professionals at work
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
annual report and accounts 2003
quantica plc
quantica house lowfields
elland halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 310088
email plcquanticacouk
quantica plc annual report and accounts 2003 corporate statement
quantica plc is a recruitment and training group the group obtained a full
listing on the london stock exchange in june 1998 we operate in five main
areas legal technology search  selection healthcare and training and
provide customers with a single source for recruitment and training needs
across each professional discipline the group also provides subcontract
staff to the construction healthcare and technology sectors
each division occupies a strong position in its own niche market and also
benefits from considerable internal synergies the decentralised and
entrepreneurial environment within which they operate enables each division
to maintain high operating margins healthy returns on capital employed and
most importantly provide its customers with particularly high levels of
personal service thereby building shareholder value
ifc corporate statement
01 financial highlights
02 chairman’s statement
04 chief executive’s review
06 review of operations
08 financial review
09 board of directors
10 company advisors
11 directors’ report
13 report on directors’ 
remuneration
16 corporate governance
19 independent auditors’
report
20 consolidated profit
and loss account
21 balance sheets
22 consolidated cash
flow statement
22 reconciliation of net
cash flow to movement
in net debt
23 notes to the financial
statements
35 notice of annual 
general meeting
ibc group companies 
and addresses
quantica plc 
annual report 2003
group companies and addresses
t he d esign p ortfolio
a member of the flathill communications group plc
wwwflathillplccom
designed  produced by
head office
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 310088
email plcquanticacouk 
construction people
recruitment solutions
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 377733 
email constructionquanticacouk
the business centre
23 northenden road
sale
cheshire m33 2dh
tel 0161 9736226
email constructionquanticacouk
quantica healthcare
elmhurst
22a brooklands avenue
cambridge cb2 2dq
tel 01223 303093
email healthcarequanticacouk
1 the courtyards
phoenix square
severalls business park
wyncolls road
colchester co4 9pe
tel 01206 228333
email healthcarequanticacouk
1a the hamlet
hornbeam square west
hornbeam park
harrogate hg2 8re
tel 01423 870044
email healthcarequanticacouk
225 india buildings
water street
liverpool l2 1bd
tel 0151 2279300
email healthcarequanticacouk 
rowan house
28 queens road
hethersett
norwich nr9 3db
tel 01603 813969
email healthcarequanticacouk
23 watsons chambers
business centre
515 market place
castle square
sheffield s1 2gh
tel 01142 211688
email healthcarequanticacouk
quantica legal
thomas court
east street
colchester co1 2tr
tel 01206 871971
email legalquanticacouk
3 washington chambers
stanwell road
penarth
cardiff cf64 2af
tel 02920 711914
email legalquanticacouk
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 370011 
email legalquanticacouk
quantica search  selection
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 370011
email searchselectionquanticacouk
friars court
aylesbury
buckinghamshire hp20 2sj
tel 01296 338259
email searchselectionquanticacouk
1a the hamlet
hornbeam square west
hornbeam park
harrogate hg2 8re
tel 01423 871770
email searchselectionquanticacouk 
quantica technology
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 377377
email technologyquanticacouk
quantica training
thomas court
east street
colchester co1 2tr
tel 01206 877 277
email trainingquanticacouk
second floor
euro house
5466 high street
hounslow
middlesex tw3 1nw
tel 020 8814 1484
email trainingquanticacouk
james kimber holdings limited
second floor
euro house
5466 high street
hounslow
middlesex tw3 1nw
tel 020 8814 1888
email trainingquanticacouk
quantica selection training limited
the business centre
23 northenden road
sale
cheshire m33 2dh
tel 0161 2833773
email trainingquanticacouk 
quantica mansel training
7 school road
sale
cheshire m33 1xy
tel 0161 9699017
email trainingquanticacouk
victory house
level 2
8 crofts avenue
hurstville nsw 2220
australia
tel 00612 95851522
email trainingquanticacouk  quantica plc 
annual report 2003
01 financial highlights
strong progress has been made over the year in all areas of our business 
runrates and margins have improved in the second half both over the
equivalent period last year but more significantly over the first half of 2003
the operating profit is presented before exceptional costs and amortisation
of goodwill the earnings per share is presented before exceptional costs
and amortisation of goodwill
turnover
£249m
2002 £261m
net fee income
£120m
2002 £117m
operating profit
£22m
2002 £21m
earnings per share
33p
2002 28p
01 02 0 03 3
turnover
£249m
£261m
£334m
01 02 0 03 3
net fee income
£120m
£117m
£153m
01 02 0 03 3
operating profit
£22m
£21m
£42m
01 02 0 03 3
earnings per share
33p
28p
66p quantica plc 
annual report 2003
chairman’s statement 02
financial results in brief
i am delighted to announce that significant progress
was made in 2003 particularly in the second half
my comments about “light at the end of the tunnel”
in the interim statement appear to be correct net fee
income and operating profit from continuing operations
in the second half of the year improved considerably
compared to both the first half and the second half
of last year
turnover for the year ended 28 november 2003 was
£249m 2002 £261m net fee income was £120m
2002 £117m with operating profit before exceptional
costs and amortisation of goodwill at £22m 2002
£21m after exceptional costs incurred in the first
half of £06m associated with the closure of our
technology office in hemel hempstead and the
amortisation of goodwill of £04m the pretax profit
was £08m 2002 pretax loss of £34m operating
margins before exceptional items amortisation of
goodwill and impairment losses increased to 89
2002 79 reflecting both the maintenance of
gross margins and tight control over our cost base
cash inflow before financing was £05m 2002 £20m
outflow at the halfyear net debt stood at £78m
reflecting the cost of closing the hemel hempstead
office cash generated in the second half was £09m
demonstrating the company’s ability to generate cash
even when activity levels are increasing and reducing
net debt at the year end to £69m 2002 £74m
full year earnings per share before amortisation of
goodwill and exceptional costs increased by 18
to 333p 2002 282p basic full year earnings per
share after amortisation of goodwill and exceptional
costs was 130p 2002 loss 911p
dividend
the board is proposing a final dividend of 10p
2002 10p per ordinary share for the year ended
28 november 2003 which if approved by shareholders
would give a total dividend for the year of 10p
2002 10p the dividend will become payable
on 17 april 2004 to shareholders who are on the
register on 19 march 2004
the financial results are discussed in detail in the
financial review on page 8
business progress
strong progress has been made over the year in all
areas of our business runrates and margins have
improved in the second half both over the equivalent
period last year but more significantly over the first
half of 2003
the healthcare division continued to grow strongly
volumes gross margins and profitability all
increased over the year three quarters of our
business is dedicated to social care which is driven
by the demographics of an ageing population
the introduction of care standards and associated
regulatory frameworks whilst increasing cost in
the short term have increased barriers to entry into
the market and will prove beneficial in the longer term
the remainder of our business is primarily in the
professional disciplines of social work occupational
therapy and physiotherapy this mix of business
has protected us from some of the margin pressure
reported in other areas of the sector
the legal division has had a better year in 2003
increasing operating profit substantially from what
was a particularly difficult 2002 both provincial and
city markets recovered to some extent albeit not
to the levels of earlier years
search  selection remains an extremely resilient
business trading in the second half was as good
as the first half which was strong and considerably
better than the same period last year operating
profits for the division once again increased on
a yearonyear basis our reputation has been built
upon our ability to deliver a highly effective
recruitment service this is evidenced by the very
high success rates on assignments and the level
of repeat business obtained by this division
the technology division had a mixed year
the underachieving hemel hempstead office was
closed at a cost of £06m as stated in the interim
announcement and the remaining contract business
”
“
i am delighted to announce that
significant progress was made in 2003
particularly in the second half  quantica plc 
annual report 2003
03
transferred to elland in the north however business
improved considerably in the last quarter of the year
old customers have returned contractor numbers
have increased and gross margins negotiated on new
contracts have been encouraging our technology
division retains our national coverage although it is
run entirely from our northern office we have invested
in this operation to enable us to grow organically
in the future and we will continue to resist chasing
volume business at the expense of margins
the training division was boosted by the full year
benefit of the acquisitions made in 2002 both of these
businesses james kimber education acquired in june
2002 and selection training acquired in october 2002
have been successfully integrated into the group
we now operate from two major hubs in london and
manchester giving us nationwide coverage we are
firmly established as a quality major provider in what
is still a fairly fragmented sector this should ensure
that we are ideally placed to take advantage of the
government’s commitment to increase the level
of funding available for vocational training 
our startup construction division which is just over
a year old made a small profit in the year which should
provide them with a solid platform for organic growth
in 2004
outlook 
the outlook for quantica is bright our two main
contracting divisions made significant progress
in the year the technology business continues to
increase contractor numbers and at good margins
the number of fee earners has been increased
and the infrastructure is in place to enable the
division to continue to grow as the market improves
the healthcare business also improved both volumes
and margins in the second half finishing the year
well ahead of last year healthcare is growing
geographically by the introduction of new operations
into existing offices in elland and manchester
and by the further development of professional
disciplines from colchester we will continue to
invest in both these businesses as the principal
drivers of organic growth
our two permanent recruitment businesses legal
and search  selection also progressed very well
during the year and are expected to continue to
do well in 2004
training is also a bright spot at the moment and is
a solid cash generative business for us since the
year end we have acquired mansel training
mansel is a nvq training provider based in
manchester which complements the rest of the
division we will consolidate our northern training
operations onto one site in order to maximise
synergies and keep costs to a minimum this is
consistent with our strategy to take advantage of
opportunities to acquire small infill businesses
should the opportunity arise 
even though the growth of our contracting businesses
inevitably places some demands on further working
capital the mix of our business should still enable us
to generate cash and further reduce our debt position
in 2004
our primary strategy remains to concentrate on
organic growth and we will continue to manage our
cost base in line with our revenues control cash well
and deliver value to shareholders
phillip j bennett
chairman
10 february 2004
”
“
the outlook for quantica is bright
our two main contracting divisions
made significant progress in the year quantica plc 
annual report 2003
chief executive’s review 04
quantica consists of five main divisions and one
relatively new division operating in construction
recruitment the five main divisions are healthcare
and technology recruitment both of which are
contracting businesses search  selection and legal
recruitment which are both permanent recruitment
businesses and training a division offering publicly
funded work based training services
overall 2003 was similar to the previous year – difficult
by that i am referring to the economic climate as a
whole and the sectors we operate in we knew this
would be the case at the outset and we were prepared
for it our main objective was to ensure our cost base
was aligned with our revenues whilst being careful not
to prejudice the opportunities for future growth when
markets recovered we believe that by maintaining
profitability in the difficult first half and by increasing
profitability in the second half we have achieved both
these objectives
operational review
although we knew the year would be difficult there
is good news in each of our divisions
healthcare has once again led the way growing revenue
by 36 net fee income by 37 and operating profit
by more than 17 at the halfyear we reported a
slight decline in operating profit compared to the same
period in 2002 this was caused by costs increasing
in relation to the introduction of care standards
supervision requirements and the increased cost
of criminal records bureau “crb” checks which had
more than doubled we said this would be a one off
and this has proved to be the case operating profit
in the second half increased by nearly 50 over the
corresponding period last year
the market in the nursing areas of healthcare has
become much more competitive recently however
nursing only accounts for around 10 of our business
and our primary markets in care and the qualified
sector are holding up well in fact during the course
of the year we have been able to improve gross
margins in both these areas
we will continue to grow the business geographically
in the case of care workers and we will continue
to pursue the growth of the qualified side from our
healthcare head office in colchester
the legal division has seen its markets improve in
2003 revenue net fee income and profit all improved
in the first half and in the same period last year there
was also a considerable increase over last year as a
whole our cost base remained relatively static and
therefore most of the improvement fell through to the
bottom line with operating profit increasing by 40
the main office in colchester had a good year cardiff a
somewhat disappointing one and elland the newest
operation as far as legal is concerned performed
to plan we will continue to grow the legal business
organically across the three current locations
throughout the uk 
search  selection had another good year operating
profit increased by 57 in the second half compared
to last year and increased by 23 for the year as
a whole on net fee income at a similar rate to 2002
this illustrates that sensible reductions can be made
to the cost base without prejudicing performance
search  selection operates from three offices elland
which performed similarly to 2002 harrogate who
have now established themselves firmly in the retail
market and aylesbury who more than doubled their
operating profit compared to the prior year
”
“
although we knew the year would
be difficult there is good news in
each of our divisions quantica plc 
annual report 2003
05
in technology over a twoyear period we have seen
revenue drop from £217m to £60m net fee income
reduce from £70m to £14m and operating profit went
from £20m to £03m quite a fall over two years
this is no different to anyone else’s experience in
the market except perhaps the fact that we are still
making a profit in the last quarter of 2003 we have
however seen a significant improvement and more
importantly this has continued into 2004 contractor
numbers have increased by 40 and our high levels
of operational gearing means that virtually all of this
gross margin translates directly into profit
our strategy is to continue to run the technology
business from one location for the foreseeable future
our cost base is low and any increase in net fee
income should pass straight through to the bottom
line clients are once again struggling to obtain good
quality experienced staff and the old system of
operating preferred supplier lists is starting to come
under pressure we are very optimistic about the
technology market once again and see it as a large
growth area for us in 2004
the training division grew revenue and net fee income
by 64 and operating profit by 34 over the same
period last year the growth is a mixture of organic
growth and the additional contribution from the two
businesses bought in 2002 since the year end we
have acquired another provider based in manchester
this will be integrated into our existing northern
operation and should provide us with further
synergistic benefits in 2004
the training business is rigorously assessed by the
government audit bodies and was recently awarded
annual inspection grades which puts it as one of the
top 5 training providers nationally and one of the
top 1 in the greater london area we intend to
build on this progress and i expect the training
division to be one of the top performers in 2004
the construction division which started trading
just over a year ago had a good first full year
the division made a small profit in line with budget
and we expect to build on that in the coming year
people
the last two years have been particularly difficult
in the recruitment market we have maintained
profitability throughout the period and this is entirely
down to the staff their commitment hard work and
loyalty have been exemplary i would like to take this
opportunity on behalf of the board to thank each
and every one of them for their sterling efforts
the future
until recently recruitment had been a relatively
predictable business i can now see a pattern emerging
similar to when recruitment came out of the recession
of the early eighties and early nineties only this time
i think it is somewhat slower rather than a surge
of activity it is more a general improvement in the
confidence of the people we are dealing with on
a daily basis the improvement is nevertheless being
translated into increased activity levels 
our strategy remains the same we will concentrate
mainly on organic growth continue to keep costs to
a minimum and focus on generating cash i can see
the markets improving and any increase in net fee
income would improve our level of profitability
going forward
les lawson
chief executive
10 february 2004
”
“
our strategy remains the same we will
concentrate mainly on organic growth
continue to keep costs to a minimum
and focus on generating cash quantica plc 
annual report 2003
review of operations 06
training
technology
healthcare
search  selection
legal
❚ fifth successive year of growth in net fee income
2003 increase of 37
❚ core business of care nursing continues to expand
with new branches planned for 2004
❚ significant progress made in expanding qualified sector
supplying qualified social workers physiotherapists
occupational therapists and radiographers
❚ 15 growth in net fee income
❚ evidence of an upturn in corporate transactional work
and associated legal specialisations associated with
a recovery in the city markets
❚ expansion into northern markets through our halifax
based operation progressing well
❚ business remains extremely resilient reflecting the
quality of our service delivery
❚ particularly strong performance from the
aylesbury office
❚ harrogate business now firmly established as a leader
in recruitment market to the retail market
❚ significant improvement in business volumes in the
final quarter of the year
❚ all technology operations consolidated into our
northern office which retains its national coverage
❚ investment made in the business to enable future
organic growth
❚ 64 increase in net fee income
❚ integration of james kimber acquired in june 2002
into hounslow office successfully completed
❚ manchesterbased selection training acquired in
october 2002 performed ahead of expectations
providing a hub for further expansion into
northern markets quantica plc 
annual report 2003
07
net fee income
£26 million
2002 £19 million
net fee income
£15 million
2002 £13 million
net fee income
£32 million
2002 £35 million
net fee income
£31 million
2002 £19 million
net fee income
£14 million
2002 £32 million quantica plc 
annual report 2003
financial review 08
this review presents key elements of quantica’s
financial performance and expands upon key features
of the financial statements set out on pages 20 to 34
trading results
group turnover decreased by 5 to £249m 2002
£261m the decrease in the group’s revenue reflects
lower technology volumes versus the prior year
partially offset by growth in healthcare and training
net fee income increased to £120m 2002 £117m
benefiting from a particularly strong second half
performance operating profit before exceptional
costs and amortisation of goodwill increased
to £22m 2002 £21m
operating margins before exceptional costs and
amortisation of goodwill improved to 89 2002
79 reflecting the actions taken to reduce the
group’s cost base 
the profit after tax exceptional costs and amortisation
of goodwill amounted to £05m 2002 loss of £36m 
exceptional costs
exceptional costs of £06m pretax were charged
in the year these reflect the cost of actions taken
in the technology division in the first half of the
year in closing the under performing office based
in hemel hempstead
interest
the net interest charge for the year of £04m 2002
£05m comprises interest in respect of bank loans
and overdrafts
tax
the group’s underlying tax charge was 33 with
the overall charge benefiting from a release of £01m
in respect of prior year tax provisions which are no
longer required it is anticipated that the group’s
ongoing rate will be broadly in line with the standard
rate of corporation tax
earnings per share
earnings per share before exceptional costs and
amortisation of goodwill for the year was 333p
2002 282p
adjusted basic earnings per share after exceptional
costs and amortisation of goodwill amounted to
130p 2002 loss of 911p
diluted earning per share after exceptional costs and
amortisation of goodwill amounted to 129p 2002
loss of 907p
cash flow and financing
the cash inflow before financing was £05m
2002 outflow of £20m
treasury policies
the treasury function is not a profit centre and all
activities are undertaken primarily to support the
underlying exposures faced by the operating
companies the group does not enter into
speculative treasury arrangements 
the group finances its operations through a mixture
of retained profits and borrowings the group’s
borrowings all carry floating rates of interest
no interest rate swaps have been taken out
by the group
the group has no material transactions or balances
denominated in foreign currencies
dividend
the directors propose a final dividend of 10p 2002
10p making a total dividend for the period of 10p
2002 10p
the directors propose that the dividend be paid
on 17 april 2004 to shareholders on the register
on 19 march 2004
international financial reporting standards
all european union listed groups are required to
adopt international accounting standards “ias” for
their financial statements with accounting periods
starting on or after 1 january 2005 which will include
comparative information for the prior year the group
will undertake a detailed review of the impact of ias
on its published financial statements although these
standards are themselves evolving and undergoing
improvement a preliminary review shows that there
is not expected to be a significant impact on the
group’s accounts 
robert turner
finance director
10 february 2004 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
09 board of directors
brian hersee heather
nonexecutive director
brian is a chartered accountant with
over 20 years’ experience within the
accountancy profession including
acquisitions and other corporate work
he joined fki as group chief accountant
in 1987 and in october 1989 he left fki
to cofound gwb brian held the position
as finance director for the group from
its formation up to the appointment of
robert turner in 2001 from that point
he reverted to his role within the gwb
group whilst remaining as a nonexecutive
director of the company he has been a
nonexecutive director of cirqual plc and
aquarius group plc
michael thomas waterhouse
senior independent
nonexecutive director
michael was until march 1996 a director
of henry cooke corporate finance limited
whom he joined in 1986 prior to this he
had worked for morgan guaranty trust
company of new york inc and cdp
waterhouse limited he was appointed
to the board of quantica on 13 may 1998
and is also a nonexecutive director of
cirqual plc
daniel crawford laughlan
independent nonexecutive director
crawford spent most of his working life
with the halifax building society now
hbos and retired in late 1992 as group
personnel and services director on the
main board he also served as chairman
of two operating companies of halifax
property services based in the south
west and the south since 1992 he has
been operating as a management
consultant specialising in organisation
restructuring and executive recruitment
he was appointed to the board of
quantica on 13 may 1998
phillip james bennett
nonexecutive chairman
phillip has a degree in economics
from oxford university and is a lawyer
who specialised in acquisitions and
corporate finance before joining gartland
whalley and barker plc “gwb” in 1994
phillip is experienced in the financial and
commercial appraisal of investments
as well as the structuring and negotiating
of transactions he became a director
of gwb in 1997 and uk managing
director in 1999 with responsibility for
all the uk operational activity he is
executive chairman of collins and hayes
group plc and nonexecutive chairman
of eq group plc
leslie william lawson
chief executive
les has over 25 years’ experience in
the recruitment sector after spending
six years as a computer programmer
he entered the recruitment field in 1978
he worked for computer people then
worked for intercity consultants now
part of the parity group for nine years
before founding esprit systems plc in
1988 esprit was a highly regarded it
recruitment organisation which had
offices in halifax leeds glasgow and
london it was sold to a mbi backed
by lg venture capital in 1995 he was
instrumental in the formation of quantica
in june 1997 and became group chief
executive in august 1997
robert edward turner
finance director
rob qualified as a chartered accountant
with price waterhouse in 1989 his first
move into industry was to the building
materials sector where he gained
extensive experience in the financial
management of multisite decentralised
operations in 1998 he was appointed
as finance director for first manchester
limited a subsidiary of firstgroup plc
being responsible for a number of
successful acquisitions before rising
to the position of finance director for
the yorkshire and the north west
divisions in 1999 joining quantica in
2001 he has overall responsibility for
the group’s financial operations working
capital management and it development
michael thomas waterhouse daniel crawford laughlan phillip james bennett leslie william lawson robert edward turner brian hersee heather quantica plc 
annual report 2003
company advisors 10
secretary
r e turner
registered office
quantica house lowfields elland halifax hx5 9df
stockbrokers
credit lyonnais securities
broadwalk house 3 appold street london ec2a 2da
auditors
kpmg audit plc
1 the embankment neville street leeds ls1 4dw
bankers
barclays bank plc
po box 190 minerva house 29 east parade leeds ls1 5tw
solicitors
hammonds
2 park lane leeds ls3 1es
registrars
capita registrars
the registry 34 beckenham road beckenham br3 4tu
company number
3058194 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
11 directors’ report
financial statements
the directors submit their report and financial statements for the year ended 28 november 2003
directors’ responsibilities
company law requires the directors to prepare financial statements for each financial year which give a true and fair
view of the state of affairs of the company and the group profit or loss for that year in preparing those financial
statements the directors are required to
 select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently
 make judgements 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 group
will continue in business
the directors are responsible for keeping proper accounting records which disclose with reasonable accuracy at any
time the financial position of the company and to enable them to ensure that the financial statements comply with
the companies act 1985 they have general responsibility for taking such steps as are reasonably open to them
to safeguard the assets of the group and to prevent and detect fraud and other irregularities
principal activities
the principal activities of the group are that of recruitment consulting and the provision of training services
the subsidiary undertakings principally affecting the profits or net assets of the group in the year are listed in note 12
to the financial statements
results and dividend
the group made a profit after tax for the period of £525000 2002 loss after tax £3617000 the directors recommend
the payment of a final ordinary dividend for the year ended 28 november 2003 of £404471 2002 £403895 which is
equivalent to 10p per ordinary share 2002 10p making a total dividend for the period of £404471 2002 £403895
or 10p 2002 10p per ordinary share
future developments
future developments are discussed in the chairman’s statement on page 3 the chief executive’s review on page 5
and in the review of operations on pages 6 to 7
share capital
details of the changes in share capital of the company during the period are shown in note 17 on page 31
directors
the directors who served during the year were as follows
p j bennett r e turner d c laughlan a gartland – resigned 6 december 2002
l w lawson b h heather m t waterhouse r h bishop – resigned 6 december 2002
on 6 december 2002 p j bennett was appointed as nonexecutive chairman of the group
in accordance with the articles of association m t waterhouse and r e turner retire by rotation from the board at the
annual general meeting and being eligible offer themselves for reelection
substantial shareholdings in the company
on 10 february 2003 and in addition to the directors’ holdings shown on page 14 the directors are aware of the
following holdings which represent an interest of 3 or more of the company’s issued ordinary shares
holding 
jupiter asset management 2840000 70
gartmore investments 2550000 63
gartland whalley and barker plc 17885408 442 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
12 directors’ report
authority to allot shares
the directors’ authority to allot shares is referred to in resolutions 8 and 9 of the notice of annual general meeting on
pages 35 and 36
disapplication of statutory preemption rights and authority to purchase shares
special resolutions relating to the above are set out in the notice of annual general meeting on pages 35 and 36 of
this document section 89 of the companies act 1985 as amended gives shareholders the right to participate on a
prorata basis in all issues of shares for cash unless they agree to its exclusion
creditor payment policy
the group’s policy in relation to all of its suppliers is to settle the terms of payment when agreeing the terms of the
transaction and to abide by those terms provided that it is satisfied that the supplier has provided the goods or services
in accordance with the agreed terms and conditions the group does not follow any code or statement on payment
practice the number of days’ purchases outstanding for payment by the group at the year end was 13 days
2002 15 days the company itself is a holding company and does not trade therefore the number of days’
purchases outstanding is not meaningful 
charitable and political donations
the group made no charitable or political donations during the year
employees
the group has a policy of involving employees in its affairs where possible and creating the opportunity for senior
executives to explain to employees matters which affect the group’s performance the group practices equality
of employment opportunities irrespective of sex race creed or colour and recruits trains and promotes on merit
accordingly throughout the group where practicable opportunities are taken to employ disabled people and to
ensure that they take part in training and career development disabled employees have within the limits of their
disabilities the same prospects and opportunities for promotion as other employees
the euro
the directors are considering the implications of the possible uk participation in the european monetary union but
do not consider at this stage that the introduction of the euro will have any significant implications for the company
auditors
in accordance with section 384 of the companies act 1985 a resolution proposing the reappointment of kpmg audit
plc as auditors of the company and giving authority to the directors to agree its remuneration will be submitted at the
forthcoming annual general meeting
post balance sheet event
on 12 december 2003 the group acquired mansel training limited for a maximum consideration of £312000
this report was approved by the board on 10 february 2004
r e turner
director quantica plc 
annual report 2003
13 report on directors’ remuneration
introduction
the board adheres to the principles of good governance when deciding remuneration strategy and has delegated
responsibility for remuneration policy to the remuneration committee 
composition and responsibilities
the committee meets at least once a year and its broad responsibility is to ensure that the remuneration packages
of the group executive directors and senior management are competitive and designed to attract retain and motivate
managers of high quality the committee consisting of all the nonexecutive directors and chaired by p j bennett
when necessary utilises the advice of independent consultants in its consideration of what comparable companies
are paying and in setting annual salaries incentive schemes pension arrangements and car and health care benefits
no external consultation was considered necessary in setting current executive packages 
remuneration policy
basic salaries and benefits are determined after an annual review of performance as referred to above the committee
also takes into account external information on remuneration for similar positions in comparable companies
the current annual bonus scheme for group executive directors provides for a nonpensionable cash bonus for
achievement of a budgeted profit target agreed by the board
the remuneration of the nonexecutive directors is determined by the full board within the limits set in the company’s
articles of association the nonexecutive directors do not participate in bonus share option or pension schemes
all executive directors’ service contracts are on a oneyear rolling basis in the event of termination the payment of
the basic salary plus all contractual benefits would be payable to the executive directors for the notice period of one
year there is no provision for compensation in addition to the notice period there is no such provision for
nonexecutive directors full details of directors’ remuneration pensions interest in shares and share options are on
page 14
performance graph
the new regulations covering directors’ remuneration require that a graph be presented showing the company’s total
shareholder return “tsr” against the tsr performance of a broad equity market index the ftse support services
index has been used because it comprises companies operating in similar markets to those of quantica
tsr over the performance period is the growth in value of a share plus the value of dividends paid assuming they
were reinvested in the company on the day on which they were receivable
quantica plc 
rebased
ftse support services
rebased quantica plc 
annual report 2003
report on directors’ remuneration 14
the auditors are required to report on the information contained in the remaining sections of the report on
directors’ remuneration
total emoluments
the emoluments of the directors who served during the year are set out below
2003 2002
fees 2003 2002 pension pension
salary bonus benefits total total contributions contributions
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
executive directors
l w lawson 158 50 22 230 158 16 14
r e turner 112 50 15 177 112 11 10
r h bishop
resigned 6 december 2002 — — — — 233 — 11
270 100 37 407 503 27 35
nonexecutive directors
d c laughlan 12 — — 12 12 — —
m t waterhouse 12 — — 12 12 — —
294 100 37 431 527 27 35
compensation of £112000 was paid to r h bishop in respect of loss of office following his resignation from the
board on 6 december 2002 this was expensed in 2002 the payment was made in accordance with the terms
of his contract
bonuses accrued in respect of l w lawson and r e turner are payable in cash on a nonpensionable basis
benefits paid to l w lawson and r e turner consist primarily of the cost of car and medical insurance provision
the pension contributions in respect of l w lawson and r e turner represent contributions made by the company
into their personal pension plans
the company does not make pension contributions in respect of any other director
directors’ interests
the directors’ beneficial interests in shares of the company are set out below
shares share options
at at at at
28 november 29 november 28 november 29 november
2003 2002 2003 2002
a gartland resigned 6 december 2002 17910483 17910483 — —
l w lawson 3020000 3020000 — —
r h bishop resigned 6 december 2002 2506067 3306067 — —
r e turner 29211 24211 434783 434783
b h heather — — — —
d c laughlan — — — —
m t waterhouse 2000 2000 — —
p j bennett — — — —
the mid market price of the company’s shares at 28 november 2003 was 425p and during the year it ranged from
185p to 515p quantica plc 
annual report 2003
15
directors’ interests continued
aggregate emoluments disclosed do not include any amounts for the value of options to subscribe for ordinary shares
in the company granted to or held by the directors details of the options are as follows
market price date
29 november 28 november exercise at date from which expiry
2002 granted exercised 2003 price of issue exercisable date
r e turner 434783 310501 — 310501 £069 £069 310504 310511
options are capable of being exercised after three years and within ten years for approved options of date of grant
exercise of the options is conditional upon the adjusted earnings per share before exceptional costs and amortisation
of goodwill of the company exceeding the growth in the retail price index over the appropriate period by at least 9
the adjusted earnings per share before exceptional costs and amortisation of goodwill has been selected to accurately
reflect the underlying performance of the group
of the shares in which a gartland has an interest 9986 are held by gartland whalley and barker “gwb” plc in which
a gartland owns approximately 616 of the issued ordinary share capital a gartland is deemed to be beneficially
interested in the warrants held by gwb to subscribe for 1612903 ordinary shares in the company exercisable at
124p per share
the interests of r h bishop include ordinary shares beneficially held by his wife he had no other interests in the shares
of other group companies
no change in such shareholdings occurred between 28 november 2003 and 10 february 2004
approved by the board of directors and signed on behalf of the board on 10 february 2004
p j bennett
chairman quantica plc 
annual report 2003
corporate governance 16
combined code
the group is committed to high standards of corporate governance and has applied the principles of corporate
governance recommended in the combined code the board is accountable to the group’s shareholders in its
management of the affairs of the group this statement describes how the relevant principles of governance are
applied to the group
the board considers that the group has complied throughout the year with the combined code with the
following exceptions
 the inclusion of p j bennett and b h heather on the audit committee does not comply with the combined code
which requires the audit committee to be comprised of at least three nonexecutive directors the majority of
which should be independent
 the inclusion of p j bennett and b h heather on the remuneration committee does not comply with the
combined code which requires the remuneration committee to be wholly comprised of independent
nonexecutive directors and
 the inclusion of p j bennett and b h heather on the board means that a majority of the nonexecutive directors
are not independent
composition of the board and committees
the quantica group comprises the nonexecutive chairman two executive directors and three other nonexecutive
directors the company has reviewed the availability of the nonexecutive directors and considers that each of them
is able to devote the agreed amount of time to the business of the company the board considers that two of the
nonexecutive directors are independent as identified in the biographies on page 9
the board is responsible to the shareholders for the conduct of the company’s business and determines group
strategy reviews trading performance ensures adequate funding and examines major investments one of the
responsibilities of the chairman is to ensure that board members receive sufficient and timely information regarding
corporate and business issues to enable them to discharge their duties and to enable them to make further enquiries
where necessary the adequacy of this information is periodically reviewed the board meets at least four times
a year
the nonexecutive directors fulfil a vital role in corporate accountability by bringing their judgement to bear on issues
brought before the board and board committee meetings they bring considerable knowledge and experience from
other areas of business and public life and their views carry significant weight in the board’s decision they also meet
as a group without executive directors being present 
the execution of the group’s strategies and policies is carried out on a daytoday basis by the executive directors
who work as a team and meet regularly in the course of their work
a schedule of matters specifically reserved for approval of the board is maintained
on 6 december 2002 a gartland nonexecutive chairman resigned from the board of quantica p j bennett replaced
a gartland as nonexecutive chairman with immediate effect
the board is aware of the guidance contained in the revised code which will apply next year the board will review
and consider any areas of noncompliance over the course of next year
the audit committee
the audit committee comprises the nonexecutive directors and is chaired by p j bennett previously a gartland until
his resignation on 6 december 2002 its duties include the review of the group’s controls the annual report and financial
statements interim statements and the group’s accounting policies duties also include a responsibility to keep under
review the scope and results of the audit and its cost effectiveness and the independence and objectivity of the external
auditor the finance director and external auditors attend meetings of the audit committee the chairman of the
audit committee is available at the annual general meeting to answer questions from the investors quantica plc 
annual report 2003
17
the remuneration committee
the remuneration committee comprises the nonexecutive directors and is chaired by p j bennett previously a gartland
until his resignation on 6 december 2002 it is responsible for establishing the salary and other remuneration of the
executive directors and senior management within the group decisions relating to the remuneration of nonexecutive
directors are taken by the full board no director participates in any decision relating to his own salary the report
on directors’ remuneration is set out on pages 13 to 15
the chairman of the remuneration committee is available at the annual general meeting
the nomination committee
the nomination committee comprises the nonexecutive directors and is chaired by p j bennett the committee
considers new board appointments and makes recommendations to the board proposals by the committee are
considered and determined by the full board appropriate training is available for all new directors all directors are
required to submit themselves for reelection at regular intervals of no more than three years all new directors are
required to seek reelection at the first annual general meeting following their appointment
going concern
the directors after making appropriate enquiries have a reasonable expectation that the company and the group
have adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future for this reason the directors
continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the financial statements
internal control
the board has overall responsibility for the group’s system of internal control and for reviewing its effectiveness
however such a system is designed to manage rather than eliminate the risk of failure to achieve business objectives
and can only provide reasonable and not absolute assurance against material misstatement internal control is defined
in the combined code as all controls including financial operational compliance and risk management the directors
have reviewed the effectiveness of the system of internal control for the period
the key features of the group’s system of internal financial control which have been established are as follows
 the maintenance of strong financial controls and the production of accurate and timely financial
management information
 the identification and appraisal of risk is carried out by the annual process of preparing business plans and
detailed budgets
 detailed budgeting forecasting and reporting of trading results balance sheets and financial ratios with regular
review by management of variances from targeted performance levels throughout the year
 the control of key financial risks through clearly laid down authorisation levels and proper segregation of
accounting duties
 clearly defined procedures exist for capital expenditure appraisal and authorisation and
 defined group monthly and weekly reporting processes which collate detailed information from all operating locations
operational and compliance controls and risk management are part of the group’s basis of operation quantica plc 
annual report 2003
corporate governance 18
internal control continued
the board has established key principles of corporate governance for the group these include
 an ongoing process for identifying evaluating and managing the significant risks faced by the group which has
been in place during 2002 and up to the date of approval of the annual report and accounts the process is
reviewed regularly by the board and accords with the turnbull committee guidance on internal control issued in
september 1999
 financial reporting including a detailed formal budgeting process for all group businesses which culminates in an
annual group budget which is approved by the board
 results for the company and for its main operating businesses are reported monthly against this budget to the
board revised forecasts are prepared on a regular basis
 the executive members of the board meet monthly with senior operational management to review formally all
financial general management and commercial issues
 the operating units are required to report in accordance with established group financial controls and procedures
regular reviews of the effectiveness of the internal controls of the operating units are carried out by the finance
director and key business risks are identified monitored and reported to the board
 a number of the group’s key functions including treasury taxation company secretarial and significant legal
matters are dealt with centrally and are controlled by the finance director who reports regularly to the board and
 the group has clearly defined guidelines for capital expenditure these include annual budgets along with
appraisal and review procedures where businesses are being acquired the group’s procedures include detailed
“due diligence” reviews which are performed by the group’s own staff and with the extensive use of specialist
external advisors
shareholders
communication with shareholders is given a high priority all shareholders receive a copy of the annual report and
interim statement there is an opportunity to question the directors at the annual general meeting and the directors
meet informally with shareholders after the meeting there is regular dialogue with individual institutional
shareholders in addition corporate and customer information is available on the company’s web site at
wwwquanticacouk
internal audit
the board has considered the requirement for an internal audit function during the year the board considers that the
current composition of the group does not warrant a separate internal audit function they will continue to keep this
position under review quantica plc 
annual report 2003
19 independent auditors’ report
to the members of quantica plc
we have audited the financial statements on pages 20 to 34 we have also audited the information in the report
on directors’ remuneration that is described as being audited
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 auditors’ 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 are responsible for preparing the annual report and the report on directors’ remuneration as described
on page11 this includes responsibility for preparing the financial statements in accordance with applicable united
kingdom law and accounting standards our responsibilities as independent auditors are established in the united
kingdom by statute the auditing practices board the listing rules of the financial services authority and by our
profession’s ethical guidance 
we report to you our opinion as to whether the financial statements give a true and fair view and whether the financial
statements and the part of the report on directors’ remuneration to be audited have been properly prepared
in accordance with the companies act 1985 we also report to you if in our opinion the directors’ report is not
consistent with the financial statements if 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 transactions with the group is not disclosed 
we review whether the statement on pages 16 to 18 reflects the company’s compliance with the seven provisions
of the combined code specified for our review by the listing rules and we report if it does not we are not required
to consider whether the board’s statements on internal control cover all risks and controls or form an opinion on the
effectiveness of the group’s corporate governance procedures or its risk and control procedures
we read the other information contained in the annual report including the corporate governance statement and
the unaudited part of the report on directors’ remuneration and consider whether it is consistent with the audited
financial statements we consider the implications for our report if we become aware of any apparent misstatements
or material inconsistencies with the financial statements 
basis of audit opinion
we conducted our audit in accordance with auditing standards issued by the auditing practices board an audit includes
examination on a test basis of evidence relevant to the amounts and disclosures in the financial statements and the
part of the report on directors’ remuneration to be audited it also includes an assessment of the significant estimates
and judgements made by the directors in the preparation of the 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 financial statements and the part
of the report on directors’ remuneration to be audited 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 financial statements and the part of the report on directors’ remuneration to be audited
opinion
in our opinion
 the financial statements give a true and fair view of the state of affairs of the company and the group as at
28 november 2003 and of the profit of the group for the 52 week period then ended and 
 the financial statements and the part of the report on directors’ remuneration to be audited have been properly
prepared in accordance with the companies act 1985
kpmg audit plc 1 the embankment
chartered accountants neville street
registered auditor leeds ls1 4dw
10 february 2004 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
consolidated profit and loss account
for the year ended 28 november 2003
20
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
notes £’000 £’000
turnover 2 24897 26127
cost of sales
– contractor costs 12857 14437
net fee income 12040 11690
– other cost of sales 4996 5217
gross profit 7044 6473
administrative expenses 5837 9533
operating profit before exceptional items
amortisation of goodwill and impairment losses 2207 2061
– exceptional items 3 600 950
– goodwill amortisation 400 300
– goodwill impairment losses — 3871
operating profitloss 4 1207 3060
profit on sale of fixed assets  continuing operations — 100
interest payable and similar charges 5 428 483
profitloss on ordinary activities before taxation 779 3443
taxation 7 254 174
profitloss on ordinary activities after taxation 525 3617
dividends 8 404 404
retained profitloss for the period 121 4021
earnings per share before exceptional items
goodwill amortisation and impairment losses 9 333p 282p
basic earnings per share after exceptional items
goodwill amortisation and impairment losses 9 130p 911p
diluted earnings per share after exceptional items
goodwill amortisation and impairment losses 9 129p 907p
the notes on pages 23 to 34 form part of these financial statements
there were no recognised gains or losses other than the profitloss for the current and the previous period the above
results are derived entirely from continuing operations quantica plc 
annual report 2003
21 balance sheets
as at 28 november 2003
group company
28 november 29 november 28 november 29 november
2003 2002 2003 2002
notes £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
fixed assets
intangible assets 10 2619 3272 — —
tangible assets 11 796 1026 522 539
investments 12 — — 25139 25392
3415 4298 25661 25931
current assets
debtors 13 5283 4748 18124 17061
5283 4748 18124 17061
creditors amounts falling due within one year 14 6743 6375 19511 18144
net current liabilities 1460 1627 1387 1083
total assets less current liabilities 1955 2671 24274 24848
creditors amounts falling due after one year 15 4876 5729 4876 5729
net liabilitiesassets 2921 3058 19398 19119
capital and reserves
called up share capital 17 429 429 429 429
share premium account 18 65 205 65 205
merger reserve 18 694 538 2042 1886
capital reserve 18 — — 13749 13749
capital redemption reserve 18 2346 2346 2346 2346
profit and loss account 18 6455 6576 767 504
shareholders’ deficitfunds 2921 3058 19398 19119
shareholders’ deficitfunds may
be analysed as
equity interests 2946 3083 19373 19094
nonequity interests 25 25 25 25
2921 3058 19398 19119
approved by the board of directors on 10 february 2004 and signed on its behalf by
l w lawson r e turner
director director  quantica plc 
annual report 2003
consolidated cash flow statement
for the year ended 28 november 2003
22
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
notes £’000 £’000
net cash inflow from operating activities 20 1740 2651
returns on investments and servicing of finance 21 428 483
taxation 21 194 1345
capital expenditure 21 83 74
acquisitions and disposals 21 100 1835
dividends paid 404 864
cash inflowoutflow before financing 531 1950
financing 21 584 265
decrease in cash in the year 22 53 1685
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
notes £’000 £’000
decrease in cash in the year 53 1685
cash outflowinflow from net decreaseincrease in debt 22 600 265
movement in net debt in the year 547 1950
opening net debt 22 7412 5462
closing net debt 22 6865 7412
movement in net debt 547 1950
reconciliation of net cash flow to movement in net debt
for the year ended 28 november 2003 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
23 notes to the financial statements
1 accounting policies
the principal accounting policies are summarised below they have all been applied consistently throughout the year
the financial statements are prepared to the friday closest to 30 november and these accounts are for the 52 weeks
to 28 november 2003 2002 52 weeks to 29 november 2002
the financial statements have been prepared under the historical cost convention and in accordance with applicable
accounting standards and the companies act 1985 
basis of consolidation and goodwill
the group financial statements consolidate the financial statements of quantica plc and its subsidiaries drawn up to
28 november 2003 the results of subsidiaries acquired or sold are consolidated for the periods from or to the date
on which control passed using the acquisition method of accounting
purchased goodwill arising on consolidation in respect of acquisitions before 27 november 1998 when frs 10 “goodwill
and intangible assets” was adopted was written off to reserves in the year of acquisition when a subsequent disposal
occurs any related goodwill previously written off to reserves is written back through the profit and loss account as part
of the profit and loss on disposal
purchased goodwill representing the excess of the fair value of the consideration given and associated costs over the fair
value of the separable net assets acquired arising on consolidation in respect of acquisitions since 27 november 1998 is
capitalised positive goodwill is amortised to £nil by equal annual instalments over its estimated useful life normally 20 years 
where the group acquires startup businesses whose principal asset is the goodwill associated with the vendor’s expertise
in the sector consideration payable to the vendor including that related to the future performance of the business is treated
as a cost of investment as long as certain criteria are met including the identification of separable intangible assets
the goodwill arising on the acquisition is capitalised and written off in line with the life of the underlying asset up to
a maximum of three years
on the subsequent disposal or termination of a business acquired since 27 november 1998 the profit or loss on disposal
or termination is calculated after charging the unamortised amount of any related goodwill
when the group has acquired shares in other companies by the issue of shares and the requirement of section 131 of the
companies act 1985 have been satisfied the group has utilised the merger relief provisions available and the issue of shares
is recorded at nominal value and any premium is credited to the merger reserve
the directors consider annually whether a provision against the value of investments on an individual basis is required
such provisions are charged in the profit and loss account in the year 
as provided by section 2304 of the companies act 1985 no profit and loss account is presented for quantica plc the profit
for the financial year dealt with in the financial statements of quantica plc was £263000 2002 £536000 
turnover
turnover represents amounts receivable for goods and services provided in the normal course of business net of trade
discounts vat and other related taxes 
tangible fixed assets and depreciation
tangible fixed assets are stated at cost less depreciation depreciation is provided on all tangible fixed assets at rates
calculated to write off the cost less estimated residual value of each asset on a straight line basis over its expected useful
life as follows
office equipment 3 to 10 years
motor vehicles 4 years
investments
fixed asset investments are shown at cost less provision for any impairment in value
leasing and hire purchase commitments
assets obtained under hire purchase contracts and leases which result in the transfer to the company of substantially all
the risks and rewards of ownership finance leases are capitalised as tangible fixed assets at the estimated present value
of underlying lease payments and are depreciated in accordance with the above policy obligations under such agreements
are included in creditors net of finance charges allocated to future periods the finance element of the rental payments is
charged to the profit and loss account over the period of the lease or hire purchase contract so as to produce a constant
periodic rate of charge on the outstanding balance of the net obligation in each year
rentals paid under other leases operating leases are charged against income on a straight line basis over the lease term quantica plc 
annual report 2003
notes to the financial statements 24
1 accounting policies continued
deferred taxation
deferred tax is recognised without discounting in respect of all timing differences between the treatment of certain items
for taxation and accounting purposes which have arisen but not reversed by the balance sheet date except as otherwise
required by frs 19 “deferred tax”
foreign currencies
assets liabilities revenues and costs denominated in foreign currencies are recorded at the rates of exchange ruling at the
dates of the transactions monetary assets and liabilities at the balance sheet date are translated at the year end rates of
exchange all resulting exchange differences are dealt with in the profit and loss account in the period in which they arise
on consolidation differences on exchange arising from the translation of the opening net investments in subsidiary and
associated companies at the year end exchange rates together with the differences arising from the translation of the results
at the average rate compared to the year end exchange rate are taken directly to reserves 
pension costs
company contributions made to certain employees’ personal pension plans are charged to the profit and loss account in the
year in which they are payable
2 segment information
the directors regard the company as carrying on one continuing class of business namely the provision of recruitment
consulting and training services turnover and operating profit are incurred materially within the united kingdom
3 exceptional items
exceptional costs in the current period reflect the cost of closure of the technology office in hemel hempstead as the final
stage of the technology business relocation to elland
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
£’000 £’000
employee termination costs 308 549
office closuresmove costs 252 216
loss on disposal of fixed assets — 56
other impairments and asset write offs 29 95
other costs 11 34
total 600 950
these items reduce the tax charge by £180000 2002 £285000
4 operating profitloss
operating profitloss is stated after charging
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
£’000 £’000
depreciation and amounts written off tangible fixed assets
– owned 313 446
– held under finance leases and hire purchase contracts — 24
loss on sale of fixed assets — 56
amortisation of goodwill 400 300
goodwill impairment losses — 3871
operating lease rentals
– plant and machinery 96 47
– other 334 311
auditors’ remuneration for audit services
– company 7 7
– group 54 50
amounts payable to the auditors and their associates by the company and its subsidiary undertakings in respect of nonaudit
services were £58000 2002 £54000 these relate mainly to fees for the provision of tax services of a compliance nature quantica plc 
annual report 2003
25
5 interest payable and similar charges
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
£’000 £’000
loans and overdrafts 428 483
6 directors and employees
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
number number
the average weekly number of persons including directors employed by the group 
during the year was
administration and consulting 227 248
£’000 £’000
their aggregate remuneration comprised
wages and salaries 5512 5150
social security costs 557 525
other pension costs 109 132
6178 5807
details of directors’ remuneration are set out in the report on directors’ remuneration on pages 13 to 15
7 tax on profitloss on ordinary activities
the tax charge comprises
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
£’000 £’000
current year
corporation tax at 30 2002 30 354 251
prior years
corporation tax 100 77
total current tax 254 174
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
tax reconciliation £’000 £’000
profitloss before tax 779 3443
at 30 234 1033
effects of
expenses not deductible for tax purposes goodwill and impairment charges 120 1284
prior year adjustments 100 77
actual charge 254 174
there is no deferred tax asset or liability that requires disclosure under frs 19 “deferred tax” quantica plc 
annual report 2003
notes to the financial statements 26
8 dividends paid
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
£’000 £’000
ordinary shares – final proposed 10p 2002 10p 404 404
9 earnings per share
the calculation of basic earnings per share is based on a profit after tax of £525000 2002 loss £3617000 divided by the
weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during the period of 40392024 2002 39720055
diluted earnings per share is calculated by dividing the profit attributable to ordinary shareholders of £525000 2002 loss
£3617000 by the average number of shares in issue during the period of 40392024 2002 39720055 plus dilutive shares
of 156033 2002 158400 which totals 40548057 2002 39878455
the directors have presented an earnings per share figure based on the profit before goodwill amortisation and exceptional
items as they believe this represents the underlying performance of the group this is calculated based on the profit
attributable to ordinary shareholders of £525000 2002 loss £3617000 plus goodwill amortisation of £400000 2002
£4171000 and exceptional items of £600000 2002 £950000 and less the profit on sale of fixed assets of £nil
2002 £100000 and less the taxation effect of these items of £180000 2002 £285000
10 intangible fixed assets
goodwill
group £’000
cost
at 29 november 2002 7883
deferred consideration adjustment 253
at 28 november 2003 7630
amortisation
at 29 november 2002 4611
charge for the year 400
at 28 november 2003 5011
net book amount
at 28 november 2003 2619
at 29 november 2002 3272
the company has no intangible fixed assets
in 2002 a deferred consideration estimate was made in respect of a startup business operating in the construction market
consideration for this business is wholly deferred and is dependent upon future performance in the periods to 30 november
2005 up to a maximum of £750000 the directors have reviewed the expected level of deferred consideration based on
the estimated future performance of the business and on this basis have reduced the 2002 estimate by £253000 note 12 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
27
11 tangible fixed assets
office motor
equipment vehicles total
group £’000 £’000 £’000
cost
at 29 november 2002 2445 118 2563
additions 75 8 83
at 28 november 2003 2520 126 2646
depreciation
at 29 november 2002 1419 118 1537
charge for the year 305 8 313
at 28 november 2003 1724 126 1850
net book amount
at 28 november 2003 796 — 796
at 29 november 2002 1026 — 1026
at 28 november 2003 the cost of leased assets amounted to £nil 2002 £140448 and the accumulated depreciation
amounted to £nil 2002 £140448
office
equipment
all owned
company £’000
cost
at 29 november 2002 655
additions 52
at 28 november 2003 707
depreciation
at 29 november 2002 116
charge for year 69
at 28 november 2003 185
net book amount
at 28 november 2003 522
at 29 november 2002 539 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
notes to the financial statements 28
12 fixed asset investments
subsidiary
undertakings
company £’000
cost
at 29 november 2002 30255
reduction in deferred consideration note 10 253
at 28 november 2003 30002
provisions
at 29 november 2002 4863
at 28 november 2003 4863
net book value
at 28 november 2003 25139
at 29 november 2002 25392
company investments
the following companies are the trading subsidiary undertakings of the company at 28 november 2003 all of which are
registered in england and wales except for freight train australia pty limited which is registered in australia
the company also owns 19 dormant companies all of which are registered in england and wales as permitted by section
2315 of the companies act 1985 a list of these subsidiary companies has not been presented a full list of companies will
be included with the next annual return to the registrar of companies
company class of holding principal activity proportion held
quantica holdings limited ordinary £1 holding company 100
quantica group limited ordinary £1 recruitment and training consultants 100
swp limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
freight train uk limited ordinary £1 training consultants 100
freight train australia pty limited ordinary aus1 training consultants 100
permanent recruitment solutions limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
healthcare recruitment solutions limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
quantica hne limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
reflex career services limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
ddi consultancy services limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
compro computer services limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
on line search and selection limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
ecommerce recruitment limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
brave new world group limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
bcr limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
construction people recruitment solutions limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
james kimber holdings limited ordinary £1 training consultants 100
quantica teaching solutions limited ordinary £1 recruitment consultants 100
quantica selection training limited ordinary £1 training consultants 100
held directly by quantica plc quantica plc 
annual report 2003
29
13 debtors
amounts falling due within one year
group company
28 november 29 november 28 november 29 november
2003 2002 2003 2002
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
trade debtors 3464 3236 9 —
amounts owed by group undertakings — — 18053 16962
other debtors 574 617 3 —
prepayments and accrued income 1245 895 59 99
5283 4748 18124 17061
14 creditors amounts falling due within one year
group company
28 november 29 november 28 november 29 november
2003 2002 2003 2002
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
bank loans and overdraft 2186 2133 3933 2869
trade creditors 541 735 209 118
amounts owed to group undertakings — — 14524 14373
corporation tax 830 770 — —
other taxes and social security costs 884 601 — 25
other creditors 448 592 56 —
deferred consideration — 100 — —
accruals and deferred income 1450 1040 385 355
proposed dividends 404 404 404 404
6743 6375 19511 18144
15 creditors amounts falling due after more than one year
group company
28 november 29 november 28 november 29 november
2003 2002 2003 2002
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
bank loans 4676 5276 4676 5276
deferred consideration 200 453 200 453
4876 5729 4876 5729 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
notes to the financial statements 30
16 borrowings and financial instruments
borrowings are analysed as follows
group company
28 november 29 november 28 november 29 november
2003 2002 2003 2002
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
wholly repayable within five years
bank overdraft 1586 1533 3333 2269
by instalment  bank loans 5276 5876 5276 5876
the group’s financial instruments comprise cash liquid resources bank loans 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 and to provide funding for potential acquisitions
during the year the group had no derivative transactions
it is and has been throughout the year to 28 november 2003 the group’s policy that no trading in financial instruments shall
be undertaken
the main risks arising from the group’s financial instruments are interest rate risk and liquidity risk the board reviews and
agrees the policies for managing each of these risks and they are summarised below these policies have remained unchanged
throughout the year to 28 november 2003 and the financial position of the group at that date is consistent with these policies
interest rate risk
the group’s credit facilities attract interest at rates dependant upon a margin above libor the directors regularly review the
cost of these facilities and consider whether they remain appropriate to the group’s operations
liquidity risk
short term flexibility is achieved by the use of the group’s overdraft facility longer term funding is provided by the revolving
credit facility
foreign currency risk
the group has one overseas trading company freight train australia pty limited
all the group sales assets and liabilities are materially denominated in sterling consequently the directors consider the group’s
exposure to currency fluctuations to be limited
borrowings
the group has revolving credit facilities of £90m at the balance sheet date together with overdraft and ancillary bank facilities
of £60m at 28 november 2003 the group’s utilisation of these facilities was £69m the bank facilities are secured on the
assets of the group and attract interest of 16 above libor on the 29 november 2003 the borrowings were renegotiated
with revolving credit facilities of £70m together with overdraft and ancillary bank facilities of £50m interest remains at 16
above libor
all of the borrowings are denominated in sterling and have floating interest rate terms
bank loans and overdrafts outstanding at 28 november 2003 are payable as follows
group company
28 november 29 november 28 november 29 november
2003 2002 2003 2002
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
amounts payable
– on demand or within one year 2186 2133 3933 2869
– between one and two years 600 1760 600 1760
– between two and five years 4076 3516 4076 3516
6862 7409 8609 8145
the fair values based on discounting future cash flows at market rates of the group’s financial liabilities at 28 november 2003
and 29 november 2002 are not significantly different from book values quantica plc 
annual report 2003
31
17 share capital
28 november 2003 29 november 2002
number £’000 number £’000
authorised
ordinary shares of 1p each 237600000 2376 237600000 2376
nonvoting ‘a’ convertible redeemable deferred shares of 1p each 2500000 25 2500000 25
240100000 2401 240100000 2401
28 november 2003 29 november 2002
number £’000 number £’000
allotted called up and fully paid
ordinary shares of 1p each 40447092 404 40389492 404
nonvoting ‘a’ convertible redeemable deferred shares of 1p each 2500000 25 2500000 25
42947092 429 42889492 429
at 13 november 2003 57600 shares were issued under the crossley house share options scheme at 283p giving rise to
a share premium of £15742
“a” deferred shares
the rights attaching to the nonvoting ‘a’ deferred shares are
a voting
no entitlement to receive notice of or to attend and vote at general meetings
b dividends
no rights to any payment by way of dividend
c distribution of assets on winding up
holders rank pari passu with the holders of the ordinary shares for the purposes of a distribution of assets on a winding
up provided that each holder of ordinary shares has already received £100000 per ordinary share pursuant to the
distribution on winding up
d redemption
redeemable at the option of the company on giving 14 days notice to the holders thereof at any time after the conversion
date the redemption price is one pence per share
share options
during 2003 the following share options lapsed by reason of employees leaving the group
scheme ordinary shares under option exercise price exercise period 
unapproved executive option scheme 421053 £057 060404 to 060411
unapproved executive option scheme 202899 £069 171004 to 171011
emi scheme 175438 £057 221103 to 221110
emi scheme 144928 £069 171004 to 171011
emi scheme 175438 £057 060404 to 060411 
during 2003 share options were issued at 485p under the existing enterprise management incentive “emi” scheme
at 28 november 2003 the following options were outstanding under the share option schemes
scheme ordinary shares under option exercise price exercise period 
crossley house scheme 100800 £028 160201 to 290105
executive scheme 241934 £124 270500 to 270508
unapproved executive option scheme 222222 £072 110900 to 110907
unapproved executive option scheme 289855 £069 310504 to 310511
emi scheme 1140346 £057 060404 to 060411
emi scheme 144928 £069 310504 to 310511
emi scheme 721651 £048 121107 to 121114 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
notes to the financial statements 32
18 reserves
capital profit
share merger redemption and loss
premium reserve reserve account
group £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
at 29 november 2002 205 538 2346 6576
retained profit for the year — — — 121
share issues note 19 16———
transfer 156 156 — —
at 28 november 2003 65 694 2346 6455
the cumulative total of goodwill written off against reserves in respect of acquisitions prior to the issue of frs 10 “goodwill
and intangible assets” at 28 november 2003 was £22509000 2002 £22509000
capital profit
share merger capital redemption and loss
premium reserve reserve reserve account
company £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
at 29 november 2002 205 1886 13749 2346 504
retained profit for the year ———— 263
share issues 16————
transfer 156 156———
at 28 november 2003 65 2042 13749 2346 767
the transfer relates to shares issued in respect of deferred consideration in 2002 section 131 merger relief has been taken
in respect of these shares
19 reconciliations of movements in shareholders’ funds
group company
28 november 29 november 28 november 29 november
2003 2002 2003 2002
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
profitloss for the year 525 3617 667 536
dividends 404 404 404 404
retained profitloss for the year 121 4021 263 132
share issues 16 706 16 706
reduction in shares to be issued — 460 — 460
net reduction inaddition to shareholders’ fundsdeficit 137 3775 279 378
opening shareholders’ fundsdeficit 3058 717 19119 18741
closing shareholders’ deficitfunds 2921 3058 19398 19119
20 reconciliation of operating profitloss to operating cash flows
year ended year ended
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
£’000 £’000
operating profitloss 1207 3060
depreciation 313 470
loss on sale of fixed assets — 56
amortisation and impairment of goodwill 400 4171
increasedecrease in debtors 535 1733
increasedecrease in creditors 355 719
net cash inflow from operating activities 1740 2651 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
33
21 analysis of cash flows
2003 2002
£’000 £’000
returns on investments and servicing of finance
interest paid 428 483
net cash outflow from returns on investments and servicing of finance 428 483
taxation
uk corporation tax paid 194 1345
capital expenditure
purchase of tangible fixed assets 83 484
sale of tangible fixed assets — 410
net cash outflow from capital expenditure 83 74
acquisitions and disposals
deferred cash consideration paidrepaid note 20 100 300
purchase of subsidiary undertakings — 1169
expenses of acquisition — 409
cash acquired with subsidiary undertakings — 43
net cash outflowinflow from acquisitions and disposals 100 1835
financing
repayment of bank loans 600 919
repayment of other loans — 1036
new bank loan — 2248
issue of shares 16 —
capital element of finance lease payments — 28
net cash inflow from financing 584 265
22 analysis and reconciliation of net debt
at at 
29 november 28 november
2002 cash flow 2003
£’000 £’000 £’000
cash at bank and in hand 1533 53 1586
debt due within and after one year 5876 600 5276
finance leases 3 — 3
debt 5879 600 5279
total net debt 7412 547 6865 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
notes to the financial statements 34
23 financial commitments
capital commitments are as follows
at at
28 november 29 november
2003 2002
group £’000 £’000
contracted for but not provided — —
annual commitments under noncancellable operating leases are as follows
28 november 2003 29 november 2002
land and land and
buildings other buildings other
group £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
expiry date
– within one year 73 26 14 17
– between two and five years 230 70 277 30
– after five years 31 — 20 —
334 96 311 47
leases of land and buildings are typically subject to rent reviews at specified intervals and provide for the lessee to pay all
insurance maintenance and repair costs
24 pension arrangements
the group contributes to certain employees’ personal pension plans the assets of these schemes are held separately from
those of the group the net cost of these contributions in the year is £109000 2002 £132000
25 contingent liabilities
the company is party to a cross guarantee arrangement with certain fellow group undertakings in relation to certain
group borrowings
26 related party transactions
gwb plc is the holder of 17885483 shares representing 4428 of the issued ordinary share capital of the company
gartland whalley and barker corporate finance limited a wholly owned subsidiary of gwb plc has entered into an
agreement with quantica plc to provide acquisition services the agreement is nonexclusive and fees are negotiated
on an arm’s length basis fees charged by gartland whalley and barker corporate finance limited in 2003 were £73603
2002 £149189 at 28 november 2003 the amount owed in respect of these fees was £18965 2002 £18974
the company has taken advantage of the exemption in frs 8 “related party disclosures” and has not disclosed transactions
with companies in which it holds 90 or more of the issued ordinary share capital
27 post balance sheet event
on 12 december 2003 the group acquired mansel training limited for a maximum consideration of £312000 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
35 notice of annual general meeting
notice is hereby given that the annual general meeting of quantica plc will be held at crossley house belle vue park
hopwood lane halifax west yorkshire hx5 9df at 1130 am on 8 april 2004 for the following purposes
ordinary business
1 to receive and consider the report of the directors and the accounts of the company for the twelve months ended
28 november 2003
2 to receive and consider the report on directors’ remuneration for the twelve months ended 28 november 2003
3 to declare a dividend
4 to reelect m t waterhouse a director retiring in accordance with the articles of association
5 to reelect r e turner a director retiring in accordance with the articles of association
6 to reappoint the auditors kpmg audit plc
7 to authorise the directors to fix the remuneration of the auditors
special business
the following resolutions will be proposed of which resolution 8 will be proposed as an ordinary resolution and resolutions
9 and 10 as special resolutions
8 ordinary resolution
that the directors be and they are hereby generally and unconditionally authorised pursuant to section 80 of the
companies act 1985 the “act” to exercise all or any powers of the company to allot grant options over offer or
otherwise deal with or dispose of relevant securities of the company which in this resolution shall have the meaning
given to that term in section 80 of the act up to 13482364 ordinary shares representing approximately 13 of the
ordinary shares in issue but so that
a this authority shall unless previously revoked varied or renewed expire on the date being 15 months from the passing
of this resolution or if earlier on the conclusion of the next annual general meeting of the company
b this company may before such expiry make an offer agreement or other arrangement which would or might require
relevant securities to be allotted after such expiry and the directors may allot relevant securities pursuant to any such
offer agreement or other arrangement as if the authority hereby conferred had not expired and
c this authority shall be in substitution for all previous authorities under section 80 of the act which are hereby revoked
but without prejudice to any allotment offer or agreement made or entered into prior to the date of this resolution
9 special resolution
that subject to and conditional upon the passing of the resolution numbered 7 set out above the directors be and they
are hereby empowered pursuant to section 95 of the act to allot equity securities of the company which in this resolution
shall have the meaning given to that term in section 942 of the act pursuant to the authority conferred by such resolution
as if section 891 of the act did not apply to any such allotment provided that this power shall be limited
a to the allotment of equity securities in connection with a rights issue or other preemptive offer in favour of ordinary
shareholders and holders of any other shares or securities of the company that by their terms are entitled to participate
in such rights issue or other preemptive offer where the equity securities respectively attributable to the interests
of all ordinary shareholders and such holders are proportionate as nearly as may be to the respective number
of ordinary shares held by them or into which their shares or securities are to be deemed converted in calculating
the extent of their participation but subject to such exclusions as the directors may deem fit to deal with fractional
entitlements or problems arising in respect of any overseas territory or otherwise and
b otherwise than pursuant to subparagraph a to the allotment of equity securities up to an aggregate nominal value
of £20220 and
the authority given shall unless revoked or renewed in accordance with section 953 of the act expire on the date being
15 months from the passing of this resolution or if earlier on conclusion of the next annual general meeting of the company
except that the company may before the expiry of such period make an offer agreement or other arrangement which would
or might require equity securities to be allotted in pursuance of any such offer agreement or arrangement as if the power
here conferred had not expired quantica plc 
annual report 2003
notice of annual general meeting 36
10 special resolution
that in accordance with article 52 of the company’s articles of association the company be and is hereby generally
authorised to make market purchases which in this resolution shall have the meaning given to this term in section 1633
of the act of its own ordinary shares of 1p each on the terms set out below
a the maximum number of ordinary shares of 1p each authorised to be purchased by the company pursuant to this
resolution is 4044709 representing 10 of the company’s issued ordinary share capital at the date of notice
of annual general meeting and
b the minimum price which the company may pay for each of these shares exclusive of expenses is 1p and the
maximum price exclusive of expenses which the company may pay for each of those shares will not be more than
5 above the average of the closing midprices as derived from the london stock exchange daily official list for
such ordinary shares for the five dealing days preceding the date of purchase
but so that this authority shall unless previously varied revoked or renewed expire on the earlier of the date being
15 months from the passing of this resolution and the conclusion of the next annual general meeting of the company
except that the company may before the expiry of this authority conclude any contract for the purchase of its own
ordinary shares pursuant to the authority conferred by this resolution which contract would or might be executed wholly
or partially after the expiration of this authority as if the authority hereby conferred had not expired
by order of the board
r e turner
secretary registered office
quantica house lowfields
elland halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
10 february 2004
notes
1 any member entitled to attend and vote at the meeting may appoint one or more other persons as a proxy or proxies
to attend and in the event of a poll to vote in his or her stead a proxy need not be a member of the company
shareholders will receive a proxy form with this document
2 proxy forms if used must reach capita registrars proxy department the registry 34 beckenham road beckenham
kent br3 4tu not less than 48 hours before the time of the meeting and in default will not be treated as valid
completion of a proxy form will not preclude shareholders from attending and voting at the meeting in person should
they wish to do so
3 the register of directors’ interests in shares in or debentures of the company or its subsidiaries and copies of the
directors’ service contracts will be available for inspection at the registered office during business hours only on any
week day excluding saturday and public holidays from the date of this notice until the date of the annual general
meeting and for or least 15 minutes prior to the meeting and until the conclusion of the meeting
4 a copy of this notice is being sent to the holder of the warrants to subscribe for ordinary shares in the capital of the
company pursuant to a warrant instrument created by the company and dated 27 may 1998  corporate statement
quantica plc is a recruitment and training group the group obtained a full
listing on the london stock exchange in june 1998 we operate in five main
areas legal technology search  selection healthcare and training and
provide customers with a single source for recruitment and training needs
across each professional discipline the group also provides subcontract
staff to the construction healthcare and technology sectors
each division occupies a strong position in its own niche market and also
benefits from considerable internal synergies the decentralised and
entrepreneurial environment within which they operate enables each division
to maintain high operating margins healthy returns on capital employed and
most importantly provide its customers with particularly high levels of
personal service thereby building shareholder value
ifc corporate statement
01 financial highlights
02 chairman’s statement
04 chief executive’s review
06 review of operations
08 financial review
09 board of directors
10 company advisors
11 directors’ report
13 report on directors’ 
remuneration
16 corporate governance
19 independent auditors’
report
20 consolidated profit
and loss account
21 balance sheets
22 consolidated cash
flow statement
22 reconciliation of net
cash flow to movement
in net debt
23 notes to the financial
statements
35 notice of annual 
general meeting
ibc group companies 
and addresses
quantica plc 
annual report 2003
group companies and addresses
t he d esign p ortfolio
a member of the flathill communications group plc
wwwflathillplccom
designed  produced by
head office
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 310088
email plcquanticacouk 
construction people
recruitment solutions
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 377733 
email constructionquanticacouk
the business centre
23 northenden road
sale
cheshire m33 2dh
tel 0161 9736226
email constructionquanticacouk
quantica healthcare
elmhurst
22a brooklands avenue
cambridge cb2 2dq
tel 01223 303093
email healthcarequanticacouk
1 the courtyards
phoenix square
severalls business park
wyncolls road
colchester co4 9pe
tel 01206 228333
email healthcarequanticacouk
1a the hamlet
hornbeam square west
hornbeam park
harrogate hg2 8re
tel 01423 870044
email healthcarequanticacouk
225 india buildings
water street
liverpool l2 1bd
tel 0151 2279300
email healthcarequanticacouk 
rowan house
28 queens road
hethersett
norwich nr9 3db
tel 01603 813969
email healthcarequanticacouk
23 watsons chambers
business centre
515 market place
castle square
sheffield s1 2gh
tel 01142 211688
email healthcarequanticacouk
quantica legal
thomas court
east street
colchester co1 2tr
tel 01206 871971
email legalquanticacouk
3 washington chambers
stanwell road
penarth
cardiff cf64 2af
tel 02920 711914
email legalquanticacouk
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 370011 
email legalquanticacouk
quantica search  selection
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 370011
email searchselectionquanticacouk
friars court
aylesbury
buckinghamshire hp20 2sj
tel 01296 338259
email searchselectionquanticacouk
1a the hamlet
hornbeam square west
hornbeam park
harrogate hg2 8re
tel 01423 871770
email searchselectionquanticacouk 
quantica technology
quantica house
lowfields
elland
halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 377377
email technologyquanticacouk
quantica training
thomas court
east street
colchester co1 2tr
tel 01206 877 277
email trainingquanticacouk
second floor
euro house
5466 high street
hounslow
middlesex tw3 1nw
tel 020 8814 1484
email trainingquanticacouk
james kimber holdings limited
second floor
euro house
5466 high street
hounslow
middlesex tw3 1nw
tel 020 8814 1888
email trainingquanticacouk
quantica selection training limited
the business centre
23 northenden road
sale
cheshire m33 2dh
tel 0161 2833773
email trainingquanticacouk 
quantica mansel training
7 school road
sale
cheshire m33 1xy
tel 0161 9699017
email trainingquanticacouk
victory house
level 2
8 crofts avenue
hurstville nsw 2220
australia
tel 00612 95851522
email trainingquanticacouk  professionals at work
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
healthcare legal searchselection technology training
annual report and accounts 2003
quantica plc
quantica house lowfields
elland halifax
west yorkshire hx5 9df
tel 01422 310088
email plcquanticacouk
quantica plc annual report and accounts 2003


Summary:
 quantica plc 
annual report 2003
chairman’s statement 02
financial results in brief
i am delighted to announce that significant progress
was made in 2003 particularly in the second half
my comments about “light at the end of the tunnel”
in the interim statement appear to be correct net fee
income and operating profit from continuing operations
in the second half of the year improved considerably
compared to both the first half and the second half
of last year
turnover for the year ended 28 november 2003 was
£249m 2002 £261m net fee income was £120m
2002 £117m with operating profit before exceptional
costs and amortisation of goodwill at £22m 2002
£21m after exceptional costs incurred in the first
half of £06m associated with the closure of our
technology office in hemel hempstead and the
amortisation of goodwill of £04m the pretax profit
was £08m 2002 pretax loss of £34m operating
margins before exceptional items amortisation of
goodwill and impairment losses increased to 89
2002 79 reflecting both the maintenance of
gross margins and tight control over our cost base
cash inflow before financing was £05m 2002 £20m
outflow at the halfyear net debt stood at £78m
reflecting the cost of closing the hemel hempstead
office cash generated in the second half was £09m
demonstrating the company’s ability to generate cash
even when activity levels are increasing and reducing
net debt at the year end to £69m 2002 £74m
full year earnings per share before amortisation of
goodwill and exceptional costs increased by 18
to 333p 2002 282p basic full year earnings per
share after amortisation of goodwill and exceptional
costs was 130p 2002 loss 911p
dividend
the board is proposing a final dividend of 10p
2002 10p per ordinary share for the year ended
28 november 2003 which if approved by shareholders
would give a total dividend for the year of 10p
2002 10p the dividend will become payable
on 17 april 2004 to shareholders who are on the
register on 19 march 2004
the financial results are discussed in detail in the
financial review on page 8
business progress
strong progress has been made over the year in all
areas of our business runrates and margins have
improved in the second half both over the equivalent
period last year but more significantly over the first
half of 2003
the healthcare division continued to grow strongly
volumes gross margins and profitability all
increased over the year three quarters of our
business is dedicated to social care which is driven
by the demographics of an ageing population
the introduction of care standards and associated
regulatory frameworks whilst increasing cost in
the short term have increased barriers to entry into
the market and will prove beneficial in the longer term
the remainder of our business is primarily in the
professional disciplines of social work occupational
therapy and physiotherapy this mix of business
has protected us from some of the margin pressure
reported in other areas of the sector
the legal division has had a better year in 2003
increasing operating profit substantially from what
was a particularly difficult 2002 both provincial and
city markets recovered to some extent albeit not
to the levels of earlier years
search  selection remains an extremely resilient
business trading in the second half was as good
as the first half which was strong and considerably
better than the same period last year operating
profits for the division once again increased on
a yearonyear basis our reputation has been built
upon our ability to deliver a highly effective
recruitment service this is evidenced by the very
high success rates on assignments and the level
of repeat business obtained by this division
the technology division had a mixed year
the underachieving hemel hempstead office was
closed at a cost of £06m as stated in the interim
announcement and the remaining contract business
”
“
i am delighted to announce that
significant progress was made in 2003
particularly in the second half