 10000 –
n scholte 20000 20000 – –
s whiting – 100000 na –
d jackson – 100000 na –
no bonuses were payable to directors for the year 2007 nil
directors’ report supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 19
the share options of the directors were as follows 
31 march 2008 31 march 2008
excercise 
price p 400 595 625 630 715 895 400 595 625 630 715 825 895 
c grace 
j jasper 250000 4077373 250000 2705804
m curran 250000 132999 250000 86666
d xiberras 150000 100000 100000 
b walsh 250000 250000
n scholte 
s padgett 250000 36750 333333
s whiting 200000 50000 
d jackson 250000 
on 31 march 2008 j jasper was granted share options to take the cumulative share options to 5 of the issued share 
capital under an agreement dated 10 august 2004 the option price of the share options is equal to the average of the mid 
market price of a share over the 10 dealing days ending on 31 march 2005 this resulted in the granting of 1371569 share 
options at 595p
on 31 march 2008 m curran was granted 44333 share options under the terms of an agreement dated 12 february 2006 
between the company and m curran these options were granted at a price of 895p
on 26 june 2007 d xiberras was granted 150000 share options under the terms of an agreement dated 7 june 2007 these 
options were granted at a price of 630p
statement of directors’ responsibilities
the directors are responsible for preparing the annual report and the financial statements in accordance with applicable 
law and regulations
company law requires the directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year under that law the directors 
have to prepare consolidated financial statements in accordance with international financial reporting standards as 
adopted by the european union ifrss and parent company financial statements under united kingdom generally 
accepted accounting practice uk gaap the financial statements are required by law to give a true and fair view of 
the state of affairs of the group and company and of the profit or loss of the group for that period in preparing these 
financial statements the directors are required to
select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently •	
make judgments and estimates that are reasonable and prudent •	
state whether applicable accounting standards have been followed subject to any material departures disclosed and •	
explained in the financial statements and
prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the company will •	
continue in business
the directors are responsible for keeping proper accounting records that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the 
financial position of the company and enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with the companies act 
1985 they are also responsible for safeguarding the assets of the company and hence for taking reasonable steps for the 
prevention and detection of fraud and other irregularities
directors’ report continued supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 20
statement of directors’ responsibilities continued
in so far as each of the directors is aware
there is no relevant audit information of which the group’s auditor is unaware and •	
the directors have taken all steps that they ought to have taken to make themselves aware of any relevant audit •	
information and to establish that the auditor is aware of that information
the directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the 
group’s website legislation in the united kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements 
may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions
employee involvement 
the group has continued its practice of keeping employees informed of matters affecting them as employees and the 
financial and economic factors affecting the performance of the group
this is achieved through consultations with employee representatives
disabled employees 
applications for employment by disabled persons are given full and fair consideration for all vacancies in accordance with 
their particular aptitudes and abilities in the event of employees becoming disabled every effort is made to accommodate 
their requirements and disabilities in order that their employment with the group may continue
it is the policy of the group that training career development and promotion opportunities should be available to  
all employees
payment policy and practice 
it is the group’s policy to settle the terms of payment with suppliers when agreeing the terms of the transaction to ensure 
that suppliers are aware of these terms and abide by them trade creditors at the year end amount to 88 days 2007 66 
days of average supplies for the year 
charitable donations 
the group made no charitable donations in the year 2007 nil 
crest 
supporta plc share dealings have been settled on crest since the admission of the ordinary shares to aim crest is 
the computerised system for the settlement of share dealings on the london stock exchange it reduces the amount of 
documentation required and also makes the trading of shares faster and more secure crest enables shares to be held 
in electronic form instead of the traditional share certificates crest is voluntary and shareholders can keep their share 
certificates if they wish this may be especially preferable for shareholders who do not trade frequently 
auditors 
grant thornton uk llp offer themselves for reappointment as auditor in accordance with section 385 of the companies  
act 1985 
by order of the board  
s birks 
secretary 
23 june 2008 
directors’ report continued supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 21
introduction 
supporta plc is an aim listed company and while the aim rules do not require the group to comply with any specific 
corporate governance principles the group adopts generally accepted corporate governance good practice wherever size 
and resources permit 
the board of directors 
the group supports the concept of an effective board leading and controlling the group the board is responsible for 
approving group policy and strategy it meets periodically and has a schedule of matters specifically reserved to it for 
decision management supplies the board with appropriate and timely information and the directors are free to seek any 
further information they consider necessary
the current board consists of five executive directors and two nonexecutive directors the nonexecutive directors 
are independent of management and any business or other relationship which could interfere with the exercise of their 
independent judgment the nonexecutive directors provide a strong independent element on the board and bring 
experience at a senior level to business operations and strategy the nonexecutive chairman of the board is dr c grace 
and the group chief executive is j jasper
relations with shareholders 
the group values the views of its shareholders and recognises their interest in the group’s strategy and performance 
board membership and quality of management it therefore holds regular meetings and presentations to its institutional 
shareholders to discuss objectives
the annual general meeting agm is used to communicate with private investors and they are encouraged to participate 
the chairman of the audit and remuneration committees is available to answer questions separate resolutions are 
proposed on each issue so that they can be given proper consideration and there is a resolution to approve the annual 
report and accounts the company counts all proxy votes and will indicate the level of proxies lodged on each resolution 
after it has been dealt with by a show of hands
accountability and audit 
the board seeks to present a balanced and understandable assessment of the group position and prospects in all interim 
and pricesensitive reports reports to regulators and in the information required to be presented by statute
the audit committee comprises dr c grace and n scholte who are nonexecutive directors the terms of reference of the 
committee include keeping under review the scope and results of the external audit and its cost effectiveness the committee 
reviews the independence and objectivity of the external auditors this includes reviewing the nature and extent of nonaudit 
services supplied by the external auditor to the group seeking to balance objectivity and value for money
internal control 
the board of directors has overall responsibility for the group’s system of internal control and for reviewing its 
effectiveness the risk management process and systems of internal control are designed to manage rather than eliminate 
the risk of failure to achieve the group’s objectives it should be recognised that such systems can only provide reasonable 
and not absolute assurance against material misstatement or loss
assessment of business risk 
a system of business risk identification assessment and evaluation is in place within the management process throughout 
the group strategic risks are regularly reviewed by the board risks relating to the key activities within the subsidiary 
operating units are assessed continuously
corporate governance statement supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 22
control environment 
the group’s operating procedures include a comprehensive system for reporting financial and nonfinancial information to 
the board including
preparation of 3year strategy plans for business development •	
preparation and review of annual budgets •	
review of the business at each board meeting focusing on any new risks arising for example key changes in the market •	
control procedures 
detailed operational procedures have been developed for each of the group’s operating businesses that embody key 
controls the implications of changes in law and regulations are taken into account within these procedures
monitoring processes 
there are clear procedures for monitoring the system of key controls the most significant component is a review by the 
audit committee of the process for identifying and assessing risks and the effectiveness of controls
the board has considered the need for an internal audit function but has decided that this is not justified at present 
however it will keep the decision under review on at least an annual basis
going concern 
after making enquiries the directors have a reasonable expectation that the group has adequate resources to continue 
in operational existence for the foreseeable future for this reason they continue to adopt the going concern basis in 
preparing the financial statements
directors’ remuneration 
the board recognises that directors’ remuneration is of legitimate concern to the shareholders and is committed to 
following current best practice the particulars of the remuneration of the directors and their interests are set out in the 
directors’ report the remuneration committee comprises dr c grace and n scholte 
corporate governance statement continued supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 23
we have audited the consolidated financial statements of supporta plc for the year ended 31 march 2008 which comprise 
the principal accounting policies the consolidated income statement the consolidated balance sheet the consolidated 
cash flow statement the consolidated statement of changes in shareholders’ equity the consolidated statement of 
recognised income and expense and notes 1 to 37 these consolidated financial statements have been prepared under the 
accounting policies set out therein
we have reported separately on the parent company financial statements of supporta plc for the year ended 31 march 2008 
this report is made solely to the company’s members as a body in accordance with section 235 of the companies 
act 1985 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 
respective responsibilities of directors and auditors 
the directors’ responsibilities for preparing the annual report and the group financial statements in accordance with 
united kingdom law and international financial reporting standards ifrss as adopted by the european union are set  
out in the statement of directors’ responsibilities
our responsibility is to audit the group financial statements in accordance with relevant legal and regulatory requirements 
and international standards on auditing uk and ireland
we report to you our opinion as to whether the group financial statements give a true and fair view and whether the 
group financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with the companies act 1985 we also report to 
you whether in our opinion the information given in the directors’ report is consistent with the financial statements the 
information given in the directors’ report includes that specific information presented in the business review that is cross 
referred from the business review section of the directors’ report
in addition we report to you if in our opinion we have not received all the information and explanations we require for  
our audit or if information specified by law regarding directors’ remuneration and other transactions is not disclosed 
we read other information contained in the annual report and consider whether it is consistent with the audited group 
financial statements the other information comprises only the directors’ report the chairman’s statement the chief 
executive’s report the financial director’s report and the corporate governance statement we consider the implications 
for our report if we become aware of any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the group financial 
statements our responsibilities do not extend to any other information
basis of audit opinion 
we conducted our audit in accordance with international standards on auditing uk and ireland issued by the auditing 
practices board an audit includes examination on a test basis of evidence relevant to the amounts and disclosures in 
the group financial statements it also includes an assessment of the significant estimates and judgments made by the 
directors in the preparation of the group financial statements and of whether the accounting policies are appropriate to 
the group’s circumstances consistently applied and adequately disclosed
we planned and performed our audit so as to obtain all the information and explanations which we considered necessary 
in order to provide us with sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that the group financial statements are 
free from material misstatement whether caused by fraud or other irregularity or error in forming our opinion we also 
evaluated the overall adequacy of the presentation of information in the group financial statements
opinion 
in our opinion 
the group financial statements give a true and fair view in accordance with ifrss as adopted by the european union •	
of the state of the group’s affairs as at 31 march 2008 and of its loss for the year then ended
the group financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with the companies act 1985 and •	
the information given in the directors’ report is consistent with the financial statements •	
grant thornton uk llp 
registered auditor 
chartered accountants
oxford 
23 june 2008 
report of the independent autitors’
to the members of supporta plc supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 24
notes
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000 
continuing operations 
revenue 50763 42708 
cost of sales 36793 31180 
gross profit 13970 11528 
administrative expenses before share based payment charge 
amortisation and exceptional items 9943 7994 
operating profit before sharebased payment charge 
amortisation and exceptional items 4027 3534 
sharebased payment charge amortisation and exceptional items 4 3004 5008 
operating profitloss 3 1023 1474 
finance income 5 484 403
finance costs 5 1880 1463 
loss before taxation 373 2534 
taxation 7 277 161 
loss for the year from continuing operations 650 2373 
discontinued operations 
loss for the year from discontinued operations 8 942 3691 
loss for the year attributable to the equity  
holders of the parent 1592 6064 
loss per share 
from continuing and discontinuing operations 9 
– basic 224p 940p 
– diluted 224p 940p 
loss per share
loss from continuing operations 9
– basic 091p 368p 
– diluted 091p 368p 
consolidated income statement
for the year ended 31 march 2008 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 25
notes
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000 
loss for the year 1592 6064 
actuarial gainloss on defined benefit scheme 25 487 238 
deferred tax on actuarial loss 23 143 –
fair value lossesgains on cash flow hedges 87 112 
total recognised income and expense for the year 1335 6190 
attributable to the equity holders of the parent 1335 6190
 
consolidated statement of recognised income and expense
for the year ended 31 march 2008 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 26
notes
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
noncurrent assets 
goodwill 11 43852 40375 
other intangible assets 12 3071 2922 
property plant and equipment 13 975 877 
deferred tax asset 23 891 1097 
derivative financial instruments 22 109 
48811 45380 
current assets 
trade and other receivables 15 12956 12895 
cash and cash equivalents 16 52 1828 
13008 14723 
noncurrent assets classified as held for sale 8 185 3401 
total assets 62004 63504 
current liabilities 
financial liabilities 18 7795 9757 
trade and other payables 17 8012 7957 
current tax liabilities 696 934 
provisions 24 150 150 
16653 18798 
noncurrent liabilities 
financial liabilities 19 12280 15231 
provisions 24 172 314 
deferred tax liabilities 23 817 790 
retirement benefit obligations 25 3181 3657 
16450 19992 
total liabilities 33103 38790 
net assets 28901 24714 
equity 
share capital 34 4077 3370 
share premium 34 34873 30320 
sharebased payment reserve 34 637 375 
retained losses 34 10708 9460 
hedging reserve 34 22 109 
28901 24714 
the financial statements were approved by the board of directors on 23 june 2008 
j jasper  d xiberras 
director  director 
the accompanying accounting policies and notes form an integral part of these financial statements 
consolidated balance sheet
for the year ended 31 march 2008 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 27
notes
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
cash flows from operating activities 
cash generated from operations 35 1898 3434 
finance income 75 44 
finance costs 1383 1014 
income taxes 952 579 
net cash outin flows from operating activities 362 1885 
cash flows from investing activities 
acquisition of subsidiary net of cash acquired 28 3683 7191 
purchase of property plant and equipment and intangibles 887 608 
proceeds from sale of property plant and equipment 97 186 
proceeds from sale of subsidiary 29 3515 0 
payments in respect of previous acquisitions 4462 4723 
net cash flows from investing activities 5420 12336 
cash flows from financing activities 
proceeds from issue of share capital 5260 40 
repaymentsproceeds of longterm borrowings 335 7167 
increase in overdraft 4 1995 
payment of finance lease liabilities 35 67 
reduction in loan note 888 435 
net cash flows from financing activities 4006 8700 
net decrease in cash and cash equivalents 1776 1751 
cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year 16 1828 3579 
cash and cash equivalents at end of year 16 52 1828 
consolidated cashflow statement
for the year ended 31 march 2008 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 28
general information 
supporta plc is a public limited company ‘company’ incorporated in the united kingdom whose shares are publicly 
traded on the alternative investment market aim the company is domiciled in the united kingdom and its registered 
address is 3 kingmaker court warwick technology park warwick cv34 6ut united kingdom 
the group’s principal activities are the provision of outsourcing services to the public sector these services are typically 
provided under long term contracts or framework agreements with shorter term consultancy assignments being delivered 
under letters of engagement our supporta care division specialises in the provision of domiciliary care services which 
are designed to help people live independently in their own homes the supporta professional services division delivers 
architecture business process outsourcing engineering land  property consultancy  records management services
basis of accounting 
the financial statements comply with eu adopted international financial reporting standards ifrs the accounting 
policies set out below have been applied consistently to all years presented in these consolidated financial statements  
and in preparing an opening ifrs balance sheet at 1 april 2006 for the purposes of the transition to ifrs
basis of preparation 
for all years to 31 march 2007 the group prepared its audited financial statements under uk generally accepted 
accounting principles uk gaap for the year ending 31 march 2008 the group is required to prepare its annual 
consolidated financial statements in accordance with accounting standards adopted for use in the european union 
international financial reporting standards ifrs
these financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the accounting policies set out below taking into 
account the requirements and options in ifrs 1 ‘firsttime adoption of international financial reporting standards’  the 
transition date for the group’s application of ifrs is 1 april 2006 and the comparative figures for 31 march 2007 have 
been restated accordingly reconciliations of the income statement previously profit and loss account and balance sheet 
from previously reported uk gaap to ifrs are shown in note 36
basis of consolidation 
the consolidated financial statements incorporate those of supporta plc and all of its subsidiary undertakings for the year 
made up to 31 march each year
in preparing the consolidated financial statements any intragroup balances unrealised gains and losses or income 
and expenses arising from intragroup trading are eliminated where accounting policies used in individual financial 
statements of a subsidiary company differ from group policies adjustments are made to bring these policies in line with 
group policies
subsidiaries are entities over which the group has the power to govern the financial and operating policies to obtain 
economic benefit to the group subsidiary companies acquired during the year are consolidated using the purchase 
method the results of subsidiary companies acquired are included in the consolidated income statement from the effective 
date of acquisition 
the cost of an acquisition is measured as the fair value of the assets given equity instruments issued and liabilities 
incurred or assumed at the date of exchange plus costs directly attributable to the acquisition identifiable assets acquired 
and liabilities and contingent liabilities assumed in a business combination are initially measured at fair value at the 
acquisition date
the excess of cost of acquisition over the fair values of the group’s share of identifiable net assets acquired is recognised 
as goodwill any deficiency of the cost of acquisition below the fair value of identifiable net assets acquired ie discount 
on acquisition is recognised directly in the income statement
unrealised gains on transactions between group and its subsidiaries are eliminated unrealised losses are also eliminated 
unless the transaction provides evidence of an impairment of the asset transferred
transition to ifrs 
ifrs 1 grants certain exemptions from the full requirements of ifrss in the transition period the following exemptions 
have been taken in these consolidated financial statements
i  ifrs 3 – business combinations 
the group has elected not to apply ifrs 3 ‘business combinations’ retrospectively to acquisitions that took place  
prior to 1 april 2006 as a result the carrying amount of goodwill in the uk gaap balance sheet at 31 march 2006  
is brought forward to the ifrs opening balance sheet without adjustment 
accounting policies supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 29
transition to ifrs continued
ii  ias 19 – employee benefits – actuarial gains and losses 
the group has elected to recognise all cumulative actuarial gains and losses to 1 april 2006 for all defined benefit 
pension schemes
iii  ifrs 2 – sharebased payment 
ifrs 2 has not been applied to sharebased payments granted before 7 november 2002 nor those granted after  
7 november 2002 that had vested prior to 1 april 2006 the group has adopted ifrs 2 ‘share based payment’ for share 
options granted after 7 november 2002 which had not vested at 1 april 2005 the adoption of ifrs 2 has not required 
numerical adjustments to be made to the balance sheet at 1 april 2006 or to the income statement for the year ended 
31 march 2007 
noncurrent assets held for sale 
noncurrent assets classified as held for sale are measured at the lower of carrying amount and fair value less costs to sell
noncurrent assets and disposal groups are classified as held for sale if their carrying amount will be recovered through 
a sale transaction rather than through continuing use this condition is regarded as met only when the sale is highly 
probable and the asset or disposal group is available for immediate sale in its present condition management must be 
committed to the sale which should be expected to qualify for recognition as a completed sale within one year from the 
date of classification
revenue recognition 
group revenue is the fair value of the consideration received or receivable by the group for goods supplied and services 
provided excluding vat and trade discounts
revenue generated in supporta care is attributable to the provision of both home care services and qualified social care 
staff primarily to local authorities
revenue generated by supporta professional services is attributable to the provision of architectural and engineering 
consultancy services primarily to registered social landlords and the home office and on business process outsourcing 
and consultancy 
where services are provided on annual contracts revenue is spread evenly over the duration of the contract where annual 
contracts do not apply then revenue is recognised at fair value by reference to the estimated percentage of completion of 
the provision of services
interest income is accrued on a timeapportioned basis by reference to the principal outstanding and at the effective 
interest rate applicable which is the rate that exactly discounts estimated future cash receipts through the expected life  
of the financial asset to that asset’s net carrying amount
exceptional items
exceptional items are disclosed where these are material and considered necessary to explain the underlying financial 
performance of the group they are either one off in nature or necessary elements of expenditure to derive future benefits 
for the group which have not been capitalised in the balance sheet
segmental reporting 
a business segment is a group of assets and operations that provide a product or service and that is subject to risks and 
returns that are different from other business segments 
finance costs 
finance costs comprise interest payable net foreign exchange losses and finance charges on finance leases interest 
payable is recognised in the income statement as it accrues using the effective interest method
intangible assets 
intangible assets purchased separately from a business are capitalised at their cost 
customer related intangibles 
the group makes an assessment of the fair value of intangible assets arising on business combinations an intangible asset 
will be recognised as long as the asset is identifiable and its fair value can be measured reliably amortisation is provided 
on the fair value of the asset and is calculated on a straight line basis over its useful life the range of which is between 
one and nine years 
accounting policies continued supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 30
intangible assets continued
goodwill 
goodwill on acquisitions being the excess of the fair value of the cost of acquisition over the group’s interest in the fair 
value of the identifiable assets and liabilities acquired is capitalised and tested for impairment on an annual basis there is 
no restatement of goodwill that was amortised prior to transition to ifrs goodwill previously written off to reserves is not 
written back to profit or loss on subsequent disposal 
computer software costs 
expenditure on the development of new software products is charged to the income statement in the year in which it is 
incurred with the exception of expenditure on the development of certain new product projects where the outcome of 
those projects is assessed as being reasonably certain as regards viability and technical feasibility such expenditure is 
capitalised and amortised over a period not longer than three years following the completion of the product project
where computer software is not an integral part of a related item of computer hardware the software is treated as an 
intangible asset this is then capitalised on the basis of costs incurred to acquire and bring to use the specific software 
amortisation is provided by equal annual instalments over its expected useful life of 3 years down to its residual value
computer software licences capitalised are amortised by equal annual instalments over their expected useful life of 3 years 
down to their residual values
property plant  equipment 
property plant and equipment assets are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and any recognised impairment loss
depreciation is charged so as to write off the cost less residual value of assets over their estimated useful economic lives 
the range of estimated useful lives for each major asset category which are reviewed annually are
leasehold property  – term of the lease 
freehold property  – over 50 years 
office equipment fixtures and fittings  – 3 to 8 years  
including computer equipment  
and motor vehicles 
assets held under finance leases are depreciated over their expected useful lives on the same basis as owned assets or 
where shorter the term of the relevant lease
the gain or loss arising on the disposal or retirement of an asset is determined as the difference between the sales proceeds 
and the carrying amount of the asset and is recognised in profit or loss
impairment of assets 
at each balance sheet date the group reviews the carrying value of its property plant and equipment 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
goodwill is reviewed for impairment annually or more frequently if events or changes in circumstances indicate that the 
carrying value may be impaired
impairments when they arise are shown in sharebased payment charge amortisation and exceptional items line of the 
consolidated income statement and are disclosed further in note 4 to the financial statements 
impairment is determined for goodwill by assessing the recoverable amount of the cash generating unit or group of cash 
generating units to which the goodwill relates where the recoverable amount of the cash generating unit is less than 
the carrying amount of the cash generating unit to which goodwill has been allocated an impairment loss is recognised 
impairment losses relating to goodwill cannot be reversed in future periods
goodwill was tested for impairment at 1 april 2006 the date of transition to ifrs even though no indication of 
impairment existed
where the asset does not generate cash flows that are independent from other assets the group estimates the recoverable 
amount of the cash generating unit to which the asset belongs a cash generating unit is the smallest identifiable group of 
assets that generates cash inflows that are largely independent of the cash inflows from other assets or groups of assets
 
accounting policies continued supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 31
impairment of assets continued
recoverable amount is the higher of fair value less costs to sell and value in use in assessing value in use the estimated 
future cash flows are discounted to their present value using a discount rate that reflects current market assessments of 
the time value of money and the risks specific to the asset for which the estimates of future cash flows have not been 
adjusted any resulting changes are recognised in the income statement in the period to which they relate
except in the case of goodwill an impairment loss is only reversed if there is a subsequent increase in the recoverable 
amount that can be related objectively to an event occurring after the impairment loss was recognised an impairment loss 
in respect of goodwill is not subsequently reversed
impairment losses are shown in the sharebased payment charge amortisation and exceptional items line of the 
consolidated income statement
leasing 
leases are classified as finance leases whenever the terms of the lease transfer substantially all the risks and rewards of 
ownership to the group all other leases are classified as operating leases
assets held under finance leases are recognised as assets of the group at their fair value or if lower at the present value of 
the minimum lease payments each determined at the inception of the lease the corresponding liability is to be included in 
the balance sheet as a finance lease obligation the interest element of leasing payments represents a constant proportion 
of the capital balance outstanding and is charged to the income statement over the period of the lease
rentals payable under operating leases are charged to income on a straightline basis over the term of the relevant lease 
benefits received and receivable as an incentive to enter into an operating lease are also spread on a straight line basis 
over the lease term
borrowing costs 
borrowing costs are recognised as an expense when incurred in accordance with the benchmark accounting treatment 
under ias 23 
taxation 
the tax expense represents the sum of the current tax expense and deferred tax expense
the income tax payable is based on an estimation of the amount due on the taxable profit for the year taxable profit  
is different from net profit as reported in the income statement because it excludes items of income or expenditure  
which are not taxable or deductible in the year as a result of either the nature of the item or the fact that it is taxable  
or deductible in another period the group’s liability for current tax is calculated by using tax rates that have been enacted 
or substantially enacted by the balance sheet date
deferred tax is accounted for on the basis of temporary differences arising from the differences between the tax base and 
accounting base of assets and liabilities
deferred tax is recognised for all taxable temporary differences except to the extent where it arises from the initial 
recognition of an asset or liability in a transaction that is not a business combination deferred tax is not provided for 
on the initial recognition of goodwill deferred tax assets are recognised only to the extent that it is probable that future 
taxable profits will be available against which temporary differences can be utilised 
deferred tax is charged or credited to the income statement except when it relates to items charged or credited directly to 
equity in which case it is dealt with within equity it is calculated at the tax rates that are expected to apply to the period 
when the asset is realised or the liability is settled
financial instruments 
financial assets or liabilities are recognised when the group becomes a party to the contractual provisions of the instrument
classification of financial instruments 
financial instruments are classified as financial assets financial liabilities or equity instruments
accounting policies continued supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 32
financial instruments  continued
classification of financial instruments continued
following the adoption of ias 32 financial instruments issued by the group are treated as equity only to the extent that 
they meet the following two conditions
they include no contractual obligations upon the group to deliver cash or other financial assets that are potentially •	
unfavourable to the group and
where the instrument will or may be settled in the group’s own equity instruments it is either a nonderivative that •	
includes no obligation to deliver a variable number of the group’s own equity instruments or is a derivative that will 
be settled by the group exchanging a fixed amount of cash or other financial assets for a fixed number of its own 
equity instruments
to the extent that this definition is not met the proceeds of issue are classified as a financial liability where the 
instrument so classified takes the legal form of the company’s own shares the amounts presented in these financial 
statements for called up share capital and share premium account exclude amounts in relation to those shares
finance payments associated with financial instruments that are classified as equity are dividends and are recorded directly 
in equity finance payments associated with financial liabilities are dealt with as part of finance costs
recognition and valuation of financial assets 
trade receivables 
trade receivables are initially recorded at fair value and subsequently valued at amortised cost less impairment
impairment of trade receivables is recorded if there are objective indicators that suggest that the debts are not full 
recoverable or that the fair value of the receivable is impaired at the balance sheet date
cash and cash equivalents 
cash and cash equivalents comprise cash in hand and at bank cash and cash equivalents excludes overdrafts
financial liabilities 
financial liabilities and equity instruments are classified according to the substance of the contractual arrangements 
entered into financial liabilities include loan notes issued on acquisition and deferred consideration these financial 
liabilities are recorded at their fair value finance charges are allocated to the income statement using an effective interest 
rate on the outstanding carrying value of the instrument  
bank borrowings 
interest bearing bank loans and overdrafts are recorded at their fair value and subsequently valued at amortised cost 
finance charges are allocated to the income statement using an effective interest rate on the outstanding carrying value 
of the instrument
trade payables 
trade payables are not interest bearing and are recognised initially at fair value and thereafter at amortised cost
equity instruments 
equity instruments are initially measured at fair value an equity instrument is any contract that evidences a residual 
interest in the assets of the group after deducting all of its liabilities
derivative financial instruments and hedge accounting 
the group’s activities expose it primarily to the financial risks of changes in interest rates the group uses interest rate swap 
contracts to hedge these exposures the group does not use derivative financial instruments for speculative purposes
the use of financial derivatives is governed by the group’s policies approved by the board of directors which provide written 
principles in the use of financial derivatives the group seeks to manage financial risk by ensuring sufficient liquidity is 
available to meet foreseeable cash requirements and to invest cash assets safely and profitably interest rate risk is managed 
through the use of hedging arrangements
accounting policies continued supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 33
financial instruments continued
recognition and valuation of financial assets continued
derivative financial instruments and hedge accounting continued 
changes in the fair value of derivative financial instruments that are designated and effective as hedges of future cash 
flows are recognised directly in equity and the ineffective portion is recognised immediately in the income statement if the 
cash flow hedge of a forecasted transaction results in the recognition of a nonfinancial asset or liability then at the same 
time the asset or liability is recognised the associated gains or losses on the derivative that had previously been recognised 
in equity are included in the initial measurement of the asset or liability for hedges that do not result in the recognition of 
an asset or liability amounts deferred in equity are recognised in the income statements in the same period in which the 
hedged item affects profit or loss 
changes in the fair value of derivative financial instruments that do not qualify for hedge accounting are recognised in the 
income statement as they arise
hedge accounting is discontinued when the hedging instrument expires is sold terminated exercised or no longer qualifies 
for hedge accounting at that time any cumulative gain or loss on the hedging instrument recognised in equity is retained in 
equity until the forecasted transaction occurs if a hedged transaction is no longer expected to occur the net cumulative gain 
or loss recognised in equity is transferred to profit or loss for the period
retirement benefits 
payments to defined contribution retirement benefit plans are charged as an expense as they fall due any contributions 
unpaid at the balance sheet date are included as an accrual as at that date the group has no further payment obligations 
once the contributions have been paid
the group also operates a defined benefit pension plan for defined benefit retirement plans the cost of providing benefits is 
determined using the projected unit credit method with actuarial valuations being carried out at each balance sheet date 
actuarial gains and losses arising are recognised directly in equity in the statement of recognised income and expense in the 
period in which they arise
the amount recognised in the balance sheet represents the difference between the fair value of the plan assets and the 
present value of the defined benefit obligation as adjusted for unrecognised past service costs at the balance sheet date 
gains and losses on curtailmentssettlements are recognised in the income statement when the curtailmentsettlement occurs
sharebased payment 
the group has applied the requirements of ifrs 2 ‘sharebased payment’  in accordance with the ifrs 1 exemption ifrs 2 
has been applied to all grants of equity instruments after 7 november 2002 that had not been vested prior to 1 april 2006
the group issues equitysettled sharebased payments to certain employees whereby employees render services in 
exchange for share options
where employees are rewarded using sharebased payments the fair values of employees’ services are determined 
indirectly by reference to the fair value of the instrument granted to the employee this fair value is appraised at the grant 
date using an optionpricing model blackscholes and excludes the impact of nonmarket vesting conditions
equitysettled sharebased payments are expensed in the income statement with a corresponding credit to “sharebased 
payment reserve”  upon exercise of share options the proceeds received net of attributable transaction costs are credited to 
share capital and where appropriate share premium
provisions 
the group has provisions in place for onerous leases and dilapidations the provisions are recognised when the group has a 
present obligation as a result of a past event which it is probable will result in an outflow of economic benefits that can be 
reliably estimated any differences between expectations and the actual future liability will be accounted for in the period 
when such a determination is made 
accounting policies continued supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 34
accounting policies continued
adopted ifrs not yet applied 
at the date of authorisation of these financial statements the following standards and interpretations which have not 
been applied in these financial statements were in issue but not yet effective 
ifrs 3 business combinations revised •	
ifrs 8 operating segments •	
ifric 11 ifrs 2 group and treasury share transactions •	
ifric 12 service concession arrangements •	
ifric 13 customer loyalty programmes •	
ifric 14 ias 19 – the limit on a defined benefit asset minimum funding requirements and their interaction •	
ias 1 presentation of financial statements revised •	
ias 23 amendment borrowing costs •	
ias 27 consolidated and separate financial statements revised •	
ias 32 financial instruments presentation amended •	
the directors anticipate that the adoption of these standards and interpretations in future periods will have no material 
impact on the financial statements of the group  supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 35
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information
for the year ended 31 march 2008
1 critical accounting estimates and areas of judgment 
estimates and judgments are continually evaluated and are based on historical experience and other factors including 
expectations of future events that are believed to be reasonable under the circumstances 
the group makes estimated and assumptions concerning the future the resulting estimates and assumptions that  
have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities within the  
next financial year are described below 
revenue recognition on projects 
at the year end there were projects which were partially complete in accordance with the group’s accounting policy 
revenue and profit are recognised in accordance with the stage of completion of the contract this is based on costs 
incurred to date and an estimate of future costs
sharebased payments 
the charge to the income statements in relation to options and incentive plans is based on the blackscholes valuation 
technique this technique requires a number of assumptions to be made such as those in relation to share price 
volatility movement in interest rates dividend yields and staff behavioural patterns 
property provisions 
the group occupies leasehold properties for which a provision is made for dilapidations or other future expenditure 
commitments at 31 march 2008 the provisions are £027m 2007 £034m these provisions reflect conditions existing 
at the year end and are judgemental by their nature 
fair value adjustments 
the valuation of customer related intangible and adjustments as permitted under the hindsight period are based on a 
number of assumptions including customer retention and growth rate further details are included in the intangible 
assets accounting policy
key areas of judgment include the distinction a valuation of intangible assets acquired as detailed in the intangible 
assets note and the recognition of revenue as detailed in the revenue recognition policy
impairment 
the impairment tests require a number of assumptions and judgments to be made an explanation of these judgments 
and estimates are detailed in the impairment accounting policy 
retirement benefit obligations 
assumptions are used in the actuarial valuation of the group’s defined benefit pension schemes details of these 
assumptions are disclosed in note 25 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 36
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
2  segmental information
business segments
for management purposes the group is currently organised into two operating divisions – supporta care and 
supporta professional services in addition to corporate these divisions are the basis on which the group reports 
its primary segment information
principal activities are as follows
supporta care provision of home care services
supporta professional services provision of architectural engineering planning project management land 
management business process outsourcing system support managed services consultancy data archiving and 
scanning services
corporate provision of central management services to the group
in prior years the group was also involved in the provision of payroll services to nhs organisations that operation 
was discontinued from 4 may 2007
year ended 31 march 2008
continuing operations 
£’000
discontinued
 operations
 £’000
supporta 
care
supporta 
professional
 services corporate
payroll
 division 
eliminations
 £’000
consolidated
 £’000
revenue
external sales 34326 16437 – 330 – 51093 
intersegment sales – 576 – – 576 –
total revenue 34326 17013 – 330 576 51093 
result
operating profitloss 
before sharebased payment 
charge exceptional items 
and amortisation and 
impairment of goodwill and 
intangible assets 3955 2121 2053 4 –         4027 
operating profitloss 3449 418 2844 696 –             327 
net finance costs 5 81 1310 – – 1396
profitloss before tax 3444 337 4154 696 – 1069
corporation tax expense 252 25 – 413 – 690
profit on disposal of
discontinued operations – – – 167 –            167
profitloss after tax and
discontinued operations 3192 312 4154 942 – 1592
other information
capital additions 1574 106 22 – –         1702
depreciation and
amortisation 471 1148 – – –         1619
impairment losses
recognised in income – 218 – – – 218
inter segment sales are charged at prevailing market rates
   capital additions comprise additions to property plant and equipment and intangible assets including additions
   resulting from acquisitions through business combinations
  the additions for care includes £079m of intangibles resulting from the acquisition of hallam healthcare supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 37
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
2  segmental information continued
year ended 31 march 2007
continuing operations 
£’000
discontinued
 operations 
£’000
supporta 
care
supporta
 professional
 services corporate 
payroll 
division
eliminations
 £’000
consolidated 
£’000
revenue
external sales 30518 12190 – 6380 – 49088
intersegment sales – 980 – – 980 –
total revenue 30518 13170 – 6380 980 49088
result
operating profitloss before 
sharebased payment charge 
exceptional items and 
amortisation and impairment of 
goodwill and intangible assets 2943 2212 1996 1164 – 4323
operating profitloss 2077 901 2650 3504 – 4978
net finance costs 19 93 948 – – 1060
profitloss before tax 2058 994 3598 3504 – 6038
corporation tax expense 314 153 – 194 – 33
loss on disposal of  
discontinued operations – – – 7 – 7
profitloss after tax and
discontinued operations 2372 1147 3598 3691 – 6064
other information
capital additions 192 3374 49 – – 3615
depreciation and amortisation 195 451 86 – – 732
impairment losses recognised  
in income – 8009 – – – 8009
other non cash expenses – – – – – –
inter segment sales are charged at prevailing market rates
   capital additions comprise additions to property plant and equipment and intangible assets including additions
   resulting from acquisitions through business combinations
year ended 31 march 2008
continuing operations 
£’000
discontinued 
operations
 £’000
balance sheet
supporta 
care
supporta 
professional
 services corporate
payroll 
division
eliminations
 £’000
consolidated
 £’000
assets 38450 22972 53887 – 53305 62004
liabilities 26790 16909 31201 – 41797 33103
segment assets consist primarily of property plant and equipment intangible assets financial assets investments  
and other operating assets
segment liabilities consist primarily of operating liabilities supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 38
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
2  segmental information continued
year ended 31 march 2007
continuing operations 
£’000
discontinued 
operations 
£’000
balance sheet 
supporta
 care
supporta 
professional 
services corporate
payroll 
division
eliminations 
£’000
consolidated 
£’000
assets 30739 19035 53611 3433 43314 63504
liabilities 23532 17815 32067 83 34707 38790
segment assets consist primarily of property plant and equipment intangible assets financial assets investments and 
other operating assets  
segment liabilities consist primarily of operating liabilities
3  operating profitloss
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
profitloss for the year has been arrived at after charging
amortisation of other intangible assets 983  509
impairment losses see note 11 218 3582
depreciation
– owned assets 343 429
– leased assets 40 40
rental under operating leases 1275 1476
staff costs see note 6 46426 35677
auditors remuneration in respect of both audit and nonaudit services
fees payable to the company’s auditor for the audit of the company’s annual accounts 95 95
fees payable to the company’s auditor and its associates for other services
  the audit of the company’s subsidiaries pursuant to legislation 15 15
  other services pursuant to legislation 7 –
  tax services 27 25
144 135 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 39
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
4 sharebased p ayment charge amortisation and exceptional items
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
sharebased payment charge 262 252
amortisation of other intangible assets 983 509
impairment provision 218 3582
exceptional items 1541 665
3004 5008
exceptional items represent
redundancy costs 275 368
restructure and relocation costs 86 104
abortive acquisitions 41 20
abortive disposals 80
payments relating to discontinued businesses from previous year – 142
one off retention bonus relating to 20067 acquisitions – 31
write off of architectural wip from prior years 773 –
cost of preparing ifrs conversion 102 –
refinance costs 157 –
ias 19 pension fund curtailment loss 27 –
1541 665
5  net finance costs
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
interest on bank loans and overdrafts 1367 972
other interest 14 36
finance charges in respect of hire purchase contracts 2 6
interest on pension scheme liabilities 497 449
1880 1463
expected return on pension scheme assets 409 359
interest receivable and similar income
bank interest 75 44
1396 1060
6  staff costs    
staff costs during the year were as follows
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
wages and salaries 42706 32359
social security costs 3299 2768
redundancy costs 270 202
pension costs 151 348
46426 35677 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 40
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
6  staff costs continued   
the average number of employees of the group during the year was as follows
2008 
no
2007 
no
directors 7 7
supporta care – administration 198 151
supporta care – home care staff 1968 1647
supporta professional services 287 342
corporate 17 29
2477 2176
1 director 2007 3 is accruing benefits under the money purchase scheme
the highest paid director in the year received remuneration of £175000 2007 £135000
the pension contributions of the highest paid director were £nil 2007 £15500
7  taxation
continuing operations discontinuing operations total
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
current tax
uk corporation tax on loss 445 282 413 194 858 476
adjustments in respect of previous periods 258 211 – – 258 211
total current tax 187 71 413 194 600 265
deferred tax
origination and reversal  
of timing differences 90 232 – – 90 232
tax on loss 277 161 413 194 690 33
corporation tax is calculated at 28 per cent 2007 30 percent of the estimated assessable profit for the year
of the charge to current tax approximately £034m 2007 £019m related to profits arising in the payroll operation 
which was disposed of during the year
a tax charge of £057m arose on the disposal of the relevant operation
the total tax charge for the year can be reconciled to the profit per the income statement as follows
2008 2007
£’000  £’000 
loss before tax 373 28 2534 30
tax at the uk corporation tax rate of 28 2007 30 104 760
tax effect of expenses that are not deductible in determining  
taxable profit 683 1025
tax effect of utilisation of tax losses not previously recognised 1 –
decrease in opening deferred tax liability resulting from a reduction  
in tax rates 20 –
deferred tax movement 90 232
tax expense credit 690 33 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 41
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
8  discontinued operations
on 2 may 2007 the group entered into a sale agreement to dispose of the payroll operation of supporta services limited 
the disposal was completed on 4 may 2007 on which date control passed to the acquirer
the results of the discontinued operations which have been included in the consolidated income statement were as follows
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
revenue 330 6380
cost of sales 294 4326
gross profit 36 2054
administrative expenses 565 1407
impairment of goodwill 0 4144
loss before tax 529 3497
attributable tax expense 413 194
net loss attributable to discontinued operations 942 3691
during the year the payroll operation of supporta services limited expensed £053m 2007 contributed £065m  
to the group net operating cashflows received £352m 2007 £nil in respect of investing activities and paid £nil  
2007 £nil in respect of financing activities
no profit or loss arose on the disposal of the payroll operation of supporta services limited as the proceeds of 
disposal did not exceed the carrying amount of the subsidiary goodwill an impairment loss had been recognised on 
the classification of these operations as held for sale
the effect of discontinued operations on segment results is disclosed in the segmental results note
the major classes of assets and liabilities comprising the operations classified as held for sale are as follows
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
goodwill 185 3401
there were no liabilities associated with assets classified as held for sale
9  loss per share and adjusted earnings per share
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
weighted average number of shares for basic earnings per share
000’s of shares 71089 64488
effect of dilutive potential ordinary shares
share options 000’s of shares – –
weighted average number of shares for diluted earnings per share
000’s of shares 71089 64488
for basic earning per share
loss for the financial period from continuing and discontinued operations 1592 6064
add back loss for the period from discontinued operations 942 3691
loss for the financial period from continuing operations 650 2373
loss per share from continuing and discontinued operations
– basic and diluted 224p 940p
loss per share from continuing operations
– basic and diluted 091p 368p
loss per share from discontinued operations
– basic and diluted 133p 572p supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 42
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
9  loss per share and adjusted earnings per share continued
2008
 £’000
2007
 £’000
for adjusted earnings per share
loss for the financial period 1592 6064
add back loss for the period from discontinued operations 942 3691
add back share based payment charge 262 252
add back amortisation of other intangible assets 983 509
add back impairment provision 218 3582
add back exceptional items adjusted for tax 1079 466
adjusted loss for the financial period 1892 2436
basic adjusted earnings per share 266p 378p
diluted adjusted earnings per share 266p 374p
10  dividends
no dividend is proposed in respect of the year ending 31 march 2008 2007 £nil
11  goodwill
2008
 £’000
2007
 £’000
cost
at 1 april 43957 37609
additions 97 –
recognised on acquisition of a subsidiary 3598 14176
classified as held for sale – 7828
at 31 march 47652 43957
accumulated impairment losses
at 1 april 3582 –
impairment losses for the year 218 8009
classified as held for sale – 4427
at 31 march 3800 3582
carrying amount
at 31 march 43852 40375
goodwill recognised on acquisition of a subsidiary is detailed in note 28 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 43
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
11  goodwill continued
goodwill acquired in a business combination is allocated to the cash generating units that are expected to benefit from 
the business combination the carrying value of goodwill has been allocated to the following cash generating units
year ended 
31 march 2008
 £’000
year ended 
31 march 2007 
£’000
operating unit
care 21059 18178
professional services 22793 22197
43852 40375
goodwill is not amortised but is tested annually for impairment or more frequently if there are indications that 
goodwill might be impaired to the extent that the carrying value exceeds the value in use determined from 
estimated discontinued future net cash flows or recoverable amounts goodwill is written down to the value in use 
and an impairment charge is recognised
the recoverable amount of the cgu’s has been determined by value in use calculations the key assumptions for the 
value in use calculations are those regarding the discount rates growth rates and expected changes to selling price 
and direct costs during future years the pretax discount rate of 98 was used in the value in use calculation in 
determining the value in use cashflows have been increased by 4 to reflect potential growth over future years 
changes in selling prices and direct costs are based on management’s expectations of future changes in the market
12  other intangible assets
software 
£’000
cutomer related 
£’000
total 
£’000
cost
at 1 april 2006 476 – 476
acquisition of subsidiary undertakings 195 2518 2713
additions 480 – 480
disposals 169 – 169
at 31 march 2007 982 2518 3500
acquisition of subsidiary undertakings – 793 793
additions 339 – 339
at 31 march 2008 1321 3311 4632
amortisation
at 1 april 2006 132 – 132
amortisation for the period 273 236 509
eliminated of disposal 63 – 63
at 31 march 2007 342 236 578
amortisation for the period 469 514 983
at 31 march 2008 811 750 1561
carrying value
at 31 march 2006 344 – 344
at 31 march 2007 640 2282 2922
at 31 march 2008 510 2561 3071 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 44
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
12  other intangible assets continued
software is assumed to have a useful economic life of 3 years and is amortised accordingly
customer related intangible assets have a differing useful economic life ranging from 1 to 9 years based on 
management expectations and customer commitments and the amortisation policy reflects this
customer related intangible assets by company
nbv amortisation period
datacare business systems limited 849 between 27 years
bay associates consulting limited 20 2 years
terraquest solutions limited 1022 between 19 years
hallam healthcare limited 670 between 13 years
at 31 march 2008 2561
there are no specific securities or restrictions held over the intangible assets
13  property  plant and equipment
leasehold property
 £’000 
office equipment
 £’000
motor vehicles
 £’000 
total 
£’000
cost or valuation
at 1 april 2006 101 946 8 1055
additions 21 107 – 128
disposals – 135 – 135
acquired through  
business combinations – 260 34 294
at 31 march 2007 122 1178 42 1342
additions – 541 7 548
disposals 52 289 – 341
acquired through business 
combinations – 11 – 11
at 31 march 2008 70 1441 49 1560
accumulated depreciation
at 1 april 2006 35 269 – 304
depreciation charge for the period 29 179 15 223
disposals – 62 – 62
at 31 march 2007 64 386 15 465
depreciation charge for the period 10 359 14 383
disposals 4 259 – 263
at 31 march 2008 70 486 29 585
carrying value
at 31 march 2006 66 677 8 751
at 31 march 2007 58 792 27 877
at 31 march 2008 – 955 20 975
details of securities over the assets of the group are disclosed in notes 20  22 of these financial statements
the carrying value of the group’s property plant and equipment includes an amount of £nil 2007 £009m in respect 
of assets held under finance leases
depreciation expense of £038m 2007 £022m has been charged to administrative expenses supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 45
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
14  subsidiaries
details of supporta plc’s subsidiaries at 31 march 2008 are as follows
name of subsidiary 
place of 
incorporation 
or registration
 and operation
proportion of
 ownership interest
 
proportion of 
voting power held 
 principal activity
next generation it  
recruitment limited uk 100 100
supporta care limited uk 100 100
home and social 
care provision
supporta services limited uk 100 100 support services
supporta professional  
services limited uk 100 100 architectural services
ajh care limited uk 100 100 
independent living  
organisation limited uk 100 100 
home and social 
care provision
strathaven nursing  
homes limited uk 100 100
home and social
 care provision
datacare business  
systems limited uk 100 100 data storage and scanning
bay associates  
consulting limited uk 100 100
civil and structural 
engineering
terraquest solutions limited uk 100 100 
business process 
outsourcing 
and consultancy
terraquest group limited uk 100 100
terraquest limited uk 100 100
hallam healthcare uk 100 100
home and social 
care provision
staff vms limited uk 100 100 back office services
hallam healthcare was acquired on 4 january 2008 its financial year end has been changed from 30 june to 
31 march in line with the group
15  trade and other receivables 
2008 
£’000
2007
 £’000
trade receivables 6591 7118
other receivables 662 462
prepayments and accrued income 5703 5315
12956 12895
the average credit period taken on sales of goods is 47 days 2007 52 days an allowance has been made for 
estimated irrecoverable amounts from the sale of goods £052m 2007 £027m based on past default experience  
the directors consider the carrying amount of trade and other receivables approximate their fair value
the group holds no collateral against these receivables at the balance sheet date
the following table provides analysis of trade and other receivables that were past due at 31 march but not impaired 
the group believed that the balances are ultimately recoverable based on a review of past payment history and the 
current financial status of the customers supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 46
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
15  trade and other receivables continued
2008 
£’000
up to 30 days 811
between 30 and 60 days 117
between 60 and 90 days 94
over 90 days 785
1807
16  cash and cash equivalents  
2008 
£’000 
2007 
£’000
cash and cash equivalents 52 1828
at 31 march 2008 the group cash and cash equivalent balance included £nil 2007 £080m held in an escrow  
bank account
17  trade and other p ayables  
2008
 £’000 
2007
 £’000
trade payables 2149 1423
other taxation and social security costs 2396 2609
other payables 1072 952
accruals and deferred income 2395 2973
8012 7957
18  current financial liabilities  
2008 
£’000 
2007 
£’000
bank loans and overdrafts see note 20 5171 5171
loan notes issued on acquisition – 888
deferred consideration 2624 3663
amounts due under finance leases see note 21 – 35
7795 9757
the bank loans and overdraft are secured by a fixed and floating charge over all assets of the group
amounts due under finance leases are secured on the assets to which they relate
19 noncurrent financial liabilities  
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
bank loans and overdrafts see note 20 12280 12611
loan notes issued on acquisition – –
deferred consideration – 2620
amounts due under finance leases see note 21 – –
12280 15231 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 47
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
20  bank overdraft and loans
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
bank overdrafts 1999 1995
bank loans 15452 15787
17451 17782
the borrowings are repayable as follows
on demand or within 1 year 5171 5171
in the second year 3145 4341
in the third to fifth years inclusive 9135 8270
after 5 years – –
17451 17782
less amount due for settlement within 12 months  
shown under current liabilities 5171 5171
amount due for settlement after 12 months 12280 12611
2008 

2007 

the weighted average interest rates paid were as follows
bank overdrafts 750 743
bank loans 762 743
bank loans of £713m 2007 £981m were arranged at fixed interest rates and expose the group to fair value interest 
rate risk other borrowings are arranged at floating rates thus exposing the group to cash flow interest rate risk
the directors estimate the fair value of the group’s borrowings is not significantly different to the carrying value
the other principal features of the group’s borrowings are as follows
working capital facilities of £200m 2007 £200m have been secured by a charge over the group’s assets  i 
the average effective interest rate on the working capital facility approximates 50 per cent 2007 49 per cent 
per annum and are determined based on 25 per cent plus prime rate
the group has three principal bank loans     ii 
a loan of £155m 2007 £219m the loan was taken out in the year ending 31 march 2007 repayments a 
commenced on 31 december 2006 and will continue until 31 december 2011 the loan is secured by a fixed and 
floating charge over the group’s assets this loan carries interest rate at 25 per cent above 3month libor
a loan of £614m 2007 £865m the loan was taken out in the year ending 31 march 2007 repayments b 
commenced on 31 december 2006 and will continue until 31 december 2011 the loan is secured by a fixed and 
floating charge over the group’s assets this loan carries interest rate at 25 per cent above 3month libor
a loan of £757m 2007 £495m the loan was taken out in the year ending 31 march 2007 repayments will c 
commence on 31 december 2008 and will continue until 31 december 2011 the loan is secured by a fixed and 
floating charge over the group’s assets this loan carries interest rate at 25 per cent above 3month libor
at 31 march 2008 the group had available £943m 2007 £1232m of undrawn committed borrowing facilities in 
respect of which all conditions precedent had been met supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 48
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
21  amounts due under finance leases
          minimum lease payments
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
amounts payable
within one year – 35
less future finance charges – –
present value of lease obligations – 35
less amount due for settlement within 12 months – 35
amount due for settlement after 12 months – –
22  financial instruments
the group uses financial instruments comprising borrowings cash and various items such as trade debtors and trade 
creditors that arise directly from its operations the main purpose of these financial instruments is to raise finance for 
the group’s operations
the group’s capital includes the capital and longterm loans longterm financial projections are prepared and capital 
requirements are assessed using these projections along with sensitivities the group’s banking agreements require us 
to comply with covenants for net debt to normalised earnings before interest tax and amortisation interest cover and 
debt service to cashflow ratios as a result of the renegotiation of the banking facilities the group was not required 
to measure covenants at 31
st
 march and the next testing date is now 30
th
 june 2008 the group had met each of its 
covenants at the other quarterly testing dates during the year ended 31
st
 march 2008
the main risks arising from the group financial instruments are interest rate credit and liquidity risk the board 
reviews and agrees policies for managing each of these risks and they are summarised below
shortterm debtors and creditors
shortterm debtors and creditors have been excluded from all the following disclosures other than the currency  
risk disclosures
interest rate risk
the group finances its operations through a mixture of cash bank borrowings and hire purchase contracts the fair 
value of the financial instruments is not materially different to book value  supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 49
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
22  financial instruments continued
the interest rate exposure of the financial assets and liabilities of the group as at 31 march 2008 and 31 march 2007 was
interest rate
fixed 
2008 
£’000
interest rate 
floating 
2008 
£’000
 total 
2008 
£’000
fixed 
2007 
£’000
interest rate
 floating 
2007 
£’000
total 
2007 
£’000
financial assets
cash at bank – 52 52 – 1828 1828
– 52 52 – 1828 1828
financial liabilities
bank overdrafts – 1999 1999 – 1995 1995
bank loans 7125 8327 15452 9775 6012 15787
hire purchase 
contracts – – – 35 – 35
7125 10326 17451 9810 8007 17817
at 31 march 2008 bank loans amounting to £833m were subject to floating interest rates the floating rate 
borrowings bear interest rates based on libor
the group entered into a hedging arrangement in the year ended 31 march 2007 to fix an additional £660m of its 
borrowings at a fixed rate of 500 for four years this was reduced by £083m by a loan repayment and will reduce 
further as the loan is repaid this arrangement has 325 years remaining
the group has derived a sensitivity analysis based on readily available information for forward fixed and floating 
interest rates
2008 
£’ 000
2007 
£’ 000
impact on equity  
1 increase in base rate of interest 100 59
1 decrease in base rate of interest 78 91
impact on profit  
1 increase in base rate of interest 173 131
1 decrease in base rate of interest 173  131
the fair value of interest rate swaps entered into at 31 march 2008 is estimated at £002m 2007 £011m these 
amounts are based on market values of equivalent instruments at the balance sheet date the balance in equity at 
31 march 2008 will continuously be released to the income statement over the term of the loan agreement
the weighted average fixed interest rate and weighted average period for which the rate fixed for liabilities at  
31 march 2008 was 76 and 20 years respectively 
liquidity risk
the group seeks to manage financial risk by ensuring sufficient liquidity is available to meet foreseeable cash 
requirements and to invest cash assets safely and profitably
shortterm flexibility is achieved by the use of working capital facilities
credit risk
credit risk predominantly arises from trade receivables and cash and cash equivalents the group policy is to assess 
the credit quality of each customer before accepting any terms of trade
  supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 50
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
22 financial instruments continued
the group maximum exposure to credit risk relating to such assets is set out below
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
trade receivables 6591 7118
cash and cash equivalent 52 1828
6643 8946
the group reviews aged debt on a periodic basis and makes provision for those debts which it considers are doubtful  
at the balance sheet the total provision for doubtful debts totalled £052m 2007 £027m
total financial assets and liabilities
the table below sets out the group’s accounting classification of each class of financial assets and liabilities and their 
fair values at 31 march 2008
loans  receivables
 2008
 £000
designated at fair 
value through 
profit or loss 
2008 
£000
total for balance 
sheet heading 
2008 
£000
cash at bank 52  52
trade receivables  current 6591  6591
other receivables  current 662  662
prepayments 5703  5703
derivatives  22 22
bank overdraft 1999  1999
trade payables – current 2149  2149
loans payable – current 5171  5171
accruals 2395  2395
other liabilities – current 1072  1072
loans payable – noncurrent 12280  12280
vat and taxation payable 2396  2396
total 14454 22 14432
23 deferred tax
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
analysis for financial reporting purposes
deferred tax liabilities 817 790
deferred tax assets 891 1097
net position at 31 march 74 307 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 51
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
23  deferred tax continued
the movement in the year in the group’s net deferred tax position was as follows
2008 
£’000
2007
 £’000
at 1 april 307 664
charge to income for the year 90 443
charge to equity for the year 143 86
amount due for settlement after 12 months 74 307
the following are the major deferred tax liabilities and assets recognised by the group and the movements thereon 
during the year
accelerated 
capital 
allowances 
£’000
other 
£’000
total 
£’000
at 1 april 2006 0 347 347
charge to income for the year 105 338 443
at 31 march 2007 105 685 790
charge to income for the year 4 31 27
at 31 march 2008 101 716 817
the amounts included within the other column relate to deferred tax liabilities for customer related intangible assets 
recognised on business combinations
deferred tax assets
retirement
 benefit 
obligations 
£’000
total 
£’000
at 1 april 2006 1011 1011
charge to income for the year 0 0
charge to equity for the year 86 86
at 31 march 2007 1097 1097
charge to income for the year 63 63
charge to equity for the year 143 143
at 31 march 2008 891 891 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 52
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
24  provisions
onerous 
lease 
provision 
£’000
dilapidations
rectification 
provision 
£’000
total 
£’000
at 1 april 2006 47 364 411
additional provision in year 88 20 108
amount reversed in year 13 42 55
at 31 march 2007 122 342 464
additional provision in year 200 – 200
amount reversed in year 268 74 342
at 31 march 2008 54 268 322
31 march 2008
 £’000
31 march 2007 
£’000
current provision 150 150
noncurrent provision 172 314
322 464
the onerous lease provision represents management’s best estimate of the group’s net liability for unavoidable costs 
ie the net cost of exiting from the contract which is the lower of the cost of fulfilling it and any compensation or 
penalties arising from failure to fulfil it to be incurred for onerous lease contracts the estimate is based on the terms 
of the leases
the dilapidationsrectification provision has been made for costs expected to arise at the termination of leases the 
provision is based on the expected dilapidation costs at the point of acquisition and can be summarised as follows
payable
 within 
1 year 
£’000
payable
 between 
15 years 
£’000
payable
 after 
5 years 
£’000
total 
£’000
parys snowdon group 15 81 – 96
roger p dudley limited – – 60 60
independent living organisation 81 7 4 92
supporta plc – – 20 20
at 31 march 2008 96 88 84 268 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 53
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
25  retirement benefit obligations
defined contribution plans
the group operates defined contribution group personal pension scheme for the benefit of certain employees 
the group contributes to personal pension plans of certain directors and employees the group also operates a 
stakeholder pension plan available to all employees the assets of the plan are held separately from those of the group 
in funds under the control of trustees
the total cost charged to income of £026m 2007 £035m represents contributions payable to these schemes by the 
group at rates specified in the rules of the schemes as at 31 march 2008 contributions of £027m 2007 £038m 
due in respect of the current reporting period had not been paid over to the schemes
defined benefit plan
the group contributes to defined benefit pension schemes for the benefit of certain employees of supporta services 
limited previously employed by parys snowdon payroll services limited and parys snowdon group limited and its 
subsidiaries which have been hived up into it 
under the schemes the employees are entitled to retirement benefits which accrue at a rate of either 125 or  
167 per cent of final salary for each year of pensionable service up to attainment of a normal retirement age of 65 
some members are entitled to retire at age 60 with unreduced benefits in addition members who as described above 
accrue pension at the rate of 125 receive a lump sum on retirement equal to 3 times their pension no other post
retirement benefits are provided the schemes are funded schemes the funding level at 31 march 2008 was 63  
2007 62 and there are no partly or wholly unfunded liabilities
the most recent actuarial valuations of plan assets and the present value of the defined benefit obligation were carried 
out at 31 march 2008 by kpmg the schemes independent actuaries the present values of the defined obligation the 
related current service cost and past service cost were measured using the projected unit credit method
key assumptions used
valuation at 
2008 

valuation at 
2007 

discount rate 645 520
expected rate of salary increases 425 420
future pension increases 375 320
inflation 375 320
mortality  current pensioners 
male life expectancy at age 60 261 years 229 years
mortality  future pensioners
male life expectancy at age 60 currently 45 270 years 244 years
mortality rate assumptions are based on publicly available data in the uk
amounts recognised in income in respect of these defined benefit schemes are as follows
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
current service cost 120 262
interest cost 497 449
expected return on scheme assets 409 360
past service costs 26 –
gains and losses curtailments 27 –
settlements – –
261 351 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 54
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
25 retirement benefit obligations continued
the current service cost for the year has been included in staff costs
actuarial gains and losses are reported in the statement of recognised income and expense the gain recognised in 
2008 was £049m 2007 expense of £024m and the cumulative gain is £001m 2007 cumulative expense £047m
the actual return of the scheme assets was £065m 2007 £013m
the amount included in the balance sheet arising from the group’s obligation in respect of defined benefit retirement 
schemes is as follows
2008 
£’000
 2007 
£’000
present value of defined benefit obligations 8540 9564
fair value of scheme assets 5359 5907
deficit in scheme 3181 3657
liability recognised in balance sheet 3181 3657
movements in the present value of defined benefit obligations in the current period were as follows
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
at 1 april 9564 9023
current service costs 120 262
past service costs 26 –
interest costs 497 449
actuarial gains and losses 1545 5
contributions by plan participants 39 70
benefits paid 188 245
business combinations and disposal of subsidiaries – –
gains and losses on curtailments 27 –
settlements – –
at 31 march 8540 9564
movements in the fair value of scheme assets in the current period were as follows
2008 
£’000
 2007 
£’000
at 1 april 5907 5654
expected return on scheme assets 409 360
actuarial gains and losses 1058 233
employer contributions 250 302
employee contributions 39 70
settlements – –
benefits paid 188 246
business combinations and disposal of subsidiaries – –
at 31 march 5359 5907 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 55
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
25 retirement benefit obligations continued
the analysis of the scheme assets and the expected rate of return at the balance sheet date was as follows
                expected return               fair value assets
2008 2007
2008
 £’000
2007
 £’000
equity instruments 720 750 3221 3403
debt instruments 550 500 954 926
property 720 750 1179 1557
other assets – cash 525 525 5 21
5359 5907
the overall expected rate of return on assets see table of assumptions used has been derived as the weighted 
average of the expected returns from each of the main asset classes the expected return for each assets class reflects 
a combination of historical performance analysis the forward looking view on the financial markets as suggested by 
the yield available and the views of investment organisations
the five year history of experience adjustments are as follows
2008
 £’000
 2007
 £’000
2006
 £’000
 2005
 £’000
 2004 
£’000
present value of defined benefit obligations 8540 9564 9023 7496 6999
fair value of scheme assets 5359 5907 5654 4331 4192
at 31 march 3181 3657 3369 3165 2807
experience adjustments on scheme liabilities 56 – 648 – –
experience adjustments on scheme assets 1058 233 900 75 382
the estimated amounts of contributions expected to be paid to the scheme during the financial year ending  
31 march 2009 is £037m
26  share capital
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
authorised
100000000 ordinary shares of 5p each 5000 5000
allotted called up and fully paid
81547450 ordinary shares of 5p each 2007 67402493 4077 3370
allotments during the year of new ordinary 5p shares were as follows
4 december 2007  2602046 shares were issued in order to satisfy the deferred consideration relating 
to the acquisition in november 2006 of terraquest solutions limited
2 january 2008  11542911 shares were issued at 3825p per share in order to fund the acquisition 
of hallam healthcare limited
there was no exercise of employee share options during the year
all ordinary shares carry equal voting rights and rights to residual assets supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 56
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
27 sharebased p ayments
the group plan provides for a grant price equal to the average quoted market price of the group shares for the three 
dealing days prior to the date of the grant there is no vesting period if the options remain unexercised after a period 
of 10 years from the date of grant the options expire furthermore options are forfeited after the expiry of 30 days 
from the date the employee leaves the group
2008 
options exercised 
2007
options exercised
 2008 
weighted average
 exercise price
 pence
2007
 weighted average 
exercise price
 pence
outstanding at 1 april 5194553 3818902 661 660
grant during the year 1565902 1645651 607 659
forfeited during the year 1460083 190000 781 705
exercised during the year – 80000 – 500
expired during the year – – – –
outstanding at 31 march 5300372 5194553 611 661
exercisable at 31 march 5300372 5194553 611 661
the weighted average share price at the date of exercise for share options exercised during the year ended  
31 march 2007 820p per share no share options were exercised in the current year the options outstanding at  
31 march 2008 had an exercise price between 400p and 895p 2007 400p to 895p the estimated fair value  
of options granted in the year using the blackscholes method was 20p per share 2007 309p per share
the inputs into the blackscholes valuation model for options granted during the year were as follows
2008 2007
weighted average share price 366p 711p
weighted average exercise price 608p 656p
expected volatility 243 440
expected life 4 years 4 years
risk free rate 45 50
expected dividend yield 0 0
the weighted average contractual life of the options is 851 years
expected volatility was determined by calculating the historical volatility of the group’s share price over the previous 
6 years the expected life used in the model has been adjusted based on management’s best estimate for the effects 
of nontransferability exercise restrictions and behavioural conditions
the group recognised total expenses of £026m 2007 £025m relating to equitysettled sharebased payment 
transactions in 2008 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 57
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
28  acquisition of subsidiary on 4 january 2008 supporta plc acquired 100 per cent of the issued share capital of hallam healthcare for cash 
consideration of £360m and incurred directly attributable costs of £028m this transaction has been accounted for 
by the purchase method of accounting
fair value 
2008
 £’000
acquiree’s 
carrying amount
 2008 
£’000
net assets acquired
property plant and equipment – 11
trade receivables 270 354
bank and cash 47 47
trade payables 138 81
85 237
goodwill 3598 3446
total consideration including direct costs 3683 3683
satisfied by
cash 3683
3683
net cash flow arising on acquisition
cash consideration 3683
asset recognised in balance sheet 3683
hallam healthcare contributed £079m to revenue and £014m to net profit for the period between the date of 
acquisition and the balance sheet date if this acquisition had occurred on 1 april 2007 group revenue would have 
been £5162m and net loss £003m  
on initial accounting for a business combination fair values attributed to the acquiree’s identifiable assets and 
liabilities may be provisional subsequent adjustments to these provisional values arising within twelve months 
of the acquisition date are recognised as an adjustment to goodwill any adjustments to provisional fair values 
identified after this twelve month period are recognised in the income statement   supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 58
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
29  disposal of subsidiary as referred to in note 8 on 4 may 2007 the group discontinued its payroll operations when this business was disposed of 
the net assets of the payroll operation of supporta services limited at the date of disposal and at 31 march 2007 
were as follows
4 may 2007 
£’000
31 march 2007 
£’000
property plant and equipment 30 32
trade payable 83 83
attributable goodwill 3401 3401
3348 3350
profit on disposal 167 165
total consideration 3515 3515
satisfied by
cash 3515 3515
3515 3515
net cash inflow arising on disposal
cash consideration 3515 3515
the impact of the payroll division on the group’s results and its cashflows in the current and prior periods is disclosed 
in note 8
30  capital commitments
2008 
£’000 
2007 
£’000
commitments for the acquisition of property plant and equipment 300 70
31 contingent liabilities
there are no contingent liabilities relating to the company or its subsidiaries at 31 march 2008 or 31 march 2007
the group has entered into a number of contracts for which the third party has the benefit of a bank guarantee for 
our obligations under these contracts such guarantees total £031m 2007 £031m upon disposal of the payroll 
operation on 4 may 2007 the group provided warranties to the acquirer our liabilities under this arrangement are 
limited to £37m with the exception of warranties relating to restricted business which are uncapped and expire on 
4 november 2008 with the exception of tax warranties which expire on 4 may 2014 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 59
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
32 operating lease arrangements
the minimum lease payments under noncancellable operating lease rentals are in aggregate as follows
               2008               2007
land and 
buildings
 £’000
other 
£’000 
land and 
buildings
 £’000 
other 
£’000
in one year or less 324 – 452 7
between one and five years 421 177 662 163
over five years 296 – 227 62
1041 177 1341 232
33  related p arty transactions
transactions between the company and its subsidiaries which are related parties have been eliminated on 
consolidation and are not disclosed in this note
remuneration of key management personnel
the remuneration of the directors who are the key management personnel of the group is set out below in aggregate 
for each of the categories specified in ias 24 “related party disclosures”  
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
shortterm employee benefits 954 795
other longterm benefits 2 28
termination benefits 11 –
967 823
remuneration in respect of directors was as follows
2008
 £’000 
2007
 £’000
emoluments 965 795
pension contributions to a money purchase pension scheme 2 28
967 823
1 directors 2007 3 are accruing benefits under the money purchase scheme
the highest paid director in the year received remuneration of £175000 2007 £135000
the pension contributions of the highest paid directors were £nil 2007 £15500
the interests of the directors in share options are as detailed in the director’s report supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 60
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
33  related p arty transactions continued
trading transactions
during the year group companies entered into the following transactions with related parties who are not members 
of the group
during the year the group paid £36500 for recruitment services to bandtrace a company owned by j jasper’s spouse 
there were no balances outstanding at either 31 march 2008 or 31 march 2007
during the year the group accrued costs of £13525 to countrywide properties for rental of a property which is owned 
by m curran’s personal pension scheme this was paid after the year end there were no balances outstanding at 
31 march 2007
any payments to the pension scheme are dealt with in the pension scheme note see note 25
34  changes in shareholders’ equity
share 
capital 
£’000
share
 premium
 account
 £’000
sharebased
 payment 
reserves 
£’000
retained
losses
reserve
 £’000 
hedging
 reserve 
£’000
total
 £’000
at 1 april 2006 3119 26694 123 3158 3 26775
total recognised income and expense – – – 6302 112 6190
sharebased payment reserves movement – – 252 – – 252
issue of shares in the period 251 – – – – 251
premium on allotment during the period – 3626 – – – 3626
at 31 march 2007 3370 30320 375 9460 109 24714
total recognised income and expense – – – 1248 87 1335
sharebased payment reserves movement – – 262 – – 262
issue of shares in the period 707 – – – – 707
premium on allotment during the period – 4553 – – – 4553
4077 34873 637 10708 22 28901
all of the amounts above are attributable to the shareholders of the parent
share capital
the share capital account includes the par value for all shares issued and outstanding
share premium account
the share premium account comprises the premium over nominal value on issued shares the use of this reserve is 
restricted by the companies act 1985
retained losses
the retained losses reserve includes the accumulated profits and losses arising from the consolidated income 
statements and certain items from the statements of recognised income and expense attributable to equity 
shareholders less distributions to shareholders
sharebased payment reserve
the sharebased payment represents the cumulative amount which has been recognised in connection with share
based payments less any amount transferred to retained earnings in the exercise of share warrants
hedging reserve
the hedging reserve represents the cumulative amount which has been recognised in connection with interest rate swaps supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 61
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
35  cash generated from operations
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
loss before tax on continuing operations 373 2534
loss before tax on discontinuing operations 529 3497
loss before tax 902 6031
adjustments for
depreciation of property plant and equipment 383 223
impairment of goodwill – continuing 218 3582
impairment of goodwill – discontining – 4427
amortisation of intangible assets 983 509
sharebased payment charge 262 252
gainloss on disposal of property plant and equipment 19 7
gainloss on disposal of operation 167 –
finance costs 1396 1060
operating cash flows before movements in working capital 2154 4015
increase in receivables 331 505
decrease in payables 75 76
cash generated by operations 1898 3434
36 reconciliation between uk gaap and ifrs
for all periods up to and including the year ended 31 march 2007 the group prepared its financial statements 
in accordance with united kingdom generally accepted accounting practice uk gaap the group’s financial 
statements for the year ended 31 march 2008 will be the first annual financial statements that will comply with 
international financial reporting standards ifrs in preparing its opening ifrs balance sheet at 1 april 2006 the 
group’s date of transition to ifrs comparative information for the year ended 31 march 2007 and the year ended  
31 march 2008 the group has adjusted amounts previously reported in the financial statements prepared in 
accordance with uk gaap
this section explains the principal adjustments made by the group in restating its uk gaap balance sheet at 
1 april 2006 and its previously published uk gaap financial statements for the year ended 31 march 2007 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 62
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
36  reconciliation between uk gaap and ifrs continued
reconciliation of profit for the year ended 31 march 2007
uk gaap 
£’000
ifrs 3
 business 
combinations 
£’000
ifrs 5 
noncurrent
 assets held for sale
 and discontinued
 operations 
£’000
restated
 under ifrs 
£’000
revenue 49088 – 6380 42708
cost of sales 35394 112 4326 31180
administrative expenses 16748 1805 5551 13002
operating profitloss 3054 1917 3497 1474
finance costs 970 – – 970
other finance charges 90 – – 90
profitloss before tax 4114 1917 3497 2534
taxation 104 71 194 161
profitloss from continuing operations 4218 1846 3691 2373
loss for the period from discontinued 
operations – – 3691 3691
loss for the period 4218 1846 – 6064
reconciliation of equity at 31 march 2007
uk gaap
 £’000
ifrs 3
 business
combinations
 £’000
ifrs 5 
noncurrent
 assets held
 for sale and
 discontinued
 operations
 £’000
ias 19 
employee 
benefits 
£’000
ias 1 
presentation
 of financial
 statements
 £’000
ias 38
 intangible
 assets
 £’000
ias 3239
 financial
 instruments
 £’000
restated
 under ifrs
 £’000
noncurrent assets
goodwill 47220 3444 3401 – – – – 40375
other intangible assets 67 2283 – – – 572 – 2922
property plant  
and equipment 1449 – – – – 572 – 877
deferred tax asset – – – 1097 – – – 1097
derivative financial 
instruments – – – – – – 109 109
48736 1161 3401 1097 – – 109 45380
current assets
trade and other 
receivables 12895 – – – – – – 12895
cash and cash 
equivalent 1828 – – – – – – 1828
derivative financial 
instruments – – – – – – – –
14723 – – – – – – 14723
noncurrent assets 
classified as held for 
sale – – 3401 – – – – 3401
total assets 63459 1161 – 1097 – – 109 63504 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 63
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
36  reconciliation between uk gaap and ifrs continued
reconciliation of equity at 31 march 2007 continued
uk gaap
 £’000
ifrs 3
 business
combinations
 £’000 
ifrs 5 
noncurrent
 assets held
 for sale and
 discontinued
 operations
 £’000
ias 19 
employee 
benefits 
£’000
ias 1 
presentation
 of financial
 statements
 £’000
ias 38 
intangible
 assets 
£’000
ias 3239 
financial 
instruments
 £’000
restated
 under ifrs
 £’000
current liabilities
financial liabilities 9757 – – – – – – 9757
trade and other 
payables 7957 – – – – – – 7957
current tax liabilities 934 – – – – – – 934
provisions – – – – 150 – – 150
18648 – – – 150 – – 18798
noncurrent 
liabilities
financial liabilities 15231 – – – – – – 15231
provisions 569 – – – 255 – – 314
deferred tax liabilities – 685 – – 105 – – 790
retirement benefit 
obligations 2560 – – 1097 – – – 3657
18360 685 – 1097 150 – – 19992
total liabilities 37008 685 – 1097 – – – 38790
net assets 26451 1846 – – – – 109 24714
uk gaap
 £’000
ifrs 3 
business
 combinations
£’000
ifrs 5 
noncurrent
 assets held
 for sale and
 discontinued
 operations
 £’000 
ias 19
 employee
 benefits
 £’000
ias 1 
presentation 
of financial 
statements 
£’000
ias 38
 intangible
 assets
 £’000
ias 3239 
financial 
instruments
 £’000
restated
 under ifrs
 £’000
equity
share capital 3370 – – – – – – 3370
share premium 
account 30320 – – – – – – 30320
sharebased payment 
reserve 375 – – – – – – 375
retained earnings 7614 1846 – – – – – 9460
hedging reserve – – – – – – 109 109
equity payable  
to equity holders  
of the parent 26451 1846 – – – – 109 24714 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 64
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
36  reconciliation between uk gaap and ifrs continued
reconciliation of equity at 1 april 2006
uk gaap
 £’000
ifrs 3
 business 
combinations
 £’000
ifrs 5 
noncurrent
 assets held
 for sale and
 discontinued
 operations
 £’000
ias 19
 employee
 benefits
£’000
ias 38
 intangible
 assets
 £’000
 ias 3239
 financial
 instruments
 £’000
restated
 under ifrs
 £’000
noncurrent assets
goodwill 37609 – – – – – 37609
other intangible assets 54 – – – 290 – 344
property plant and equipment 1041 – – – 290 – 751
deferred tax asset – – – 1011 – – 1011
derivative financial instruments – – – – – – –
38704 – – 1011 – – 39715
current assets
trade and other receivables 9271 – – – – – 9271
cash and cash equivalent 3579 – – – – – 3579
12850 – – – – – 12850
noncurrent assets classified as held 
for sale – – – – – – –
total assets 51554 – – 1011 – – 52565
uk gaap
 £’000
ifrs 3
 business
combinations
 £’000
ifrs 5 
noncurrent
 assets held
 for sale and
 discontinued
 operations
 £’000
ias 19
employee
 benefits
 £’000
ias 38
intangible
 assets 
£’000 
ias 3239 
financial 
instruments
 £’000
restated
 under 
ifrs 
£’000
current liabilities
financial liabilities 7244 – – – – – 7244
trade and other payables 5411 – – – – – 5411
current tax liabilities 715 – – – – – 715
derivative financial instruments – – – – – 3 3
13370 – – – – 3 13373
noncurrent liabilities
financial liabilities 8637 – – – – – 8637
provisions 411 – – – – – 411
retirement benefit obligations 2358 – – 1011 – – 3369
11406 – – 1011 – – 12417
total liabilities 24776 – – 1011 – 3 25790
net assets 26778 – – – – 3 26775 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 65
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
36  reconciliation between uk gaap and ifrs continued
reconciliation of equity at 1 april 2006 continued
uk gaap
 £’000
ifrs 3
 business
combinations
 £’000
ifrs 5 
noncurrent
 assets held
 for sale and
 discontinued
 operations
 £’000 
ias 19
employee
 benefits
 £’000
ias 1 
presentation
of financial
 statements
 £’000 
ias 38
 intangible
 assets 
£’000
ias 3239
 financial
 instruments
 £’000
restated
 under ifrs
 £’000
equity
share capital 3119 – – – – – – 3119
share premium account 26694 – – – – – – 26694
sharebased  
payment reserve 123 – – – – – – 123
retained earnings 3158 – – – – – – 3158
hedging reserve – – – – – – 3 3
equity attributable  
to equity holders  
of the parent 26778 – – – – – 3 26775
the adoption of ifrs does not impact on the cash flows previously disclosed under uk gaap in any of the periods of 
account in the interim results the ias 7 cash flow statement is presented in a different format than required under 
uk gaap with cash flow split into three categories of activities – operating investing and financing
ifrs does however have a different definition of cash and cash equivalents for cash flow statement purposes this has 
had the effect of moving bank overdrafts to financing activities
explanations of differences between uk gaap and ifrs giving rise to adjustments in the reconciliations
ias 1 presentation of financial statements
the format of the ifrs financial statements has been prepared in accordance with ias 1 “presentation of financial 
statements” which differs from its uk equivalent  in particular there is greater flexibility on the presentation of 
information in the primary statements certain headings are mandatory but ifrs allows companies to adopt other 
headings in accordance with the nature of their business
ifrs 3 business combinations
on initial accounting for a business combination fair values attributed to the acquirees identifiable assets and 
liabilities may be provisional subsequent adjustments to these provisional values arising within twelve months of the 
acquisition date are recognised as an adjustment to goodwill any adjustments to provisional fair values identified 
after this twelve month period are recognised in the income statement
ifrs 3 prohibits the amortisation of goodwill the standard requires an annual impairment test to be performed as 
a consequence the value of goodwill at the date of transition has been frozen and the amortisation charges since 
that date have been reversed annual impairment tests have been performed and an impairment of £358m has been 
recognised at march 2007
ifrs 3 requires that fair values are attributed to identified intangible assets acquired via business combinations as a 
result the amount attributed to goodwill arising on consolidation correspondingly reduced the group has identified 
all such intangibles for the group’s business combinations since 1 april 2006 assets so identified amount to £331m 
at 31 march 2008 these represent the net present value of discounted future cash flows expected to be derived from 
customer related intangibles this value has been transferred from goodwill to other intangible assets the intangible 
assets will be amortised over their expected useful life in accordance with ias12 deferred taxation of £071m at 
31 march 2008 has been recognised in goodwill in respect of these intangibles and will be released in line with the 
amortisation of the intangible  supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 66
notes to the condensed consolidated financial information continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
36  reconciliation between uk gaap and ifrs continued
on transition to ifrs the group has chosen not to restate acquisitions occurring prior to the date of transition however 
under ifrs deferred tax would have been recognised on the fair value adjustments of acquisitions prior to that date the 
group has therefore provided the deferred tax at a rate of 30 based on the group’s ongoing tax charges
ifrs 5 noncurrent assets held for sale and discontinued operations
in november 2006 the group decided to sell the payroll division of the group ifrs 5 requires these discontinued 
operations to be reclassified into one line on the income statement which is shown on page 22
under ifrs 5 ‘assets held for sale and disposal groups’ the assets and liabilities of the payroll division required 
reclassification to assets held for sale and liabilities relating to assets held for sale
ias 1 presentation of financial statements provisions
ias 1 requires provisions to be split between current and noncurrent liabilities
ias 3239 financial instruments
ias 32 and ias 39 must be applied whereas the uk gaap equivalent frs 26 is not a requirement for aim listed 
companies under ias 39 the interest rate swap derivatives are recognised at fair value and accounted for using hedge 
accounting any movements in fair value go to equity and a corresponding hedge reserve has been set up
37 post balance sheet events
on 3 june 2008 supporta plc allotted 4908902 ordinary shares of 5p each in the company in order to satisfy 
the final element of deferred consideration as agreed under the terms of its acquisition agreement with terraquest 
solutions limited in november 2006
the shares were treated as issued at a price of 22625p per share supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 67
five year summary
for the year ended 31 march 2008
prepared under ifrs prepared under uk gaap
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000 
2006 
£’000 
2005 
£’000
2004 
£’000
revenue 50763 42708 29102 20471 9878
operating profitloss 1023 1474 571 686 1115
net finance costs 1396 1060 414 186 52
lossprofit before tax from  
continued operations 373 2534 157 872 1167
taxation 277 161 173 89 43
650 2373 16 961 1210
loss for the year from discontinued 
operations 942 3691 – – –
loss after taxation 1592 6064 16 961 1210
equity minority interests – – 75 27 10
loss attributable to the equity 
holders of the parent 1592 6064 91 934 1200
dividend per share – – – – –
loss per share – basic 224 940 018 282 1035 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 68
parent company financial statements
the separate financial statements of supporta plc are presented on pages 70 to 76 as required by the companies act 1985 
‘the act’ the group has elected not to adopt international financial reporting standards in the individual company 
accounts for the parent company and subsidiary undertakings and accordingly these financial statements have been 
prepared under uk accounting standards and in accordance with the act they are therefore presented separately to the 
group consolidated financial statements which have been prepared under international financial reporting standards supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 69
report of the independent auditor to the members of supporta plc
we have audited the parent company financial statements of supporta plc for the year ended 31 march 2008 which 
comprise the principal accounting policies the balance sheet and notes 1 to 14
these parent company financial statements have been prepared under the accounting policies set out therein
we have reported separately on the group financial statements of supporta plc for the ended 31 march 2008
this report is made solely to the company’s members as a body in accordance with section 235 of the companies 
act 1985 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 
respective responsibilities of directors and auditors
the directors’ responsibilities for preparing the annual report and the parent company financial statements in accordance 
with united kingdom law and accounting standards united kingdom generally accepted accounting practice are set out 
in the statement of directors’ responsibilities
our responsibility is to audit the parent company financial statements in accordance with relevant legal and regulatory 
requirements and international standards on auditing uk and ireland
we report to you our opinion as to whether the parent company financial statements give a true and fair view and 
whether the parent company financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with the companies act 
1985 we also report to you whether in our opinion the information given in the directors’ report is consistent with the 
financial statements the information given in the directors’ report includes that specific information presented in the 
business review that is cross referred from the business review section of the directors’ report
in addition we report to you if in our opinion the company has not kept proper accounting records if we have not 
received all the information and explanations we require for our audit or if information specified by law regarding 
directors’ remuneration and other transactions is not disclosed
we read other information contained in the annual report and consider whether it is consistent with the audited parent 
company financial statements the other information comprises only chairman’s statement chief executive’s report 
financial director’s report corporate governance statement and the directors’ report we consider the implications 
for our report if we become aware of any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the parent company 
financial statements our responsibilities do not extend to any other information
basis of audit opinion
we conducted our audit in accordance with international standards on auditing uk and ireland issued by the auditing 
practices board an audit includes examination on a test basis of evidence relevant to the amounts and disclosures in the 
parent company financial statements it also includes an assessment of the significant estimates and judgments made by 
the directors in the preparation of the parent company financial statements and of whether the accounting policies are 
appropriate to the company’s circumstances consistently applied and adequately disclosed
we planned and performed our audit so as to obtain all the information and explanations which we considered necessary 
in order to provide us with sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that the parent company financial statements 
are free from material misstatement whether caused by fraud or other irregularity or error in forming our opinion we also 
evaluated the overall adequacy of the presentation of information in the parent company financial statements 
opinion
in our opinion
the parent company financial statements give a true and fair view in accordance with united kingdom generally •	
accepted accounting practice of the state of the company’s affairs as at 31 march 2008
the parent company financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with the companies act 1985 and •	
the information given in the directors’ report is consistent with the financial statements •	
grant thornton uk llp 
registered auditor 
chartered accountants
oxford 
23 june 2008  supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 70
company balance sheet
note
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
fixed assets
tangible assets 2 281 345
investments 3 23583 31279
23864 31624
current assets
debtors 4 29612 21183
cash at bank and in hand 5 411 804
30023 21987
creditors amounts falling due within one year 6 18901 17238
net current assets 11122 4749
total assets less current liabilities 34986 36373
creditors amounts falling due after one year 7 12280 14809
provisions for liabilities 8 20 20
22686 21544
capital and reserves
called up share capital 10 4077 3370
share premium account 11 34873 30320
profit and loss account 11 16901 12521
sharebased payment reserve 11 637 375
total shareholders’ funds 12 22686 21544
the notes on pages 72 to 76 form part of these accounts
these accounts were approved by the directors on 23 june 2008
j jasper  d xiberras
director  director supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 71
company accounting policies
for the year ended 31 march 2008
basis of prep aration
the company financial statements have been prepared in accordance with applicable united kingdom accounting 
standards and under the historical cost convention
the principal accounting policies of the company are set out below the policies have remained unchanged from the 
previous period the policies remain the most appropriate for the year
turnover
company turnover is the total amount receivable by the company for goods supplied and services provided excluding vat 
and trade discounts
tangible fixed assets and depreciation
tangible fixed assets are stated at cost net of depreciation depreciation is calculated to write down the cost less 
estimated residual value of all tangible fixed assets by equal annual instalments over their estimated useful economic lives 
the range of estimated useful lives for each major assets category which are reviewed annually are
leasehold property term of the lease
office equipment fixtures and fittings including computer equipment and motor vehicles 3 to 8 years
leased assets
assets held under finance leases and hire purchase contracts are capitalised in the balance sheet and depreciated over their 
estimated useful economic lives the interest element of leasing payments represents a constant proportion of the capital balance 
outstanding and is charged to the profit and loss account over the period of the lease all other leases are regards as operating 
leases and the payments made under them are charged to the profit and loss account on a straightline basis over the lease term
investments
investments are included at cost less amounts written off
deferred taxation
deferred tax is recognised on all timing differences where the transactions or events that give the company an obligation 
to pay more tax in the future or a right to pay less tax in the future have occurred by the balance sheet date deferred tax 
assets are recognised when it is more likely than not that they will be recovered deferred tax is measured using rates of 
tax that have been enacted or substantively enacted by the balance sheet date
financial instruments
financial assets are recognised in the balance sheet at the lower of cost and net realisable value
income and expenditure arising on the financial instruments is recognised on the accruals basis and credited or charged  
to the profit and loss account in the financial period to which it relates
retirement benefits
defined contribution scheme
the pension costs charged against profits are the contributions payable to individual policies in respect of the accounting period
sharebased p ayments
the company operates several share option plans for key employees all sharebased payment arrangements granted after  
7 november 2002 that had not vested prior to 1 april 2006 are recognised in the financial statements
all goods and services received in exchange for the grant of any sharebased payment are measured at their fair values 
where employees are rewarded using sharebased payments the fair values of employees’ services are determined 
indirectly by reference to the fair value of the instrument granted to the employee this fair value is appraised at the grant 
date and excludes the impact of nonmarket vesting conditions
all equitysettled sharebased payments are ultimately recognised as an expense in the profit and loss account with a 
corresponding credit to “sharebased payment reserve” 
if vesting periods or other nonmarket vesting conditions apply the expense is allocated over the vesting period based 
on the best available estimate of the number of share options expected to vest estimates are revised subsequently if 
there is any indication that the number of share options expected to vest differs from previous estimates any cumulative 
adjustment prior to vesting is recognised in the current period no adjustment is made to any expense recognised in prior 
periods if share options that have vested are not exercised
upon exercise of share options the proceeds received net of attributable transaction costs are credited to share capital 
and where appropriate share premium supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 72
notes to the company financial statements
for the year ended 31 march 2008
1  profit and loss account
the company’s loss for the year is £438m 2007 £882m as permitted by s2303 of the companies act 1985  
a separate profit and loss account has not been presented
2  tangible fixed assets
office 
equipment
 £’000
computer 
software
 £’000
total 
£’000
cost
at 1 april 2007 356 134 490
additions 10 12 22
at 31 march 2008 366 146 512
depreciation
at 1 april 2007 71 74 145
provided in the year 51 35 86
at 31 march 2008 122 109 231
net book value  
at 31 march 2008 244 37 281
at 31 march 2007 285 60 345
3  fixed asset investments
subsidiary
undertaking
£’000
cost and net book amount
at 1 april 2007 31279
additions 528
disposal 8006
impairment 218
at 31 march 2008 23583 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 73
notes to the company financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
3  fixed asset investment continued
at 31 march 2008 the principal undertakings where the group held 20 or more of the equity share capital are 
shown below a full list of subsidiary undertakings is listed on the company annual return which is filed at companies 
house and is also available from the company secretary upon request
proportion held
subsidiary 
undertakings
country of 
incorporation
class of share 
capital held
by parent 
company
by 
subsidary nature of business
supporta care limited united kingdom ordinary 100
home and 
social care provision
supporta services 
limited united kingdom ordinary 100 support services
staff vms limited united kingdom ordinary 100 back office services
supporta professional 
services limited united kingdom ordinary 100 architectural services
independent living 
organisation limited united kingdom ordinary 100
home and 
social care provision
strathaven nursing 
homes limited united kingdom ordinary 100
home and 
social care provision
datacare business 
systems limited united kingdom ordinary 100
data storage 
and scanning
bay associates 
consulting limited united kingdom ordinary 100
civil and structural
 engineering
terraquest solutions 
limited united kingdom ordinary 100
business process
 outsourcing and
 consultancy
hallam helthcare 
limited united kingdom ordinary 100
home and 
social care provision
4  debtors
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
trade debtors 250 1441
amounts owed by group undertakings 28629 19428
corporation tax 139 –
other debtors 142 116
prepayments and accrued income 452 198
29612 21183
5  cash at bank and in hand
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
cash in escrow 411 804 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 74
notes to the company financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
6  creditors amounts falling due within one year
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
bank loans and overdrafts 8340 7804
loan notes issued on acquisition – 888
trade creditors 568 311
amounts owed to group undertakings 7226 4887
social security and other taxes 224 164
accruals and deferred income 322 892
deferred consideration 2221 2283
amounts due under hire purchase contracts – 9
18901 17238
the bank loans and overdrafts are secured by a fixed and floating charge over all assets of the group
there are no amounts due under hire purchase contracts
7  creditors amounts falling due after more than one year
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
bank loans and overdrafts 12280 12588
deferred consideration – 2221
12280 14809
8  provisions for liability and charges
2008 
£’000 
2007 
£’000
other provisions 20 20
20 20
the £002m other provisions for the company is dilapidation provision supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 75
notes to the company financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
9  borrowings
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
within one year or on demand
bank and other borrowings 8340 7804
hire purchase contracts 9
after one and within two years
bank and other borrowings 3145 4318
between two and five years
bank and other borrowings 9135 8270
20620 20401
10  share capital
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
authorised
100000000 ordinary shares of 5p each 2007 100000 5000 5000
allotted called up and fully paid
81547450 ordinary shares of 5p each 2007 67402493 4077 3370
allotments during the year of new ordinary 5p shares were as follows
4 december 2007  2602046 shares were issued in order to satisfy the deferred consideration 
relating to the acquisition in november 2006 of terraquest solutions limited
2 january 2008  11542911 shares were issued at 3825p per share in order to fund the 
acquisition of hallam healthcare limited
there were no exercise of employee share options during the year
11  share premium account and reserves
share premium 
account 
£’000
profit and loss 
account 
£’000 
share based 
payment reserves
 £’000
at 1 april 2007 30320 12521 375
retained loss for the year – 4380 –
frs 20 sharebased payment reserve movement – – 262
premium on allotment during the year 4553 – –
at 31 march 2008 34873 16901 637
12  reconciliation of movements in shareholders’ funds
2008 
£’000
2007 
£’000
loss for the financial year 4380 8821
frs 20 sharebased payment reserve movement 262 252
issue of shares 707 3877
net decreaseincrease in shareholders’ funds 3411 4692
shareholders’ funds at 1 april 21544 26236
shareholders’ funds at 31 march 18133 21544 supporta plc  –  annual report  accounts 2008 76
notes to the company financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2008
13  pension schemes
the company contributes to personal pension schemes of certain directors and employees the company operates  
a stakeholder pension plan available to all employees
the company does not operate a defined benefits scheme
14  sharebased p ayments
2008 
options exercised
2007
 options exercised
2008 
weighted average
 exercise price 
pence
2007
 weighted average
 exercise price 
pence
outstanding at 1 april 5194553 3818902 661 660
grant during the year 1565902 1645651 607 659 
forfeited during the year 1460083 190000 781 705 
exercised during the year  80000  500
outstanding at 31 march 5300372 5194553 611 661 
exerciseable at 31 march 5300372 5194553 611 661
the inputs into the blackscholes valuation model for options granted during the year were as follows 
2008 2007
weighted average share price 366 p 711 p
weighted average exercise price 608 p 656 p
expected volatility 243  440 
expected life 4 years 4 years
risk free rate 45  50 
expected dividend yield 0  0  company information
company registration number
04002389
registered ofice
3 kingmaker court
warwick technology park
warwick
cv34 6ut
directors
dr c grace  nonexecutive chairman
j jasper  group chief executive
m curran  managing director 
 supporta professional services
d xiberras  group finance director
b walsh managing director supporta
n scholte  nonexecutive director
secretary s birks
bankers
barclays bank plc
corporate banking centre
p o box 11
park house newbrick road
stoke gifford
bristol
bs34 8tn
solicitors
eversheds
eversheds house
70 great bridgewater street
manchester
m1 5es
auditors
grant thornton uk llp
registered auditors
chartered accountants
1 westminster way
oxford
ox2 opz
nominated advisor  
and stockbroker
brewin dolphin
12 smithfield street
london
ec1a 9bd
vision is an environmentally friendly paper obtained from sustainable 
forests and is made from elemental chlorine free ecf bleached kraft pulp dedicated to people
shaping better places
annual report and accounts report 2008
supporta plc
3 kingmaker court 
warwick technology park 
warwick cv34 6ut
t 01926 516600 
f 01926 516699
w wwwsupportaplccom 
e betterlivessupportaplccom
supporta plc annual report and accounts report 2008


Summary:
 supporta plc  – annual report  accounts 2008 1
financial highlights

operational highlights
revenue increased by 19 to £5076m 2007 £4271m •	
operating profit before sharebased payment charge •	
amortisation and exceptional items increased by 14 
to £403m 2007 £353m
operating profit of £102m 2007 loss of £147m •	
loss before tax of £037m 2007 £253m •	
adjusted basic earnings per share reduced by 30  •	
to 266p 2007 378p
supporta care
contract wins •	 start date
harrow dec 07 4000 hrs
hertfordshire apr 08 3000 hrs
liverpool jul 07 1000 hrs
stockton apr 08 1000 hrs
surrey sep 08 1000 hrs
bristol extracare jan 08 500 hrs
kensington  chelsea jan 08 500 hrs
11000 hrs
supporta professional services
contract wins •	 start date
 tfl  property asset register mapping services sep 07
 cross london rail links  land referencing and property 
information management services feb 08 and to 
provide a webbased property register as a hosted 
service apr 08
 oxford radcliffe hospitals nhs trust  extension of  
the medical records data storage contract mar 08
 taylor wimpey  webbased strategic land database  
as a hosted service jan 08
implementation of new structure •	
annualised runrate cost reduction of approximately •	
£17m arising from new structure
operating profit reducing by 4 to £212m  •	
2007 £221m
operating margin reduced from 181 to 125 •	
new care system implementation •	
new regional management team •	
organic revenue growth 10 •	
operating profit increasing 35 to £396m  •	
2007 £294m
hallam acquisition completed and performing  •	
to expectations
operating margin increased from 96 to 115 •	
basic loss per share of 091p 2007 loss 368p •	
cash generated from operations reduced by 45  •	
to £190m 2007 £343m
banking facilities renegotiated •	
successful placing raising £418m and additional •	
£108m of shares issued as deferred consideration
 before sharebased payment charge amortisation and exceptional items

all numbers quoted in financial highlights represent continuing operations
financial highlights 
for the year ended 31
st 
march 2008
£5076m
revenue
£m
£186m
profit before tax
£m
£403m
operating profit
£m
167p
basic earnings 
per share p
5076
403
263
266
4271
353
247
378
2188
162
121
168
2047
075
059
161 
983
008
000
0262
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