delivering mission critical communications
sepura plc annual report  accounts 2009 sepura is a global leader in the design development and 
supply of tetra terrestrial trunked radio digital mobile
radios these are secure communication devices dedicated 
to professional frontline services and firstresponder personnel
users predominantly in the public safety sector ie police 
fire ambulance and rescue but also in the transport military 
utilities and commercial sectors
tetra technology facilitates reliable radio communications 
at all times and offers secure voice and data transmissions – 
free from the possibility of eavesdropping it is mission critical
and often life saving benefits such as these which are driving and
accelerating the continued migration from analogue to digital
communication networks tetra has now become the dominant
and fastest growing digital private mobile radio standard in 
the world and is present in more than 100 countries
sepura is focused solely on tetra radio terminals and
accessories our vision is to become the number one supplier 
of tetra radios globally and we are making good progress 
in this strategic direction
about sepura
company overview
01 performance highlights
02 sepura in focus
03 our customers
business reviews
04 chairman’s statement
05 strategic update
06 chief executive’s qa
07 inspiring innovation satisfying 
customer needs
08 business  financial review
18 principal risks  uncertainties
19 key performance indicators
corporate governance
20 our board  senior management
21 corporate social responsibility statement
23 directors’ report
27 corporate governance statement
31 directors’ remuneration report
35 statement of directors’ responsibilities 
group financial statements
36 independent auditors’ report to the 
members of sepura plc
37 consolidated income statement
38 consolidated statement of changes in equity
39 consolidated balance sheet
40 consolidated statement of cash flows
41 notes to the group financial statements
company financial statements
62 independent auditors’ report to the 
members of sepura plc
63 company balance sheet
64 notes to the parent company
financial statements
other information
71 shareholder information
ibc contact details advisers 
 financial calendar 2009 10
front cover
sepura is leading the way as
german police forces deploy
tetra radios 01 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
financial highlights
• revenue up 9 to £74 1m benefitting from the strong euro
with volumes up 7
• gross margin maintained
• operating profits down 12 to £13m before nonrecurring costs
1
• closing net funds increased to £54m with cash of £158m
• diluted eps before nonrecurring costs
1
down 4 mitigated by 
a lower tax rate
• proposed final dividend held at 085p increasing annual dividend 
to127p per share
operational highlights
• gordon watling appointed as chief executive officer
• new stp8000 handheld radio drives continuing sales wins in germany
• comprehensive restructuring of business concluded to improve efficiency 
• european manufacturing transferred to melecs
• additional output moved to chinese manufacturing partner tcb
• uk replacement success continues
2009 2008
£’000 £’000 change
international revenue 45992 41266 11
uk revenue 28108 26839 5
total revenue 74100 68105 9
gross margin 525 527
operating profit excluding nonrecurring costs
1
 13007 14674 12
operating profit 10505 12533 16
diluted eps 63p 63p –
diluted eps excluding nonrecurring costs
1
 76p 79p  4
annual dividend 127p 085p 49
adjusted diluted eps excluding capitalisation
of research and development expenditures
2
 49p 48p 2
1
nonrecurring costs comprise restructuring costs of £13m and impairment of capitalised rd of £12m in 2009 
and ipo costs of £21m in 2008
2
adjusted diluted eps excluding nonrecurring costs and excluding the capitalisation of research and development costs 
together with associated amortisation and net of uk corporation tax at the standard rate
performance highlights 
company overview
summary financial information 02 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
what we do 
sepura is focused solely on the design development and 
supply of tetra digital radios including handheld vehicle
based and covert surveillance accessories support tools and
devices w e are the only major networkindependent supplier 
of tetra terminals
who we help
our customer base see opposite is global from the uk 
and europe to south and central america africa the middle 
east and asia operating at the frontline in some of the most
demanding environments in the world our customers know that
our mission critical communication equipment meets their every
need in terms of safety  reliability  product intelligence
functionality and total security 
our key differentiators
w e offer the broadest range of standard and specialist radio
products support tools and accessories available in the market
uniquely  our products operate on all tetra infrastructures and
are certified for use on all major public safety networks
our marketleading products and technical expertise coupled
with our commitment to invest in research and development for
the enhanced benefit of the enduser is matched only by our
unrivalled local customer care and support it is this onestopshop
approach increasingly being demanded by customers in this
highly specialised market which is a key differentiator
sepura in focus w e supply over 800 organisations in over 
90 countries and we are the market leader 
in more than 25 of them
about tetra
tetra is the digital terrestrial
trunked radio standard
developed to create a digital
wireless communications
technology suitable for all private
mobile radio “pmr” users
primarily for public safety
organisations
in recent years and based
on the significantly enhanced
benefits available we have seen
the migration from analogue to
digital communication networks
accelerate such that tetra has
now become the de facto
standard for digital pmr
communications in most markets
outside north america where
tetra has not yet been adopted
it is already present in more than
100 countries with important
new markets openingup and
adopting tetra all the time
such as germany italy china
and russia
uk 45600
international 79900
units sold by destination 2009 number 
uk 28 1m
international 460m
revenue by destination 2009 £m 03 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
our customers sepura’s radios are solving the ever increasing
communication challenges our customers face
and are helping frontline users make realtime
decisions that make a real difference 
public safety
• police 
• fire  rescue
• ambulance
• customs  immigration
public safety organisations play a vital role in protecting 
the safety of citizens every day often in life or death
situations regardless of the nature of the incident secure
reliable and private communications are always crucial
tetra was designed for public safety users and the efficient
and interoperable communication it offers enables not only
the swift deployment of skilled workers to the scene but
also the effective coordination of resources on the ground
sepura is the number one supplier of tetra digital radios
globally to the public safety market and our customers
include cheboksary ambulance russia keskiuusimaa
rescue centre finland catalonia fire brigade spain
swedish coastguard sweden and the british transport
police uk
transport 
• airports
• railways
• buses
• highways agencies
whether responsible for transporting goods or people 
to scheduled destinations the challenge is always one 
of ontime and safe delivery – against a backdrop of
increasing customer demands regulatory controls
competition and costs 
tetra networks offer a host of voice and data features 
and our range of invehicle and handheld radios provide
telemetry group communication data messaging and fast
reliable access times together they offer an intelligent
solution for quick informed decisionmaking resource
allocation and communication essential for effective
operational management 
our transport customers include eurotunnel france
london underground uk gothenburg transport authority
sweden bangkok metro thailand lyon buses france
russian railways russia and sofia airport bulgaria
military
• army
• navy
• air force
• department of defence
both on manoeuvres and on the training fields mission
critical communication underpins the effective coordination
of troops resources and nontactical operations in the face
of the enemy 
security and reliability set tetra networks apart and 
this together with sepura’s range of rugged yet compact
terminals facilitate essential militarygrade digital
communications between command centres and ground
personnel and throughout military camps and bases
our military customers include department of defence
usa royal navy uk norwegian army signals division
norway and greek army greece
utilities
• electricity
• oil  gas
• water
utility companies have their own unique communication
challenges and demands as they continually seek to
optimise operational efficiency and reduce costs in an
increasingly competitive market with large infrastructures 
to manage and maintain often over multisite geographies
covering remote areas digital voice and data communications
can help deliver improved team working customer service
safety and productivity
companies around the world are choosing to equip their
workers with sepura terminals and realise these valuable
service improvements
our utility customers include kelag austria rwe germany
endesa spain qtel qatar transbalken ukraine and
eon finland
commercial
• shipping  ports
• prisons
• shopping centres hotels  casinos
• petroleum development
from shipyards to holiday resorts and from local authorities
to manufacturing plants large businesses are beginning to
see the improved operational efficiency and productivity
levels available from sepura’s marketleading tetra radio
management systems  
high performance secure reliable communications 
plus firstclass customer support is something these types 
of businesses can no longer afford to be without
our commercial customers include bmw germany
cardiff city uk the atlantis palm resort dubai
and the gdynia container terminal poland
company overview 04 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
this year the global financial crisis has produced 
a challenging economic environment for both
customers and suppliers although the tetra market
has not been immune to the global economic
slowdown in the short term it has been resilient and
we remain confident in the growth prospects over
the medium to long term
against this backdrop sepura has taken decisive
steps towards achieving its strategic objective of
being the number one tetra radio supplier
we have achieved early success in germany 
which is forecast to become the largest tetra
market in the world we have won five of the first
six tenders to be awarded including two of the 
top länder by potential volumes this outstanding
performance demonstrates the competitiveness 
of the stp8000 radio and the effectiveness 
of our local distribution partner
we are already planning our approach for the 
next wave of significant markets
the uk remains the largest and most mature tetra
market in both the world and in sepura’s portfolio
here the replacement cycle has begun and sepura
has so far retained 19 out of 20 customers who
have ordered replacement radios
gordon watling our new chief executive officer
has taken the first steps to improve operating
efficiencies across the business he has restructured
operations to provide resources for increased
investment in sales and marketing and new product
introduction this has created a solid and cost
effective platform to support future growth
gordon has also led the drive to optimise
manufacturing costs and diversify supply the
transfer of our main european manufacturing base
from siemens to melecs has delivered significant
cost reductions in china our manufacturing partner
tcb is increasing its capacity and producing a
wider range of our products these developments
will deliver a robust and costeffective supply chain
to better serve our growing customer base
during the past year sepura has demonstrated 
its resilience in the face of the challenging market
conditions we have a strong balance sheet 
a focused team and dedicated partners
the outlook is never very clear this early in the
financial year however in recent weeks we have
seen indications that some orders may slip into the
next financial year this allied with the tough global
economic conditions dictates that we take a
cautious view and at this stage we expect limited
revenue growth this year the group is engaged in
a number of opportunities which could mitigate the
potential slippage and we will report on these as
the year progresses we remain confident in the
strength of the group and in the medium to long
term outlook for the business
philip nolan chairman
1 june 2009
chairman’s statement
“during the past year sepura has 
demonstrated its resilience in the face 
of challenging market conditions ”
philip nolan chairman
although not immune to the
global financial slowdown
sepura has proved resilient 
and delivered revenue growth 
in a difficult environment the
company has defended its
position in the mature uk market
and has won very significant
tenders in germany internal
restructuring led by new ceo
gordon watling has trimmed
the operational cost base and
funded increased investment in
sales the general economic
conditions continue to be
challenging and at this stage the
outlook remains uncertain and
we expect limited revenue
growth this year 05 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
• market share for emea in the year ended 31 december 2008 declined to 29
• this calculation excludes our strong q4 performance to 31 march 2009 and our successes in germany
• international business now represents 62 of total revenue
• sales to 61 countries in the year and now more than 90 in total
• market leader in 27 countries
• new office opened in amman and international sales team expanded
• successful launch and expansion of stp8000 series with a number of significant wins to date
• srh3900 developed and released for uk replacement cycle
• uk baseline software and other new functionality issued
• addon business represented 14 of total revenue 
•17 uk police forces purchased 30000 replacement units
• restructuring announced and subsequently completed to refocus costs and resources 
into main strategic areas
• increased volumes of lowercost chinese production
• transfer of european manufacturing will deliver major cost savings going forward
• cash generated of £56m before loan repayments and dividends
• net funds increased to £54m
• debtor days reduced to 36 and stock turn increased to 5 times
strategic update 
our strategic goal is to become the numberone
supplier of tetra digital radios globally  w e focus
on six key drivers in support of our strategy and
as shown below we continue to make progress
against each of them 
increase
our market share
grow 
our international footprint
enhance 
our product leadership
win
addon  replacement business
control
operating costs
generate 
strong cash flow
business reviews
29
market share for emea in the
year ended 31 december 2008
30

000st
replacement units to 
17 uk police forces
£5 6m
cash generated of 
£56 million
61 countries
in the year sales were made 
to 61countries
5
addon business represented
14 of total revenue
£5  4m
net funds increased to 
£54 million
key progress and developments in 2009 our strategic drivers
14  06 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
what first attracted you to sepura
i am excited to have become chief executive 
of sepura at a time when we have so many
opportunities in front of us although a relatively
small group sepura is a technology leader in
tetra radios which provide the secure and reliable
communications demanded by public safety and
other professionals around the world i am proud 
to lead an organisation which is dedicated to
supporting our police fire and ambulance services
– whose personnel are often working in the most
challenging environments sepura has already
secured a commanding market share in the uk and
has won important early contracts in germany and 
i am looking forward to the challenge of building
on this success
what is your ambition for sepura
sepura is committed to delivering innovative
products to all our customers and by doing so
building value for its shareholders i want to see
sepura establish itself as the global market leader
for tetra terminals which we will achieve if we
continue to show the same level of commitment to
customer service and satisfaction that we do today
we already have an outstanding reputation and 
i believe that if we remain focused on delivering 
for our customers we can take sepura from 
strength to strength
why does sepura have such a strong reputation
for development and innovation
that’s easy to answer having talented people and
the best products the people we employ share
between them a wealth of tetra expertise and 
it is the passion and commitment of our people 
that inspires them to develop innovate and deliver
industryleading products we also have tremendous
insight into our customers’ operating environment
and changing needs and this proven combination
has resulted in the reputation we enjoy today
what have you changed since your appointment
although we already had a solid base we needed
to take steps to ensure we can continue to compete
against a tough economic backdrop i therefore
took a long hard look at how we went about our
business from which suppliers we use right through
to the way we service our customers as a result i
have restructured the business to ensure we have the
right balance of skills to take the business forward
and make sure we can take full advantage of the
opportunities ahead for example sepura has
entered into a new manufacturing contract with
melecs the business which came out of our 
former european partner siemens and we have
extended the scope of our manufacturing
arrangements with tcb in china which continues
to exceed our expectations the cost savings we
will realise will be invested in strengthening the
group’s sales network around the globe
where is sepura’s growth going to come from
although we are already selling into over 90
countries this is still relatively early days for tetra
as many networks are at the early stages of
deployment as more countries invest in tetra
networks extending coverage and capacity as
more organisations see the benefits of the technology’s
improved security and functionality we expect the
market to continue to grow for a number of years
and we are in an excellent position to benefit as
demand develops even after the initial rollout 
of a network is complete customers will need
replacement radios and we can secure valuable
followon revenues over the 20 year life of an
average network
how does this apply in the uk
the uk remains the world’s largest and most mature
tetra market providing more than a third of the
group’s revenues customers are now starting to
“refresh” their communication equipment for
improved models with additional features and
functionality and during the last year 19 of our uk
customers bought 30000 radios as part of this
process tetra technology also continues to attract
new users in both the public and private sectors
for example tetra has been adopted by cardiff’s
radionet system which connects the city’s retail
entertainment and leisure businesses with local
government so you can see that we have a 
robust position in the uk and can demonstrate
considerable success in servicing and expanding
this important market
how can you stay competitive
sepura has always developed and delivered 
bestinclass terminals for our customers and we
have an enormous depth of expertise in tetra
technology however we know that in today’s
increasingly competitive market place this may 
not in itself always represent a winning formula 
we have identified a number of areas where we 
could improve our efficiency and cost effectiveness
including a more focused approach to expanding
the breadth of our product portfolio and strengthening
our supply chain above all we rely on our people
to stay one step ahead and i would like to add my
thanks for all of the hard work that has gone into
making sepura the success it is today
chief executive’s qa
gordon w atling reviews the achievements 
of his first six months as chief executive officer
and outlines the challenges and opportunities
that lie ahead
gordon watling became chief
executive officer of sepura in
october 2008 having been the
company’s chief operating
officer since november 2006
he joined sepura after 15 years
of multinational experience
working for technology and
control systems companies
including schlumberger agilent
invensys and honeywell 07 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
inspiring innovation satisfying customer needs
sepura has an outstanding reputation for
technical innovation and for delivering smart
new products which satisfy the changing needs
of our customers and endusers
tough
high performance
featurerich
stp8000
designed by users for users
the stp8000 addresses more tetra customers
than any other product available in the market
today it has the broadest range of frequency
bands and a wide range of unique features that
translate into real benefits whether that is wireless
connectivity enhanced personal safety reduced
operating costs or just sheer usability the 
stp8000 delivers every time
feature 1 – high power
high power radio communication enables extended
coverage and ensures contact is maintained even
in the harshest environments the loud clear audio
is essential for reliable communications in the
noisiest operating conditions
feature 2 – emergency communications
a discrete alarm key allows handsfree
communication to other users in an 
emergency situation
feature 4 – ergonomic keypad
the keypad layout is a blend of cellular familiarity
and radio user practicality the well spaced and
large keys enable gloved users easy accurate
operation of key radio features
1
2
3
4
5
feature 5 – product design
the product has been designed for the most
demanding working environments with a metal
chassis strengthened plastic and water resistant
housing all of these have been incorporated in 
a light easy to hold compact radio
feature 3 – large colour display
a large high resolution screen is ideal for image
display with the clear text viewable in all lighting
conditions essential for mission critical users
business reviews 08 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
introduction
despite a challenging economic backdrop 
we grew revenues 9 to £741m with volumes
increasing 7 to 125500 units foreign exchange
was a major contributor to our revenue growth as
the strength of the euro increased the value of the
contribution from our international business we
maintained our gross margin but increased
operating expenses reduced our operating margin
before nonrecurring costs from 22 to 18
diluted earnings per share before nonrecurring costs
also fell by 4 to 76p per share we finished the
year with a strong balance sheet including net
funds of £54m an increase of £34m 
balancing our skills to better serve 
our customers
while we have made significant progress in the last
year it became evident that sepura’s cost base was
no longer structured in line with the needs of our
business we therefore undertook a comprehensive
review of our operations which resulted in the
restructuring programme announced on 31 march
2009 this has provided resources to allow us to
enhance the local skills and presence needed to
grow our market share in emerging markets and 
to increase our focus on the development of new
products at the same time we have strengthened
our management team to reinforce a professional
performance based culture focused on winning
business creating innovative products and
delivering exceptional customer service
breaking new ground in germany
we are delighted by our initial contract wins in
germany which is rapidly confirming its status as
potentially the largest emerging tetra market in 
the world the recently announced win in baden
württemberg brings sepura’s total to five of the 
first six federal states to commence tendering for
terminals this represents 98 of the radios awarded
to date and we are confident that we can win
additional business as further states release their
tenders in the coming year
bdbos the federal agency implementing the
tetra network across germany has recently
announced that suitable sites for base stations have
yet to be identified in some rural areas while this
may delay the tendering process in some states our
initial wins have been for deployment in primarily
urban areas such as bremen stuttgart and munich
where the network rollout remains on schedule 
we delivered over 11000 radios into germany 
in the final quarter of the year and are confident
that volumes will increase as network deployment
continues our initial successes in germany validate
our strategy of building relationships with key local
partners in this instance selectric gmbh which 
has an excellent reputation among publicsafety
agencies across germany we extend our thanks 
to selectric for its contribution to sepura’s success 
in this important market
uk replacement cycle on track
the uk continued to be the largest tetra market in
the world and accounted for 45600 units or over
one third of our total volumes of these 30000
units were delivered to 17 police forces which are
currently replacing their ageing fleets of tetra
radios this supports our belief that initial contract
wins supported by product innovation and first
class customer service secure valuable followon
business over the lifecycle of a network
we shipped the two surveillance orders which had
slipped at the end of 2008 and delivered 4000
radios under the airwave ambulance contract as
this nears completion we have also seen increasing
penetration of tetra into “orange light” agencies
and the first uk commercial applications such as
cardiff’s radionet system connecting retail local
government entertainment and leisure businesses 
in cardiff city centre with police and cctv 
control rooms
other markets developing globally
sepura has achieved considerable success in its
other core european markets such as sweden
spain and hungary although progress in italy
remains slower than initially anticipated we also
saw demand from french customers where tetra
is gaining ground among local municipalities and
from the benelux region the expansion of eu
borders has seen a number of new member states
implementing tetra networks to improve border
security and we made significant shipments into
estonia and macedonia we expect further tenders
to be announced in neighbouring states in the
coming year
key fact
business  financial review
“the significant changes we have made to
improve both our efficiency and cost base 
have positioned us for what we believe will
continue to be a challenging environment 
in the forthcoming year”
business review
gordon watling chief executive officer
500

000

the number of radios manufactured to date 
by our european manufacturing partner 
srh3900 
the srh3900 handheld radio 
is an extension to sepura’s highly
successful srh3000 series and
was launched last year with the
uk replacement cycle specifically
in mind 
in mature tetra markets such as
the uk the srh3900 is helping
us win by offering endusers an
improved – yet familiar – product
in new markets the srh3900
offers a marketleading radio 
with enhanced performance at a
competitive price point the total
cost of ownership is reduced due
to the common base of accessories
which exist across the entire 
srh series 09 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
in germany the tetra bosnet framework for 
all public safety users is being rolled out and once
completed scheduled for 2012 it is expected to 
service over 500000 users making it the world’s 
largest tetra market
sepura has been preparing for this opportunity since
2006 through the establishment of our subsidiary
operation sepura deutschland gmbh and the strong
relationship we have forged with our experienced local
partner selectric together we worked closely with the
german public safety users to listen to and fully understand
their future communication needs and this resulted in the
launch of our innovative new stp8000 handheld radios
in may 2008 which is described on page 7
this handson locally based approach which includes
an unparalleled customer support service is already
proving extremely successful during the past 12 months
the german authorities have progressively started to
issue public safety tenders for various federal states and
the stp8000 has clearly been identified as the radio 
of choice to date and in the face of stiff competition
we have won five of the first six tenders representing
98 and 51 000 of the total radios awarded so far 
we have built up good early momentum and we are
confident of winning further tender bids during the
coming year in this important german market
driving our growth opportunities
sepura 
in action
case study
making good progress in new german market
business reviews 10 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
we delivered 25000 radios to customers across 
a range of geographies across asiapacific the
beijing olympics showcased tetra’s value to police
and other public safety agencies in coordinating
their response to largescale events we expect this
to act as a further catalyst for future demand in 
the region
tetra network deployments in the middle east
continue to gather pace and we have responded
by establishing a dedicated sales office in jordan to
support our penetration in this region tetra’s initial
foothold in africa is also expanding and we are
currently shipping a significant order for a new
african network currently under construction despite
the economic downturn in recent years across south
and central american economies we continue 
to build our presence by securing key business 
in mexico and argentina in total we supplied
products to a further three new countries during the
year bringing our global presence to 94 countries 
we are now the market leader in 27 of these
creativity and innovation
a significant factor in our contract wins in germany
has been the development of the stp8000 range of
handheld radios incorporating features demanded
by endusers in this important market during the
year we also launched the srh3900 handheld
radio for the uk replacement cycle which has in
turn helped us to maintain our marketleading
position in the uk further software functionality 
and enhanced encryption products have also 
been introduced
we have taken steps to ensure we extract the
maximum return from our significant annual investment
in research and development replicating our uk
and german successes will require products and
features that continue to meet the needs of our
current customers and those in emerging markets
our product pipeline includes a focused range of
marketspecific features that we believe will offer the
same compelling proposition as the stp8000 and
the srh range
serving our customers
serving customers is at the heart of sepura’s
success with our flexibility and speed of response
vital to securing business and further building our
reputation it is critical that all of our supplychain
partners demonstrate the same level of commitment
and we have challenged them to prove that they
are all capable of contributing to our longterm
success a detailed assessment of critical suppliers
has ensured they offer a low cost yet secure supply
by benchmarking them against “bestinbreed” to
ensure that they offer us a competitive edge while
retaining the financial strength to survive the current
economic turmoil
this approach is exemplified by the transfer of our
european production with effect from 1 april 2009
to melecs a new company formed from the
siemens contract manufacturing business simea
which has proved capable of delivering the high
quality manufacturing that we demand at competitive
prices production is now underway at the melecs
sites in siegendorf and sibiu and they have
committed to pursuing further costsavings from
production in lowcost countries within the next 
two years
at the same time we have invested in additional
capacity at our chinese manufacturing partner
tcb and extended the range of products which
can be sourced from both of our manufacturing
partners we expect tcb to manufacture an
increasing proportion of our units this year quality
and yields have exceeded our initial expectations
and customers across the globe have been quick to
approve chinesesourced products for use on their
networks we also believe our local manufacturing
presence will help us secure additional business in
the emerging chinese market
our logistics partner is building a dedicated sepura
warehouse which will bring all of our warehousing
into one central location approximately three times
as large as our existing facilities this will enhance
the efficiency speed and security of our logistics
services while reducing costs in this area
in summary the significant changes we have made
to improve both our efficiency and cost base have
positioned us for what we believe will continue to
be a challenging environment in the forthcoming
year we have also taken further steps to ensure we
invest in resources to reinforce our plans for the next
phase of emerging tetra markets
gordon watling chief executive officer
1 june 2009
key fact
125000

the record number of radios we shipped around
the world last year
recent world events have
heightened the public’s
awareness to national security
issues this has resulted in an
increase in surveillance type
operations undertaken by police
forces border security anti
terrorist squads military and
other government agencies
sepura has developed the world’s
best selling tetra covert range
of surveillance radios which
include the src3300 and the
src3300 sgps™  these specially
designed discreet and body
worn units with covert antennae
gps tracking microphones and
earpieces help maximise the
communication performance and
safety of undercover officers
without compromising their
cover privacy and security is
ensured with builtin encryption
sepura is the uk market leader
in this field
src3300
business  financial review continued 11 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
strengthening our competitive advantage 
sepura 
in action
case study
business reviews
as part of our operational drive to maintain margins 
we continually seek to maximise the low cost benefits
available from our outsourced manufacturing resources
without compromising reliability of supply or product
quality
having successfully established a manufacturing
operation in china last year through our local partner
tcb we have since invested further in increased
capacity and an extended product range in the coming
year we expect tcb manufacturing to represent nearly
one third of our total unit production with this figure
expected to rise still further as far east sales increase
following the decision of our long established european
partnersiemens to withdraw from contract manufacturing
a comprehensive benchmarking review resulted in the
decision being taken in march this year to transfer our
european production to a new partner melecs ews
gmbh a hive down from the previous siemens business
also based in austria production is already underway
bringing with it immediate and significant product 
cost savings
sepura’s flexible and highly scalable manufacturing
capabilities and the component purchasing power
available through our local business partners represent
a world class cost effective manufacturing base
low cost manufacturing excellence in china and europe 12 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
introduction
total revenues for the year increased by 9 from
£681m to £741m our international customers
representing over 60 of revenues are invoiced
primarily in euros and the strengthening of the euro
during the year had a significant impact on our
results on a constant currency basis revenues 
would have been flat
overall terminal volumes increased by 7 resulting
in an arpus average revenue per unit shipped 
of £591 an increase of 2 from £579 in 2008
excluding the benefit of the strong euro arpus fell
8 to £533 reflecting an average 5 fall in selling
prices and lower uk surveillance business as the
market matures
international revenues increased 11 to £460m
2008 £413m volumes decreased 10 to
79900 and arpus increased by 23 from £468
to £576 while the increase in arpus was mainly
driven by the strengthening of the euro we
continued to increase sales of accessories and
software licences to our international customers
uk revenues increased 5 to £281m 2008
£268m with 45600 units delivered an increase
of 55 over the 29400 units shipped in 2008  
a significant proportion of these shipments were to
police forces under their replacement programmes
which are generally at lower prices than previous
contracts and require fewer accessories than new
radios this in conjunction with reduced surveillance
business in the year contributed to the anticipated
decline in the uk arpus of 33 to £616 from
£913 last year
our revenues continue to include large government
contracts and as such are prone to lumpiness the
impact in the current year of large contracts was
broadly the same as last year
gross margin
our successful ongoing strategy to source lower cost
components improve yields and reduce the cost of
manufacturing processes enabled us to maintain our
gross margin at 525 2008 527 despite
lower sales prices
the gross margin in the international business
increased from 52 to 56 reflecting the ongoing
product costreduction programme including the
reduced costs associated with manufacturing at our
chinese partner tcb margins in the uk although
also benefiting from the costreduction programme
were adversely affected by the strength of the euro
as the majority of our product costs are in euros
and fell from 66 to 60 lower margin police
replacement business and reduced surveillance
business also contributed to this reduction 
as expected
the transfer of our european manufacturing to
melecs is an important step in achieving further
cost savings this combined with additional
volumes manufactured by tcb will secure our
supply and help support our future margins
nonrecurring costs
on 31 march 2009 we announced the completion
of a major review of the group’s internal operations
which would result in the restructuring of the 
business to improve efficiency and streamline costs
a corresponding provision was made in the year 
of £13m to cover redundancy and related costs
the programme has now been successfully completed
in line with our expectations the majority of the
savings arising from this exercise will be reinvested
in additional sales capability and in new product
development to drive the future growth of 
the company
at the same time we reviewed our portfolio of
development projects and identified an alternative
more cost effective approach to completing some of
these projects this resulted in an impairment charge
of £12m against our capitalised development
costs this has no cash impact as the associated
expenditure had already been incurred
last year £21m of costs were incurred in relation 
to the company’s listing in august 2007 
business  financial review continued
“our successful ongoing strategy to source 
lower cost components improve yields and
reduce the cost of manufacturing processes
enabled us to maintain our gross margin”
financial review
stephen crowther chief financial officer
operating margin
1
25
20
15
10
5
0
2007 2008 2009
18
22
18

1
excluding nonrecurring costs
operating profit
1
160
140
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
2007 2008 2009
92
147
130
£m
revenue
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
2007 2008 2009
520
68 1
741
£m 13 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
building on our valuable relationships
sepura 
in action
case study
business reviews
from 2001 uk police forces have progressively
migrated from numerous analogue systems to today’s
unified national tetra network during that time sepura
has established itself as the no1 provider of hand
portable digital radios to police services throughout the
uk supplying more than 40 forces and some 200000
radios to date
many of the uk police forces are now refreshing their
fleets and seeking to upgrade their first generation
tetra radios to meet increasing operational demands
this replacement cycle is well underway 
to date and driven primarily by our new srh3900
refresh product not only have we retained all but one 
of our existing uk police force customers who have
replaced their radios so far we have also won a new
customer and addon business as well
this repeat business success and continued uk market
leadership is testimony to the performance reliability
and advancement of our products and to the high value
we have placed on maintaining our customer support
and relationships over the years 
maintaining our no1 position in uk police replacement cycle 14 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
key fact
business  financial review continued
the number of different countries into which 
we supplied radios last year
60

research and development costs 
before nonrecurring costs
investment in research and development continues 
to be critical to ensure that we provide the right
products for our customers and that we continue 
to grow the business gross expenditure on rd
increased by 11 from £138m last year to
£153m representing 21 of revenue slightly
increased from 20 last year we completed the
development of the stp8000 during the year 
and have continued to develop the range for new
markets and applications while expanding the
associated range of available accessories the
srh3900 product for the uk police replacement
market was also launched during the year and
ongoing work continued on the development 
of software functionality and upgrades across 
our portfolio
we expect the gross research and development
spend will stabilise in the medium term although
we will continue our programme of new product
development and technical innovation as we drive
increased productivity from our spend
the income statement charge reflects the timing 
of the capitalisation and subsequent amortisation 
of the development expenditure and increased by
28 during the year to £100m 2008 £78m  
we capitalised 71 of research and development
expenditure 2008 75 and commenced
amortisation of the development costs incurred on
the stp range the gross expenditure and income
statement charges will converge in the mediumterm
as the spend reduces as a percentage of revenue
selling marketing distribution and administrative
expenses before nonrecurring costs
selling marketing and distribution costs increased
7 to £94m 2008 £88m as we continue to
develop our routes to market during the year we
opened a dedicated office in the middle east and
have recruited business development managers in
other key geographies where we see significant
opportunities for tetra
administrative costs including other losses gains
increased by 41 from £46m to £65m excluding
foreign exchange losses of £01m in 2009 and
gains of £12m in 2008 respectively the increase
was 10 this was mainly as a result of the full
year impact of the additional resources required 
to comply with the obligations associated with 
our listing we have also made further investments
in our manufacturing capabilities as we have
increased volumes in tcb and prepared for the
transfer to melecs together with investments in
process improvements and efficiencies
total selling marketing distribution and administrative
costs excluding nonrecurring costs increased
marginally as a percentage of revenue to 21
2008 20 tight control of overhead expenditure
will continue to be important as we seek to hold
sga costs
operating profit
operating profit for the year was £105m 2008
£125m excluding nonrecurring costs operating
profit in the year was £130m 2008 £147m 
a decrease of 12 from last year operating
margin excluding nonrecurring costs decreased 
to 18 from 22 in the previous year
eps
diluted earnings per share for the year was flat at
63p benefiting from a lower tax charge excluding
the impact of nonrecurring costs in the current year
diluted earnings per share fell 4 from 79p to
76p per share
our earnings are impacted yearonyear by the timing
of the capitalisation and subsequent amortisation 
of our development expenditure and adjusted
diluted earnings per share based on expensing 
our development costs as they are incurred rose 
2 from 48p to 49p per share
in 2008 sepura became the first
major tetra terminal supplier 
to establish a manufacturing
operation in china through its
world class local partner tcb
and opened a product support
centre in beijing
this successful initiative was
undertaken in order to provide
locallymade products with local
customisation and a local repair
service to our growing customer
base in china and strengthen
our market position there and in
other far east countries
tcb plant 15 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
extending our global product reach
sepura 
in action
case study
to meet the mission critical communication needs of
increasingly demanding customers sepura has the
broadest range of products tools and accessories
available in the market our tetra digital radios lead
the industry and our growing international footprint 
now extends to more than 90 countries and we are 
the market leader in 27 of them from europe to asia
pacific from the middle east to south and central
america and in africa the deployment of tetra
networks continue to gather pace and we are 
preparing ourselves accordingly
within our key market sectors of public safety military
transport utilities and commercial our customer base
and enduser applications continue to become more 
and more diverse we have seen our radios used 
by north east ambulance in the uk to enable the 
rapid deployment of their services as part of the great 
north run and by the estado delta amacuro regional
government to enable remote communication amongst
nomadic communities located in the venezuelan jungle
the benefits of reliable digital radio communications 
and security of voice and data transmissions even in
some of the world’s toughest environments are
becoming ever more evident
sepura’s reputation technical capabilities product
strength and unrivalled customer service is helping 
us win our vision is to become the number one 
supplier of tetra radios globally
product strength and leadership at home and abroad
business reviews 16 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
cashflows
cash generated from trading operations has
continued to fund the group’s activities  cash
generated in the year was £02m 2008 £7m
prior to loan repayments and dividend payments
cash generated was £51m 2008 £87m cash
generated from trading operations was £194m
down from £268m pre ipo costs in 2008 due 
to lower operating profit and higher working
capital working capital increased due to higher
debtors as a greater proportion of revenue was
invoiced in march together with higher stock at the
end of the year debtor days fell to 36 days 2008
53 days an excellent result given the high level 
of international business stockturn improved to 5
times during the year 2008 4 times and this will
continue to be an area of focus in the coming year
capital expenditure comprises
• £18m 2008 £25m spent on property 
plant and equipment including £09m on test
equipment to support our development and
manufacturing capabilities
• £12m 2008 £12m on intangible assets
including the second payment of £1m to
complete the early buyout of future ipr fees
payable to a technology partner and
• £109m 2008£104m of capitalised rd
expenditure
during the year we made net interest payments 
on our debt and finance lease facilities of £05m
2008 £07m including interest received on 
cash balances
no uk corporation tax was required to be paid 
in the current year due to the availability of tax
losses arising on the ipo 2008 £08m paid in
respect of 2006
after allowing for these payments we increased 
our net funds by £34m 2008 £87m we made
scheduled repayments of £32m 2008 £17m 
of borrowings and paid dividends totalling £17m
2008 nil
treasury and taxation
1 financing
at the end of the year the group had net funds 
of £54m 2008 £20m consisting of £158m
2008 £156m of cash net of £104m 2008
£136m of borrowings representing the outstanding
balance on the initial £15m drawn down from our
loan facility all of the covenants associated with 
the loan were complied with during the year 
the group also has in place a further £15m of
unutilised credit facilities although our current plans
are for future development of the business to be
funded from organic operating cashflows we
propose to maintain this facility as it provides
additional flexibility while the macroeconomic
environment remains uncertain we will continue 
to review the position on a regular basis
2 tax
our effective tax rate for the year was 13
compared to 28 in 2008 16 and 23
excluding the impact of the nonrecurring costs 
this is lower than the standard rate of uk corporation
tax as we benefit from additional relief on our
research and development expenditure the rate 
of relief was increased by the chancellor from 
25 to 75 during the year which has significantly
reduced our 2009 tax charge
we also continued to benefit from the taxable 
losses created on the exercise of employee share
options immediately prior to listing which means
that there is no uk tax payable in respect of 
2009 we have a further £79m net of losses
available for offset against future taxable profits 
we have also recognised deferred tax liabilities 
of £59m in relation to our development costs
which are capitalised under ifrs although these 
do not represent future tax cash payments they 
will be released to income as the related costs 
are amortised
key fact
90

the number of our international 
distribution partners
business  financial review continued
net funds
1
2007 2008 2009
80
60
40
20
– 
20
40
60
80

67

20
54
£’000
1
being cash net of borrowings
diluted earnings per share
1
2007 2008 2009
80
70
60
50
40
30
20
10
0
56p
7 9p
7 6p
pence per share
1
excluding nonrecurring costs 17 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
£54m
net funds increased to 
£54 million 
36days
debtors days reduced to
36 days 2008 53 days 
business reviews
3 treasury
the interest charge for the year was £09m 
2008 £12m giving interest cover of 14 times
2008 12 times based on operating profit before
nonrecurring costs with interest rates currently at 
a postwar low we have put in place an interest 
cap arrangement covering all our remaining loans
to maturity reducing our exposure to any future
significant increases in libor interest income was
£04m 2008 £07m reflecting the reduction in
interest rates during the year
our principal currency exposure is to the euro as
this is the currency in which we invoice the majority
of our international customers this exposure is partly
hedged naturally as we also purchase products
from our principal manufacturing partners in euros
as our international business continues to develop
we have put in place a programme of hedging
residual major euro exposures we are also indirectly
exposed to the us dollar in those locations where
the underlying market pricing is in this currency
we continue to pay particular attention to our 
credit exposure in the light of the current recession
although as the end users of our equipment are
predominantly government organisations we
believe our counterparty credit exposure is minimal
the risk of default by distribution partners is
managed by the use of advance payments and
letters of credit as appropriate
balance sheet
with net assets of £358m 2008 £286m
including £158m 2008 £156m of cash the
group has a strong balance sheet which provides
us with confidence that we can respond to the
current market environment and any new
opportunities as they arise 
dividends
the board has proposed a final dividend of 
085p per ordinary share in respect of the year
2008 085p payable on 14 august 2009 to
shareholders on the register at the close of business
on 17 july 2009 giving a total dividend of 127p
per ordinary share for the full year 2008 085p
this reflects the board’s policy of distributing
approximately 20 of the group’s annual profit
onethird as an interim and twothirds as a final
dividend the board intends in the absence of
unforeseen circumstances to continue to apply 
this dividend policy in future years
accounting policies
there have been no changes in accounting 
policies during the year and we do not anticipate
any material impact on earnings or net assets for 
the coming year as a result of the implementation 
of forthcoming standards
stephen crowther chief financial officer
1 june 2009 18 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
principal risks  uncertainties
contract delay
a significant percentage of our revenue in each financial year is
derived from orders from a small number of enduser organisations the
majority of which are governmental organisations the timing of such
orders is influenced by a number of factors including governmental
investment decisions which may be affected by changes in political
and economic conditions this makes accurate predictions of the 
timing of future revenues more difficult in the event that there is 
a delay to either the tendering process or the placing of orders
following a successful bid then revenues may not be generated 
within the originally forecast timeframe with a consequential 
impact on the profitability of the group in any given period
failing to achieve market penetration
a substantial proportion of our revenues are generated internationally
and our longterm strategy is dependent on our ability to secure a
marketleading position in the significant tetra markets if we are
unable to maintain or establish appropriate relationships in new markets
or our distribution partners fail to deliver superior pre and aftersales
support then this could reduce the likelihood of us securing such 
a position with a corresponding impact on our future growth and
profitability
technological change
our revenue and profitability are affected by the extent to which there
is increasing demand for and development by our competitors of
additional products and product features we are therefore required 
to make significant investment in new product development and 
there can be no guarantee that we will be able to generate sufficient
revenue to offset these development costs or to continue to make such
investments there are also associated risks relating to difficulties 
and delays in the development process of new products and their
acceptance by customers if our competitors successfully launch new
products or features which we are unable to match then we could lose
market share with a corresponding impact on our future profitability
and financial position
competition
there is strong competition in the markets in which we operate
particularly in relation to government procurement tendering 
processes which rely on a combination of technical performance 
and price a significant reduction in the prices we achieve for our
products could have a material impact on the group’s margins 
and profitability
credit risk
the influence of large contracts on our business may result in credit 
risk being concentrated within a small number of customers at any
time default by a material customer could have a material impact 
on the group’s results
reducing dependence on large orders
the directors’ strategy of growing the business results in a reducing
significance of individual orders or contracts relative to the group’s
total operations furthermore the increasing role of regular addon 
and replacement business also helps to mitigate the impact of
significant delays in securing new customers however the impact 
of significant contracts on half and fullyear reported revenue remains 
a risk for the group
developing our distribution network
we are investing in more business development managers and 
other sales and sales support personnel to ensure that we increase 
our geographical coverage as new markets adopt the tetra
standard in addition to identifying and supporting new distribution
partners our distribution agreements permit us to terminate existing
relationships due to poor performance as we seek to ensure existing
high levels of customer support are maintained
product innovation
feedback from customer user groups and tetra conferences helps 
us to identify customer needs and potential competitor advances 
this enables us to focus our development efforts on features which
meet a market requirement ensuring that they generate sufficient
revenue to fund their development and we have established internal
processes for prioritising and reviewing our development projects
investing in operation excellence
the group’s ability to compete depends on its highquality product
range and its reputation for customer service as well as the ongoing
programme of work to reduce product costs the board regularly
reviews the level of investment in these areas in the light of changes 
in the competitive landscape to ensure that the group can continue 
to compete effectively
working with the right partners
the board has implemented policies that require appropriate credit
checks on potential customers before sales are made customer orders
are checked against preset requirements before acceptance and
formal credit control procedures are applied subsequent to invoicing
the customer with letters of credit and payments in advance obtained
from customers where appropriate
risk and impact management strategy
the risks and uncertainties facing the group together with
appropriate risk management strategies are reviewed regularly by
both the full board and the group’s risk committee as described 
on page 30 the table below sets out the material strategic and
operational risks which face the group their potential impact on 
our future performance and how we manage them 19 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
key performance indicators
business reviews
the directors regularly assess the performance of the group 
using a wide range of metrics to monitor performance against 
key objectives the following key performance indicators “kpis”
are those which the board consider are the most appropriate
measures of the group’s performance against its strategic and
primary operational objectives the group’s performance against
these kpis is explained in the preceding sections of the business 
 financial review
strategic kpis 2009 2008
market share
1
26 31
geographical footprint – number of countries buying from sepura 94 91
revenue international £460m £413m
uk £281m £268m
gross margin 52 53
diluted eps
2
76p 79p
operational kpis 2009 2008
units shipped ‘000s international 80 89
uk 46 29
average revenue per unit shipped “arpus” international 576 468
uk 616 913
operating profit cash spend as a percentage of revenues
2
10 13
cash conversion ratio
2
45 81
stockturn 52 38
debtor days 36 53
completed repairs on time 98 95
1
based on calendar year information contained in ims report march 2009 “the worldwide market for licensed mobile radio” 
this calculation excludes our strong q4 to 31 march 2009 and our successes in germany 
2
excluding nonrecurring costs
increasing market share calculated as the ratio of tetra radios shipped by the group compared to
independent data on the total number of tetra radios shipped gives an objective measure of the group’s
overall performance against its competitors while the group’s geographical footprint and revenue growth
provide an indication of the level of market penetration achieved the gross margin achieved demonstrates
the extent to which these additional sales are being achieved without compromising profitability while
increasing diluted eps confirms successful delivery against our strategy
operationally the number of units shipped is an indicator of the level of activity within the business while
arpus the average revenue per unit shipped is an indicator of the selling price achieved and the extent 
of addon sales the ratio of operating profit cash spend to revenues which uses total operating expenses
adjusted to reflect the cash cost of research and development shows the level of operational leverage we
achieve while our cash conversion ratio which compares cash generated before net financing outflows 
to operating profit shows our ability to convert profit into cash a key component of this is our ability to
manage our working capital as shown by stock turn and debtor days while our commitment to customer
service is demonstrated by the level of completed repairs on time 20 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
philip nolan 55 
n r i
nonexecutive chairman
chairman of the nominations committee
dr philip nolan joined the group in february
2007 as nonexecutive chairman he is also
nonexecutive chairman of infinis limited and
serves as a nonexecutive director of de la
rue plc providence resources plc and ulster
bank plc he is chairman of the irish
management institute he was formerly 
chief executive officer of eircom limited from
2002 to 2006 prior to its acquisition by
babcock  brown before that dr nolan was
chief executive officer of transco plc from
1998 to 2000 and lattice group plc from
2000 to 2002 following its demerger from
bg group plc
gordon watling 41
chief executive officer
gordon watling was appointed to the board
as chief executive officer on 1 october
2008 having served as chief operating
officer since joining the group in november
2006 he was previously global engineering
director of honeywells electronic sensing
business from 2003 to 2006 and operations
director of invensys energy systems from
1998 to 2000 until he became development
manager at hpagilent technologies in
2000 prior to that gordon had operations
development and manufacturing roles at
schlumberger industries between 1985 
and 1997
stephen crowther 53
chief financial officer 
stephen crowther joined the group in
october 2003 as finance director he is an
associate chartered accountant of the institute
of chartered accountants in england and
wales he was previously finance director of
merlin communications from 1999 to 2003
and european finance director of spillers pet
foods a subsidiary of dalgety plc from 1995
to 1996 until he became director of corporate
planning at the dalgety group in 1996 
prior to that stephen was a partner at
pricewaterhouse between 1989 and 1995
tim bunting 45 
a n i
senior independent nonexecutive director
tim bunting joined the group in april 2007
he is a partner at balderton capital formerly
benchmark europe prior to joining balderton
capital in 2007 he was a managing
director of goldman sachs  co and spent
18 years at goldman sachs having held
various roles including global head of equity
capital markets 2002 to 2006 and vice
chairman of goldman sachs international
2005 to 2006 he is a nonexecutive director
of yell group plc a governor of wellington
college and a trustee of the rainbow trust
children’s charity tim is the board’s nominated
senior independent nonexecutive director
sion kearsey 43 
n
nonexecutive director
sion kearsey is a founding member of sepura
and joined the group in 2002 he is also a
cofounder of kelso place asset management
llp  a private equity firm specialising in acquiring
controlling interests in uk based companies
sion was previously a managing director 
of goldman sachs international in its fixed
income currencies and commodities division
tony illsley 52 
a r i
nonexecutive director
chairman of the remuneration committee
tony illsley joined the group in june 2007
he is also a nonexecutive director of
northern foods plc and is nonexecutive
chairman of plastic logic limited and velocix
limited he formerly served on the board of
directors of easyjet plc from 2000 to 2005
and prior to that he was chief executive of
telewest plc from 1998 to 2000 he held
various senior roles at pepsico inc from
1984 to 1998 including president of pepsi
cola japan pepsi cola asia pacific and
walker snack foods limited tony has also
held various senior marketing positions at
colgate palmolive uk limited from 1979
to 1984 and is currently a trustee of the
whizzkidz children’s charity
david tilston 51 
a r i
nonexecutive director
chairman of the audit committee
david tilston joined the group in july 2007
he is a fellow of the institute of chartered
accountants in england and wales he is 
also a fellow of the association of corporate
treasurers he was finance director of victrex
plc from 1997 to 2000 and overnet data
plc from 2000 to 2004 the latter of which
was floated as an aim listed company 
david has also held senior finance roles in 
a number of ftse 350 and other large uk 
plc companies
senior management team
jens thostrup 
senior vice president sales  marketing
andrew halley 
development director
tim woodruff 
chief technology officer
trevor boulding
head of human resources
a  audit committee
n nominations committee
r  remuneration committee
i   independent nonexecutive director
our board  senior management
“the board is responsible for providing leadership
for the group it ensures that the right strategy and
controls together with appropriate financial and
human resources are in place to deliver value 
to shareholders and other stakeholders ”
philip nolan chairman 21 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
corporate social responsibility statement
corporate
governance
introduction
sepura recognises that a positive approach to corporate social
responsibility “csr” can have a positive contribution to its reputation
and the ability to create and maintain longterm value for shareholders
this is why the board led by the chief executive officer takes csr
seriously and is committed to advancing our related policies systems
and initiatives across all areas of the business as we continue to grow
and mature these areas primarily include ethical behaviour concern
for employee welfare health and safety care for the environment and
community involvement
we make considerable efforts to communicate effectively with all
stakeholders who may have an interest in our csr activities including
our shareholders customers suppliers partners and employees the
company’s website is one of the main routes for providing information
to interested parties and providing us with constructive feedback
ethical behaviour
in support of our core values of integrity excellence care teamwork
and commitment sepura expects that its business around the world 
is always conducted to high ethical standards of practice and legal
principles to that end all our employees and business partners are
also expected to demonstrate high standards of professionalism and
integrity at all times when conducting business on the company’s
behalf this is indeed how we behave in practice
a code of business conduct and ethics including a whistleblowing
policy covering the whole of the business and our various stakeholder
interests has recently been approved by the board and its important
communication rollout will take place shortly
employee welfare
as a business driven largely by technical development and innovation
our main assets lie in the talents and skills of the people we employ
consequently we aim to attract retain and motivate the highest
calibre of employees both technical and nontechnical by encouraging
and rewarding high performance through competitive remuneration
and incentive arrangements sepura is an “investor in people”
accredited employer
acknowledging that an environment that fosters innovation and
collaboration is critical to our success considerable efforts are made 
to identify and provide further learning training and development
opportunities for our employees these are structured so as to align 
our organisational objectives with personal career aspirations 
formal performance reviews including 360° appraisals are
conducted annually
similarly the importance of twoway communication is recognised
particularly as it relates to the business and its performance we
actively encourage employee involvement through the recently 
reprofiled staff council and keep employees regularly informed 
of the group’s activities and performance through team briefings 
direct access to managers and directors at all levels the monthly 
issue of a chief executive officer’s news bulletin and by interim 
and yearend presentations to all staff
in february 2009 the company completed its first allemployee
opinion survey this was undertaken with the purpose of seeking
constructive feedback in relation to a broad spectrum of organisational
management staff welfare and personal development issues in
consultation with the staff council an action plan is being formulated
by management to positively address the key results of the survey
during the year and with a view to encouraging share ownership
amongst its employees the company successfully launched an all
employee sharesave scheme in the uk this scheme which is inland
revenue approved enables employees to purchase shares in sepura
through regular savings made over a three or five year period but 
at a discount of up to 20 on the share price as determined at the
outset the company intends to make an annual invitation under 
this scheme and will from time to time consider its extension to other
countries in which we have established a major operating presence
sepura is committed to providing equality of opportunity to all existing
and prospective employees without unlawful or unfair discrimination
in addition we are supportive of the employment and advancement 
of disabled persons
health and safety
the health and safety committee is responsible for controlling
directing and delegating responsibility for practical daytoday
compliance with the group’s health and safety policy statement
together with relevant legislation and operating procedures to line
management and functional heads appropriate training and the
ongoing awareness programme for all employees to help create 
and maintain a safe and healthy working environment is also
coordinated by this committee
the board is regularly briefed on the status and improvement initiatives
relating to our health and safety system which is proactive and
remains effective this is evidenced below and by the continued
satisfactory audits undertaken by our external advisors and the fact 
that only eight very minor incidents occurred during the year
whilst it continues to be the company’s policy to offer staff free
influenza injections additional policy and contingency plans have
recently been laid down in the event of any pandemic virus impacting
staff health and business continuity
the main health and safety risks to the business continue to be fire
electrical faults manual handling work station use driving and stress
regular fire alarm testing fire team briefings searcher training and
evacuation practices are carried out to mitigate any potential impact 
in the case of fire prevention actions for electrical faults include
portable appliance testing the statutory testing of all equipment and
appliances is up to date and the next fiveyear audit of our fixed
wiring will be carried out in 2010 manual handling training is
offered to all staff to reduce risk of injury when lifting heavy objects
and regular work station risk assessments are carried out together 
with any remedial action necessary our driving policy is aligned 
with legal requirements and all staff have free access to a stress
counselling service
environmental care
in appreciating the importance of good environmental practice
sepura aims to ensure that its operations and products cause minimum
detrimental impact to the environment consequently our policy is 
to comply with all relevant legislation and to promote proactive and
effective environmental management throughout our business operations
wherever practicable the board believes that the nature of the
group’s activities do not represent any significant environmental risks
and our performance responsibilities in this regard are channelled
through an environmental committee which regularly reports to the
audit committee and the board as appropriate 
the company is iso 14001 accredited our business complies 
with both the waste electrical and electronic equipment regulations
2002 “weee regulations” and the restrictions of the use of 
certain hazardous substances in electrical and electronic equipment
regulations 2004 “rohs regulations” during last year we complied
with the batteries and accumulators placing on the market regulations
2008 and satisfied ourselves that our supply chain was able to fulfil its
obligations during the current year we will put in place a ‘takeback’
scheme for batteries and record sales by weight and chemistry to
comply with the waste batteries and accumulators regulations 2009 22 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
we are responding to the increasing demand from government and
stakeholders to measure and minimise the impact of our business on
the environment in the past year we have improved our measurement
of utilities and waste the segregation of waste streams and the range
of waste we recycle in the last three years we have reduced the use
of paper in the organisation by more than 60 in addition to waste
paper collection we have also now introduced plastic aluminium
steel battery electrical toner cartridge and cardboard collection
and recycling arrangements
a carbon trust audit has been carried out at our main cambridge
operations the emissions have been assessed for the site and its staff
at 1397t co2 equivalents the main source of carbon emissions are
electricity consumption and employee transport reductions in electricity
consumption should follow from the increased use of timers and energy
efficient lighting installed this year reductions in employee transport
should follow from the car sharing and cycleforwork initiatives which
have been recently been introduced as well as from our participation
in the local ‘travel for work’ scheme
having recognised the need for us to consider the whole supply chain
for sustainability we have recently completed the audit of our main
suppliers with regard to their achievements and plans on this issue
with one of our major customers we also calculated the through life
carbon footprint of 25 of our products using a ghg model looking
forward there will be increased focus on our designing for
sustainability
by way of supplement to our existing environmental procedures
manual and online environmental management system a regular
environmental newsletter is issued to help highlight and explain to 
staff and other interested stakeholders exactly what we are doing 
in this important and motivational area
community involvement
sepura aims to be a responsible corporate citizen and active
employer in the communities in which we operate particularly at
our main operating site in cambridge we recognise that this is 
an area where we together with our employees could improve 
our participation levels in supporting local initiatives and events
consideration is currently being given as to how this can be 
achieved during the coming year
corporate social responsibility statement continued 23 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
the directors have pleasure in presenting their report and the audited
financial statements for the year ended 31 march 2009
principal activity and business review
the principal activity of the group is the design development and
supply of terrestrial trunked radio “tetra” digital mobile radios
predominantly for use in the public safety sector but also for use in 
the transport military utilities and commercial sectors sepura has
customers in more than 90 countries around the world and is the
market leader in 27 of them
a fair review of the group’s performance during the year and of 
its position at the year end including commentary on its likely future
development and prospects is set out in the business  financial
review on pages 8 to 17 while information on principal risks and
uncertainties and key performance indicators is given on pages 18
and 19 respectively this information should be read in conjunction
with this report the corporate social responsibility statement on
pages 21 and 22 summarises the group’s approach to business
ethics employee welfare and practice health and safety
environmental and community matters
results and dividend
the audited financial statements of the group and of the company 
for the year under review are set out on pages 37 to 61 and pages
63 to 70 respectively
the board has adopted a dividend policy which takes account 
of the profitability and underlying growth of the group in addition 
to capital requirements cash flows and distributable reserves while
also recognising the need to maintain an appropriate level of 
dividend cover
pursuant to that policy the directors have recommended a final
dividend for the year of 085 pence per ordinary share which if
approved by shareholders at the annual general meeting to be held
on tuesday 21 july 2009 “2009 agm” will be paid on 14 august
2009 to shareholders registered at the close of business on 17 july
2009 together with the interim dividend paid of 042 pence per
ordinary share this makes a total dividend for the year of 127
pence per ordinary share a dividend reinvestment plan will be
offered in conjunction with the final dividend
going forward and subject to any unforeseen circumstances the
directors intend to continue their recommendation of both an interim
and final dividend in respect of each financial year in the approximate
proportions of onethird and twothirds respectively of the total 
annual dividend
events since the balance sheet date
as reported in the company’s preclose statement made on 31 march
2009 the proposed restructuring programme the purpose for which 
is explained in the business  financial review on page 8 was
completed on 1 may 2009 there were no other post balance sheet
events of any significance
research and development
product development and innovation principally related to tetra
technology and products are considered key strategies in maintaining
and improving the group’s competitive position and therefore they
continue to receive high priority the primary objective is new product
development improved functionality and extended application all
focused on the enhanced benefits for the enduser further details of 
the group’s research and development activity are contained in the
business  financial review on pages 10 and 14
our commitment to this important area is highlighted by the £153
million of development spend during the year equivalent to 21 
of sales 2008 £138 million and 20 of sales under ias 38
“intangible assets” £109 million of this year’s spend was capitalised
2008 £104 million the group will continue to commit a significant
level of resource and expenditure as appropriate to research 
and development
financial instruments
details of the group’s objectives and policies on financial risk
management and of the financial instruments currently in use can 
be found in the business  financial review on pages 16 and 17 
and in note 31 to the financial statements
share capital
the company has a single class of share which is divided into
ordinary shares of £00005 each with all of the ordinary shares
ranking pari passu on a show of hands at a general meeting every
holder of ordinary shares present in person or by proxy and entitled
to vote has one vote and on a poll every holder of ordinary shares
present in person or by proxy and entitled to vote has one vote for
every ordinary share held
the rights including full details relating to voting obligations and 
any restrictions on transfer relating to the company’s ordinary shares
as well as the powers of the directors are set out in the company’s
articles of association these can only be amended by special
resolution at a general meeting of shareholders at the 2009 agm 
a resolution will be put to shareholders proposing certain amendments
to the existing memorandum  articles of association in accordance
with the provisions of the companies act 2006
at the annual general meeting held on 23 july 2008 “2008
agm” shareholders granted the company limited authority to
purchase its own shares subject to certain specified conditions
while no such purchases were made during the year a resolution
seeking to renew this authority is to be proposed at the 2009 agm
details of the share capital and of the changes effected during the
year including the allotment of 01 million new ordinary shares
pursuant to the exercise of share options at £00000007 per
ordinary share under the sepura limited 2002 employees’ share
option scheme “old share option plan” are set out in note 27 
to the financial statements
at the date of this report 1365 million ordinary shares have been
issued and are fully paid up with 43 held in public hands within 
the meaning of paragraph 6 1 19 of the listing rules and with 57 
held privately
save as described under the relationship agreement and lockup
arrangements described below the company is not aware of any
agreements or control rights between shareholders that may result 
in restrictions on the transfer of securities or on voting rights
board of directors
the names and brief biographical details of the current directors and
identification of the board committees on which they sit are shown 
on page 20 all held office throughout the year and up to the date 
of this report except in the following instances
• graham matthews resigned on 1 october 2008 and
• gordon watling was appointed on 1 october 2008
directors’ report
corporate
governance 24 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
directors’ report continued
election and reelection of directors
the company’s articles of association contain provisions relating 
to the appointment and replacement of directors in particular they
require each director to seek election to office at the next annual
general meeting following their appointment and to seek reelection 
to office at no greater than threeyear intervals
gordon watling chief executive officer having been appointed
since the 2008 agm will retire and seek election to office at the
2009 agm david tilston nonexecutive director and chairman 
of the audit committee and tony illsley nonexecutive director and
chairman of the remuneration committee are the directors who have
volunteered to retire this year and being eligible will seek reelection
to office at the 2009 agm the board has no hesitation in
recommending messrs watling tilston and illsley back into office 
as the performance of these directors continues to be effective and
each of them continues to demonstrate their commitment to the role
the service agreements of the executive directors and the letters of
appointment of the nonexecutive directors are available for inspection
by shareholders at the company’s registered office during normal
business hours brief details are also included in the directors’
remuneration report on pages 31 to 34
directors’ interests
details of the directors’ beneficial and nonbeneficial interests
including those of their connected persons in the issued ordinary
share capital of the company at the beginning and end of the year
are set out below
31 march 1 april 
2009
2
2008
1
name number number
philip nolan
3
2018380 2018380
gordon watling 52500 52500
stephen crowther 481908 365148
sion kearsey
4
14240214 13812509
timothy bunting 344828 344828
tony illsley – –
david tilston 28466 14000
1
or date of appointment if later
2
the aggregate beneficial interest in ordinary shares held by the directors at 31 march 2009 was 126
3
philip nolan’s interest is held through hazelview limited a company controlled by him
4
sion kearsey also holds a nonbeneficial interest in 3091970 ordinary shares held by kelso place
asset management llp a principal shareholder and participant in the relationship agreement see
relationship agreement below of which he is a member
there have been no changes in the directors’ beneficial or non
beneficial interests between the yearend and 1 june 2009 the date
on which this report has been signed save as disclosed none of the
directors nor any person connected with a director has any interest 
in the share or loan capital of the company or any subsidiaries
details of the directors’ emoluments and interests in the ordinary 
share capital of the company which derive from their employment 
are set out in the directors’ remuneration report on pages 31 to 34
save as disclosed in this annual report at no time during the year 
did any director hold a material interest directly or indirectly in 
any contract of significance with the company or any undertaking
other than service agreements between executive directors and 
the company
directors indemnity arrangements
the company has purchased and maintained during the year and
intends to do so going forward directors’ and officers’ liability
insurance in respect of itself and its directors
major shareholders
at 1 june 2009 the company had been notified or was aware of
the following material interests of 3 or more in the ordinary share
capital of the company
number of  of 
ordinary shares voting rights
1
jonathan green 21595064 158
michael sherwood 21571370 158
sion kearsey director
2
14240214 104
john drinkwater
2
13812509 101
capital international inc 5620800 41
graham matthews former director 5132716 38
credit suisse securities europe limited 4346855 32
1 
total voting rights attaching to the issued share capital of the company comprising 136478580
ordinary shares each of £00005 nominal value
2 
john drinkwater and sion kearsey each also hold a nonbeneficial interest in the 3091970 ordinary
shares held by kelso place asset management llp a principal shareholder and participant in the
relationship agreement see relationship agreement below of which they are both members
additional shareholder information appears on page 71
relationship agreement
effective from 3 august 2007 the date on which the company was
admitted to the official list of the london stock exchange “listing”
john drinkwater jonathan green sion kearsey michael sherwood
and kelso place asset management llp together “principal
shareholders” entered into an agreement “relationship agreement”
to regulate the ongoing relationship between the company and the
principal shareholders the primary purpose of the relationship
agreement is to ensure that the company and its subsidiary
undertakings are capable of carrying out their business independently
of the principal shareholders and that transactions and relationships
with the principal shareholders are at arm’s length and on normal
commercial terms further details are set out in the corporate
governance statement on pages 27 to 30
lockup arrangements
the company each of the directors the senior managers and the
selling shareholders all as defined in the ipo prospectus at listing
have entered into certain lockup arrangements under the underwriting
agreement the undertakings given and which remain in existence
include inter alia an undertaking from the management selling
shareholders not to offer or sell any ordinary shares in the company
for a period of 36 months following listing subject to a partial
relaxation of this restriction after the first and second anniversaries 
of listing
corporate governance
the company is committed to high standards of corporate governance
its application of the principles of good governance in respect of the
combined code for the year under review is described in the
corporate governance statement on pages 27 to 30 25 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
corporate
governance
the statement of directors’ responsibilities in respect of this annual
report and the financial statements appears on page 35
political and charitable donations
at the 2008 agm shareholders gave authority for the company 
to make political donations and incur political expenditure up to a
maximum aggregate sum of £100000 as a precautionary measure
in light of the wide definitions contained in the political parties elections
and referendums act 2000 while these authorities have not been
used a similar authority covering a four year period will be sought
from shareholders at the 2009 agm no political donations were
made during the year 2008 nil and it is proposed to maintain the
group’s policy going forward of not making contributions to any
political party
no charitable donations were made during the current or prior year
policy and practice on payment of suppliers
the group is committed to maintaining a sound commercial relationship
with its suppliers consequently the policy of the company is to agree
terms of payment with a supplier as part of the terms and conditions of
contract negotiations which govern each business transaction payment
is then made pursuant to such terms provided that the goods and
services have been supplied in accordance with the agreed contract
at 31 march 2009 the normal trade creditors of the group and
company represented 76 days of annual purchases 2008 66 days
employee share incentive plan
the company has in place for its executive directors and employees
the sepura 2008 longterm incentive plan “ltip” under which awards
were granted for the first time during the year details of this share
plan and the old share option plan an enterprise management
incentive “emi” qualifying share option scheme which is closed 
to new entrants can be found in the directors’ remuneration report
and note 27 to the financial statements on pages 31 to 34 and page
56 respectively
at the 2008 agm shareholders approved the introduction of a
savingsrelated share option scheme based on hmrc guidelines
to be operated initially in the uk “sharesave scheme” this incentive
plan which is targeted at encouraging shareownership amongst
sepura employees was successfully launched in september 2008
and further invitations under the sharesave scheme are intended to 
be made annually
the following table outlines any impact of a change of control
prescribed in the rules of each of the company’ share incentive plans
change of control
provisions contained
within the share effect on performance
share incentive plan incentive plan rules vesting condition
old share option plan no none not applicable
ltip yes acceleration pro rata testing
pro rata
to service
sharesave scheme yes acceleration not applicable
pro rata to
accumulated
savings
related party transactions
details of related party transactions with directors other than their
remuneration during the year are set out in note 33 to the financial
statements on page 61
going concern
after making due enquiry and having considered the group’s budget
for the coming year together with outline projections through to 2012
both of which have been formally approved by the board the
directors confirm they have a reasonable expectation that the group
and the company have adequate resources to continue in operational
existence for the foreseeable future consequently the going concern
basis has been applied in preparing the financial statements for the
year ended 31 march 2009
2009 agm
the annual general meeting of the company will be held at 1200
noon on tuesday 21 july 2009 at the offices of goldman sachs
international peterborough court133 fleet street london ec4a 2bb
a separate circular comprising a letter from the chairman notice 
of meeting explanatory notes and a replypaid form of proxy
accompanies this annual report
the notice of the 2009 agm specifies deadlines for the exercise 
of voting rights and the appointing of a proxy or proxies to vote in
relation to the resolutions to be proposed at the meeting all proxy
votes will be counted and the numbers for against or withheld the
latter of which is not a vote at law in relation to each resolution will
be announced at the meeting and via a regulatory information service
and published on the company’s website at wwwsepuracom
auditors
separate resolutions to reappoint pricewaterhousecoopers llp 
as auditors of the company and to authorise the directors to 
determine their remuneration will be proposed at the 2009 agm 
the reappointment of pricewaterhousecoopers llp has been
recommended to the board by its audit committee and
pricewaterhousecoopers llp has indicated their willingness 
to remain in office
disclosure of information to auditors
each of the directors of the company at the time when this report 
was approved confirmed that
• so far as the director is aware there is no relevant audit information
needed by the company’s auditors in connection with preparing
their report of which the company’s auditors are unaware and
• he has taken all the steps that he ought to have taken as a director
in order to make himself aware of any relevant audit information
needed by the company’s auditors in connection with preparing
their report and to establish that the company’s auditors are aware
of that information
this confirmation is given and should be interpreted in accordance
with the provisions of s234za of the companies audit investigations
and community enterprise act 2004 26 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
additional takeover directive disclosures
where not provided previously in this report the following provides
the additional information required for shareholders as a result of the
implementation of the takeover directive into english law and section
922 of the companies act 2006
• there are no agreements between the company and its directors 
or employees providing for compensation on loss of office or
employment whether through resignation purported redundancy 
or otherwise that would occur because of a takeover bid
• the company has entered into various agreements in the ordinary
course of business many with local governments and government
organisations around the world some of these either by their nature
or value may represent significant agreements and generally as
with the company’s standard terms and conditions of business do
provide for a right of termination upon a change in control of the
company national security and commercial sensitivity prevent
disclosure of the details of any individual agreements and
• save as otherwise disclosed above there are no other significant
agreements to which the company is a party that take effect alter
or terminate upon a change of control following a takeover bid
on behalf of the board
stephen crowther chief financial officer
1 june 2009
directors’ report continued 27 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
introduction
the sepura plc board of directors “board” believes that its
participation in an established investment market carries significant
responsibility to manage the company transparently and in a manner
appropriate to a successful business
accordingly the board is committed to high standards of corporate
governance and business integrity in order to maintain the trust of
investors and other stakeholders in the company this is demonstrated
by the fact that since being admitted to the official list of the london
stock exchange on 3 august 2007 “listing” the board has established
the operating structure and procedures described below with a view 
to complying with the recommendations of the combined code on
corporate governance published by the financial reporting council
in june 2006 “combined code”
compliance
this corporate governance statement together with the directors’
report and the directors’ remuneration report sets out how the
company has applied the principles of good governance contained 
in the combined code and where it has not complied explains the
reasons why for the year ended 31 march 2009
the board’s view is that throughout the year under review it complied
with the combined code except as follows
• a code of business conduct and ethics including a confidential
reporting system was approved by the board in march 2009 and
is in the process of being rolledout across the group – it will form
an integral part of the company’s internal control process a11 
and c34
• tim bunting one of the nonexecutive directors is not considered 
to be independent pursuant to the combined code the board has
considered and determined otherwise as explained below under
board balance and independence a31 and
• while the performance of the board its committees and the
chairman were assessed and acted upon during the year 
as reported below under performance reviews and directors’
development the individual performance of the directors was 
not assessed as they had not yet been in office for one complete
financial year – this was achieved at 31 march 2009 such
individual assessments will be undertaken during 2009 a6 1
the board
the group is directed and controlled by the board which discharges
its responsibilities by providing leadership and support within a
framework of prudent and effective controls that enables risks and
uncertainties to be identified assessed and managed it sets the
company’s strategic aims ensures that the necessary financial and
human resources are in place and reviews management performance
the board also defines the group’s values and standards ensures 
that its obligations to shareholders are understood and met and 
works closely with the operating management to achieve the group’s
objectives all members of the board take collective responsibility 
for the group’s performance
the board currently has seven members comprising a nonexecutive
chairman philip nolan two executive directors gordon watling
chief executive officer and stephen crowther chief financial
officer and four other nonexecutive directors sion kearsey tim
bunting tony illsley and david tilston the board considers that all the
directors are able to devote sufficient time and attention to their board
duties and responsibilities biographies of the directors are set out on
page 20 including details of their other nonsepura commitments
details of all changes in the board’s composition during the year
ended 31 march 2009 are set out in the directors’ report on 
pages 23 to 26
the board has adopted a formal schedule of matters specifically
reserved for its decision which include the group’s strategy internal
controls and risk management business plan and annual operating
budget major investments and capital projects accounting policies
dividend policy shareholder communications material litigation the
board structure operating procedures composition and succession
remuneration policy and the remuneration of the nonexecutive
directors save for the chairman
in relation to nonreserved board matters these have been delegated
to three principal committees within clearly defined terms of reference
their remits together with the composition of each committee which
has not changed since listing are reviewed annually by the board
the current terms of reference for the audit remuneration and
nominations committees are available on the company’s website 
at wwwsepuracom a brief resumé of the role of each of these
committees appears later in this statement
the directors have access to the advice and services of the company
secretary whose appointment and removal may only be effected by
the board the company secretary who also acts as secretary to
each committee is responsible for information flow to the board
facilitating the induction and professional development assistance of
the directors as required ensuring compliance with board procedures
and applicable laws and regulations and advising the board on
governance matters while stephen crowther held office as both
chief financial officer and company secretary during the year 
an experienced interim company secretary acted in this position
throughout the year carol nunn a qualified chartered secretary took
up the permanent position as company secretary on 11 may 2009
directors have the right to request that any concerns they may have 
are recorded in the appropriate board or committee minutes and
these are circulated for comment before being formally approved at
the next relevant meeting there is also an agreed procedure by which
directors may take independent professional advice relating to their
duties at the company’s expense if required and within certain limits
no such advice was taken by any director during the year
the board meets regularly to review the affairs and trading 
progress of the group if and when required meetings in addition 
to the scheduled meetings are held either in person or by telephone
conference the board’s intention is  to meet at least nine times 
each year
the attendance of board and committee members at scheduled
meetings held during the year is shown below
audit remuneration nomination
board committee committee committee
11meetings 3meetings 4meetings 1meeting
philip nolan
1
11 – 4 1
1
sion kearsey 11 – – 1
timothy bunting 10 2 – 1
tony illsley 11 3 4
1
–
david tilston 11 3
1
4
gordon watling
2
6 – ––
stephen crowther 11 – – –
1
denotes chairman status
2
appointed 1 october 2008 and in post for six scheduled board meetings
the top line meeting number in brackets represents the maximum
number of scheduled meetings during the year which the director 
as a member of the board or committee could attend
corporate governance statement 
corporate
governance 28 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
corporate governance statement continued
in addition a number of unscheduled board and committee 
meetings were held during the year to review and issue formal
approvals or to deal with matters of a routine or administrative nature
which did not require full attendance to that end a bid committee
was established during the year with a formal remit to help facilitate
the review and determination of bid proposals outside the normal
course of business and outside of those matters specifically reserved
for the board’s decision
where a director is absent full documentation for the meeting is
issued to them and their views sought in advance – briefings are
provided subsequent to the meeting as appropriate
irrespective of their membership all nonexecutive directors are
entitled to attend committee meetings and the executive directors 
and members of management also regularly attend the same at the
invitation of the chairman of the respective committee
board balance and independence
the board believes that its current structure of two executive directors
and five nonexecutive directors is appropriate and represents the
correct balance of skills and experience necessary to manage the
business and the company in an effective and successful manner 
and ensure that a proper balance of power is maintained without one
person having unfettered powers of decision making this is particularly
important given the company’s maturing status in the public investment
arena all the directors bring strong judgement to bear on the board’s
deliberations and decision making process
as required by the combined code the board has considered the
independence of its nonexecutive directors and determined that four
of its five nonexecutive directors are independent in both character
and judgement and that the chairman was independent at the time 
of his appointment to that position sion kearsey is not deemed to be
independent arising from his major shareholding in the company and
his being a principal shareholder and participant in the relationship
agreement see relationship agreement below and the directors’
report on pages 23 to 26
in respect of tim bunting he was previously vicechairman of
goldman sachs international the company’s joint sponsor and 
a major shareholder until 2006 when he left that organisation 
at no time during his employment with goldman sachs was tim
bunting involved either directly or indirectly with the company’s
relationship or business dealings with goldman sachs consequently
the board regards tim bunting as independent for the purpose of 
the combined code he is also the board’s designated senior
independent director
the role of the chairman and chief executive
the roles of the chairman and chief executive are separated with 
a clear division of responsibility at the head of the company having
been established and set out in writing the chairman is primarily
responsible for managing the board facilitating the effective contribution
of all directors for ensuring effective communication with shareholders
and for making sure that all board members are aware of the views 
of major investors
the chief executive together with the chief financial officer has
been delegated appropriate responsibilities for the effective leadership
of the senior management team in the daytoday running of the
business for carrying out agreed strategy and for implementing
specific board decisions relating to the group’s operations
during the year the chairman held both formal and informal
discussions with the nonexecutive directors without the executive
directors being present
board committees
remuneration committee tony illsley chairman
the remuneration committee comprises three nonexecutive directors
and meets at least twice a year and otherwise as necessary it advises
the board on the company’s remuneration strategy and determines
on behalf of the board and within its agreed remuneration framework
the individual remuneration package and conditions of employment 
of each of the executive directors the senior management team and
the chairman
no director is involved in deciding his own remuneration whether
determined by the committee or in the case of other nonexecutives
by the board
the directors’ remuneration report on pages 31 to 34 includes 
a more detailed description of the role and activities of the
remuneration committee
nominations committee philip nolan chairman
the nominations committee comprises three nonexecutive directors
and meets at least once a year it is responsible for evaluating the
balance of skills knowledge and experience of the directors
reviewing the composition and structure of the board in the light of the
same and for making recommendations to the board on retirements
and appointments of additional and replacement directors including
succession planning
during the period under review and led by the chairman the
committee initiated a process to recruit a new chief executive officer
having received notice of an intention to retire from that post from
graham matthews the then incumbent a firm of executive search
consultants was retained to identify and help assess potential internal
and external candidates for that position as a result of this rigorous
process and based on a recommendation from the nominations
committee it having applied objective and meritrelated criteria only
gordon watling previously chief operations officer was appointed
to the board as chief executive officer on 1 october 2008
audit committee david tilston chairman
the audit committee comprises three nonexecutive directors and
meets at least three times a year with the external auditors together
with various representatives of the executive and finance management
teams it also meets privately with the external auditors on a regular
basis the committee
• is chaired by david tilston who has recent significant and relevant
financial experience
• is responsible for recommending the appointment review and
remuneration of the external auditors and has authority to pre
approve their engagement for both audit and permitted nonaudit
services within an agreed framework
• annually assesses the independence objectivity and effectiveness 
of the external auditors against specific criteria
• reviews the external audit process and postaudit findings
• reviews the annual and interim financial statements the group’s
accounting policies and procedures and its financial control
environment and 
• monitors the group’s system of internal controls including financial
operational and compliance risk management 29 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
election and reelection of directors
the company’s articles of association require that new directors
appointed by the board must submit themselves for election by
shareholders at the next annual general meeting following their
appointment the company’s articles also require that all directors
stand for reelection at intervals of not more than three years
accordingly gordon watling who was appointed a director since
the 2008 agm will seek election to office at the 2009 agm
messrs tilston and illsley will each retire from office on a voluntary
basis and being eligible have put themselves forward for reelection
at the 2009 agm the board can confirm that the performance 
of these directors continues to be effective and that each of them
continues to demonstrate commitment to the role
performance reviews and directors’ development
an internally run evaluation of the board’s performance and that of 
its committees led by the chairman and of the performance of the
chairman led by the senior independent director was completed
during the year the appraisal questionnaires used were wideranging
and for the board and committee performance based on the process
and questions outlined in the combined code the appraisal outputs
were used to highlight strengths and weaknesses and revealed that the
overall performance was effective a number of areas for improved
effectiveness and opportunities to develop board processes were
identified and these are being acted upon it is intended that a similar
evaluation will take place again this year including for the first time 
an evaluation of the performance of the individual directors
all the directors have been briefed on their duties responsibilities and
liabilities as directors of a uk listed company and on other relevant
legal developments in particular as regards the phased introduction 
of the companies act 2006 in addition the chairman has made
arrangements to ensure the directors have free access to the
company’s officers management and advisers and to visit the
company’s operations every director has access to appropriate
training as required subsequent to appointment
a tailored induction programme was created for gordon watling
upon his appointment to the board on 1 october 2008 as this 
was his first appointment to the board of a publicly listed company
this ongoing programme is being coordinated by the chairman 
and the company secretary
the board intends to establish other formal induction training and
development programmes for both new and existing directors it is the
responsibility of the chairman and the company secretary to ensure
that the directors update their skills and are provided with the
necessary resources to continue to do so
shareholder relations
the board is committed to maintaining good communications with
existing and potential shareholders based on the mutual understanding
of objectives and a comprehensive investor relations programme
underpins this commitment the chairman chief executive and chief
financial officer have regular dialogue with institutional shareholders
in order to develop an understanding of their views which is fed back
to and discussed with the board presentations are given to analysts
and investors covering the annual and interim results the company
secretary generally deals with questions from individual shareholders  
the results and results presentations together with all information
reported to the market via a regulatory information service press
releases and other shareholder information are published on the
company’s website at wwwsepuracom so as to be viewed and
accessed by all shareholders additional shareholder information 
is set out on page 71
the senior independent director tim bunting is available to shareholders
to discuss strategy governance or any concern they may have where
contact through the normal channels may have failed to resolve the
matter or for which such contact is inappropriate
all shareholders will have the opportunity to ask questions at the 2009
agm and at any other times by emailing or writing to the company
the chairmen of the audit nominations and remuneration committees
will be available at the annual general meeting to answer questions
relating to the responsibilities of those committees 
the notice convening the 2009 agm will be issued at least 20
working days in advance of the meeting and separate resolutions are
proposed on each substantially separate issue the results of the proxy
votes on each resolution will be published on the company’s website 
and publicly announced via a regulatory information service after 
the meeting
relationship agreement
effective from listing and as fully set out in the initial public offering
prospectus dated july 2007 “ipo prospectus” john drinkwater
jonathan green sion kearsey michael sherwood and kelso place
asset management llp  “principal shareholders” entered into an
agreement to regulate the ongoing relationship between the company
and the principal shareholders the primary purpose of the relationship
agreement is to ensure that the company and its subsidiaries are
capable of carrying out their business independently of the principal
shareholders and that transactions and relationships with the principal
shareholders are at arm’s length and on normal commercial terms
the relationship agreement provides inter alia as follows
• the principal shareholders have the right to appoint remove 
and reappoint one nonexecutive director to the board and its
nominations committee while they together hold an interest of 
15 or more in the company the principal shareholders’ current
nominee in this regard is sion kearsey who has considerable
knowledge and experience of the company’s business and 
market place
• the principal shareholders are obliged while they hold the right 
to appoint a nonexecutive director to comply with the financial
services authority’s model code and the company’s own share
dealing code of conduct in relation to any dealings in the
company’s securities
• subject to certain exceptions each of the principal shareholders
have agreed not to have any direct or indirect interest in any
business similar to that carried out by the company without first
seeking prior approval from the company
• a protocol to be observed in relation to any nonexecutive director
appointed by the principal shareholders to deal with the introduction
of new business and opportunities and any potential conflicts of
interest and
• the principal shareholders have the right to be provided with certain
confidential information while their interest in the company remains
at or greater than 15
in addition the principal shareholders have entered into an orderly
market agreement which limits the number of ordinary shares in 
the company which each of them may sell within specified periods 
of time
corporate
governance 30 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
corporate governance statement continued
internal controls
the board is ultimately responsible for the good standing of the
company the management of assets for optimum performance and 
for the operation of an effective system of internal control appropriate
to the business however it must be recognised that any control system
can provide only reasonable and not absolute assurance against
material misstatement or loss
internal control and risk management environment
daytoday operating and financial responsibility rests with senior
management and performance is closely monitored through the
operations management committee which meets on a weekly 
basis and is chaired by the chief executive
the following key elements comprise the present internal control
environment which has been designed to identify evaluate and manage
rather than eliminate the risks faced by the group in seeking to
achieve its business objectives the process is communicated through
various operational and financial control and procedure statements
• an organisation structure with clear lines of responsibility
• a comprehensive annual strategic and business planning process
• systems of control procedures and delegated authorities which
operate within defined guidelines and approval limits for capital 
and operating expenditure and other key business transactions 
and decisions
• a robust financial control budgeting and rolling forecast system
which includes regular monitoring variance analysis key
performance indicator reviews and risk and opportunity 
assessments at board level
• an experienced and commercially focused legal function that
supports the group’s bid and contracts’ management process and
• an ongoing risk management programme including a comprehensive
disaster recovery and business interruption plan see below
the audit committee has from time to time considered the need for a
separate internal audit activity and has again recently concluded that
in its opinion given the scale and nature of the group’s operations
this is not required
an “operational excellence” programme has been in place throughout
the group since 2007 and has been successful in helping to embed 
a culture of ownership and responsibility for business risk management
at operating level a risk committee comprising the senior management
team meets on a regular basis it’s remit is to identify assess and
qualify material business risks and to develop and monitor agreed
action plans including allocated responsibilities to help mitigate the
same a corporate risk register is presented to and reviewed by 
the audit committee twice a year
the internal control process described above which accords with 
the 2005 turnbull guidance on internal control has been in place
throughout the year and up to the date of approval of this 
annual report
the company has recently established a code of business conduct
and ethics including a whistleblowing policy to enable employees 
to raise public interest issues on a confidential basis which is
scheduled to be launched in the first quarter of the current financial
year it will form an integral part of the group’s internal control 
process going forward
an enhanced risk management strategy targeted at contextualising
and prioritising risks in terms of the company’s ability to achieve its
overall goals and objectives was approved by the board in march
2009 a transitional plan will be implemented over the course of 
the next six months under the direction of the quality and process
improvementrisk manager who reports into the chief executive
officer and has direct access to the audit committee chairman 
this more sophisticated measured and proactive approach to risk
management should help ensure that from both a topdown and
bottomup perspective all key areas of the risk management spectrum
as well as all potentially significant corporate risks are identified 
early and appropriately managed
review of effectiveness
the audit committee on behalf of the board has reviewed the
effectiveness of the systems of internal controls and risk management 
in place during the year taking account of any material developments
since the financial year end using the processes set out above and
can confirm that no significant failings or weaknesses were found corporate
governance
compliance
this report has been prepared in accordance with schedule 7a 
of the companies act 1985 “act” as amended by the directors’
remuneration report regulations 2002 “regulations” and the listing
rules of the financial services authority it also describes how the
board has applied the principles of good corporate governance in
relation to executive remuneration as set out in the combined code
2006 the act requires the auditors to report on certain parts of the
report and state whether in their opinion those parts have been
properly prepared in accordance with the act the report has therefore
been divided into two separate sections for unaudited information
section a and audited information section b in accordance with
the regulations this report has been approved by the board and 
the remuneration committee “committee” and will be submitted to
shareholders for approval at the annual general meeting to be held
on 21 july 2009
section a unaudited information
remuneration committee composition and responsibilities
the committee membership throughout the period under review
comprised tony illsley as committee chairman philip nolan and
david tilston all of whom are independent nonexecutive directors
the committee operates under the delegated authority of the board
and its terms of reference which are reviewed annually are available
on the company’s website at wwwsepuracom attendance at
committee meetings and the number of meetings held during the year
are set out in the corporate governance statement on page 27 
the company secretary acts as the committee secretary
within an agreed framework and broad policy the committee is
responsible for determining and agreeing with the board the overall
remuneration strategy and individual remuneration packages and
contractual arrangements for the executive directors senior
management team members and the company chairman it aims to
develop and recommend remuneration strategies which support
operating performance and reward sustained longer term
performance appropriately the committee approves the design of
and targets for performancerelated incentives and oversees the
operation of and awards under all incentive schemes it also provides
guidance to the executive directors on major policy issues affecting the
remuneration of other group employees
advisors
the committee has appointed hewitt new bridge street “hnbs” 
a firm of independent remuneration consultants as its principal 
advisor and makes use of various published surveys to help determine
appropriate remuneration levels other than in relation to advice on
remuneration hnbs has provided no other services to the company 
the committee has also received advice and assistance from the
company secretary and members of the board including its chief
executive officer and chief financial officer each of whom attended
meetings of the committee as required at the invitation of the committee
chairman none of these persons took part in decisions relating
directly to their own remuneration
remuneration policy
the committee’s policy for the remuneration of the executive directors
and senior management team members is based on the following
three key principles
1 to provide remuneration in a form and amount that is sufficient to
attract retain and motivate a senior management team of the
calibre and experience required to run the company successfully
2 to ensure that there is a strong linkage between reward and
corporate and individual performance to this end it is the
committee’s policy to set fixed pay at or below the median
benchmark but provide the opportunity to earn upper quartile
rewards for achieving and exceeding the group’s business plan
through variable performancelinked remuneration and
3 to provide alignment with shareholders’ interests by ensuring that a
significant proportion of the remuneration package is delivered in
the form of shares via the compulsory deferral of a portion of any
bonus earned and participation in the longterm incentive plan and
by encouraging the executive directors to build up a meaningful
holding of the company’s shares through the operation of a formal
shareholding guideline
consequently the committee structures executive remuneration in two
distinct parts i fixed remuneration comprising base salary benefits
and pension and ii variable performancerelated remuneration
provided through participation in the annual bonus and longterm
incentive plans
in line with the association of british insurers’ guidelines on responsible
investment disclosure the committee will ensure that the incentive
structure for executive directors and senior management will not raise
environmental social or governance “esg” risks by inadvertently
motivating irresponsible behaviour more generally with regard to the
overall remuneration structure there is no restriction on the committee
which prevents it from taking into account esg matters with the
committee also ensuring that the remuneration policy does not
encourage inappropriate operational risktaking
the group’s remuneration policy is reviewed regularly to ensure that 
it remains appropriate and recognises any key developments in
remuneration practice and corporate governance
the above policy was operated during the year under review and
there was no change in the balance between fixed and variable pay
during that period
remuneration for executive directors
the main components of the remuneration package for executive
directors are
basic salary
basic salary for each executive director is determined by the
remuneration committee taking into account the role responsibilities
performance and experience of the individual when setting basic
salary levels the remuneration committee takes into account market
data supplied by hnbs on salary levels for similar positions in
comparable companies and the pay and employment conditions
existing elsewhere in the business
a total remuneration benchmarking review looking at similar roles in
other uk listed companies was specifically undertaken by hnbs for
the committee in relation to the proposed appointment of gordon
watling as chief executive officer in place of graham matthews
who retired from that post on 1 october 2008
the current annual salaries for the chief executive officer and chief
financial officer are £225000 and £175000 gross respectively
there was no salary increase awarded during the period under review
except on gordon watling’s appointment as aforesaid in line with 
the same decision communicated to all employees across the group
a pay freeze has already been determined for the executive directors
in respect of their 1 july 2009 annual pay review salary reviews will
continue to be conducted on an annual basis
benefits
nonpension benefits comprise a car allowance life assurance and
introduced from 1 august 2008 private medical insurance cover
while the current range of benefits and their value are considered to
be broadly in line with those provided to executive directors in other
similarly sized listed companies they will nevertheless continue to be
reviewed and monitored annually
31 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
directors’ remuneration report  pensions
executive directors and other sepura employees are eligible to
participate in a defined contribution group personal pension plan 
the “gppp” operated by scottish life reflecting the importance the
committee places on performancelinked pay only modest company
contributions up to 6 of salary are made into the gppp subject to a
minimum level of contribution by the individual
annual bonus
the annual bonus plan is designed to drive and reward the shortterm
operating performance of the company which should in turn lead to
the generation of sustained longterm returns to shareholders
for the 20089 financial year the performance targets for the executive
directors under the annual bonus were linked to the company’s financial
performance representing 75 of the total bonus potential and personal
performance representing 25 financial performance was measured
by reference to a sliding scale of challenging operating profit targets
personal performance targets were linked to specific business and
personal objectives the maximum bonus potential for the executive
directors was capped at 100 of base salary and was only payable
for outstanding performance to ensure a further alignment of interest
between executive directors and shareholders any bonus paid was to
be in a mixture of cash 75 and deferred sepura shares 25 the
deferred shares together with any dividends received thereon would
be unconditionally released to participants after three years subject to
continued employment bonuses are not pensionable
no bonuses were subsequently awarded under this plan
the committee is currently reviewing the bonus arrangements to be
applied in 200910 should the outcome of this review be that the
bonus arrangements are to be different from those set out above full
disclosure of such changes will be set out in next year’s directors’
remuneration report it is not envisaged that overall bonus potential
will be increased for the forthcoming year
longterm incentive plan current
the sepura longterm incentive plan “ltip” together with the sepura
employee benefit trust allows executive directors and other employees
of the group to be granted a conditional award of shares that will
generally vest after three years subject to continued employment and
at least in the case of the executive directors performance conditions
the maximum value of shares granted to an individual is restricted to
150 of base salary in any financial year save that awards above
this limit may be made in exceptional circumstances and it is the
committee’s intention that all the awards including those granted to
below board executive level will be subject to suitably stretching
performance conditions over a threeyear period determined upon
award and disclosed in the next directors’ remuneration report 
the committee will seek independent justification as to the satisfaction
of the targets
as per the committee’s intention disclosed in last year’s remuneration
report an inaugural award under the ltip was made on 31 july 2008
to stephen crowther and certain senior management and management
team members – approximately 40 persons in total these awards
were made at 150 of base salary level for executive directors and
four members of senior management including gordon watling at that
time and all were subject to a stretching earnings per share “eps”
performance condition over the threeyear financial period to 2011 
of 152 pence per share for 25 vesting and 176 pence per share
for 100 vesting as part of his new remuneration package on being
appointed chief executive officer as above a further ltip grant was
made under the exceptional circumstances limit to gordon watling on
5 december 2008 bringing his total award in the year to 200 of
his base salary these were granted subject to the same eps
performance conditions as attached to his earlier award
the total number of sepura shares granted under the ltip during the
financial year under review was 2909583 representing 2 of the
company’s current issued share capital further details are set out in
note 27 to the financial statements on page 56
awards under the ltip may be satisfied through a mixture of either
market purchase or new issue shares to the extent that new issue
shares are used the plan will adhere to a 10 in 10 year dilution limit
the committee believes that it is beneficial for executives to build up
and retain a shareholding in the company for which they work and
introduced share ownership guidelines for the executive directors and
members of the senior management team at the same time as the
inaugural ltips were granted these encourage participants to hold
shares of at least equal value to their annual base salary it is intended
that these ownership levels will be attained within five years from the
guidelines becoming applicable to individuals and be achieved
through the acquisition of shares and the retention of shares awarded
under the company’s incentive plans
the committee will regularly review the operation of the company’s
share incentive arrangements to ensure they take due account of market
practice and the particular circumstances of the company such a
review is currently underway in respect of the committee’s consideration
of the appropriate ltip awards to apply to the executive directors and
senior management team members for the current financial year full
disclosure of the results of this review will be set out in next year’s
directors’ remuneration report
details of the executive directors’ interests in ltip awards and
outstanding share options are contained in the audited section b 
of this report
longterm incentive plan prelisting
prior to listing on the london stock exchange on 3 august 2007
“listing” the company had operated the sepura limited 2002
employees’ share option plan an enterprise management initiative
“emi” qualifying share option scheme “old share option plan”
during the year historical awards of share initiatives held by executive
directors under the old share option plan in the case of gordon
watling granted to him in his former position within the company
remained outstanding the old share option plan was closed upon
listing and the intention is that no further awards will be made under it
options were granted under the old share option plan for nil
consideration and vest by instalments over a 36 month period 
no performance conditions attach to exercise vested options are
exercisable at certain predetermined dates accordingly all vested
options presently outstanding are fully exercisable and customary 
goodbad leaver provisions exist
the delivery of sepura shares for vested and exercised share options
under the old share option plan will be satisfied through newly issued
shares which will not count towards the dilution limits contained in
the ltip
allemployee share incentives
shareholders approved at the 2008 agm the introduction of a
savingsrelated share option scheme “sharesave scheme” under
which a first invitation was made in september 2008 the sharesave
scheme is inland revenue approved and of standard design with all
uk employees including executive directors eligible to participate
any new shares subsequently issued in satisfaction of vested options
under the sharesave scheme will be included in the 10 in 10 years
dilution limit contained in the ltip further details on the company’s
current share incentive plans are provided in note 27 to the financial
statements on page 56
32 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
directors’ remuneration report continued corporate
governance
service agreements 
to take due account of market practice and to provide an appropriate
balance between the interests of shareholders the company and the
individual it is the committee’s general policy that all executive directors’
service agreements should be terminable on no more than twelve months’
notice by either party further details of the executive directors’ service
agreements which have no fixed term are summarised in the
table below
effective date of
notice period
service agreement from company from director
gordon watling 1 october 2008 12 months 12 months
stephen crowther 30 october 2003 6 months 6 months
the company is entitled to terminate gordon watling’s or stephen
crowther’s employment immediately without giving notice by making 
a payment in lieu of notice of 12 months or 6 months base salary
respectively there are no special terms as regards increased notice
periods or termination payments that apply on a change of control in
the company
in respect of graham matthews who retired as chief executive officer
and resigned from the board on 1 october 2008 and who tendered
his nine month contractual notice of termination from that same date
his employment officially terminated on 31 march 2009 during this
six month period in which mr matthews continued to provide services
to the board and the executive directors he continued to receive his
monthly remuneration package and upon cessation of employment he
received a lump sum payment in lieu of his residual threemonth notice
period entitlement 
save as above there are no special provisions for executive directors
or nonexecutive directors with regard to compensation in the event of
loss of office in the event of the employment of an executive director
being terminated by the company the committee would having
regard to the individual’s circumstances pay due regard to best
practice and the taking into account of the individual’s duty to mitigate
his loss
outside interests
executive directors may only accept external nonexecutive
appointments with the prior approval of the board and provided that
such appointments do not prejudice their ability to fulfil their executive
duties with the company whether an executive director is entitled to
retain any fees relating to such an appointment will be considered on
a casebycase basis mr watling and mr crowther do not presently
hold any such outside appointments
nonexecutive directors
the remuneration of the nonexecutive directors is reviewed
periodically by the board save for that of the company chairman
whose fees are reviewed and determined in his absence by the
committee in setting the fees for the nonexecutive directors the
board takes into account the time and responsibilities involved in the
role and the fee levels offered in comparable uk listed companies
the current annual nonexecutive fees comprise a base fee of
£50000 plus £5000 for each committee of which they are
a member
there was no change in either the fee structure of the nonexecutive
directors or in the fees of the chairman in 200809 and none are
proposed for 200910
the nonexecutive directors have each entered into letters of
appointment with the company details of which are set out below
the appointments are for a threeyear term but can be terminated at
any time on three months notice by either party the nonexecutive
directors are not eligible to participate in the company’s bonus
pension or ltip arrangements the fees for the nonexecutive directors
are paid in cash
unexpired term
approximate
effective date current months from
of letter annual fee 31 march
of appointment £ 2009
philip nolan 1 february 2007 200000 10
sion kearsey 1 july 2007 55000 15
timothy bunting 19 april 2007 60000 12
tony illsley 27 june 2007 60000 15
david tilston 1 july 2007 60000 15
the letters of appointment and service agreements of the directors are
available for inspection by shareholders at any time during normal
business hours at the company’s registered office
performance graph
the graph below shows the company’s performance measured by
total shareholder return compared with the performance of the
ftse smallcap index for the period from listing through to 31 march
2009 the ftse smallcap index has been chosen as a comparator
as it represents a broad equity index of which the company is a
constituent member
120
100
80
60
40
20
0
3 august 07
sepura ftse smallcap index
3 1 march 08 3 1 march 09
this graph shows the value by the 31 march 2009 of £100 invested in sepura on 3 august 2007 
the date of listing compared with that of £ 100 invested in the ftse smallcap on the same date 
33 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009 section b audited information for the financial year ended 31 march 2009
directors’ emoluments
the individual and total remuneration of the directors serving during the year ended 31 march 2009 was as follows
basic taxable pension 2009 2008
salary fees benefits contributions bonus total total
6
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
executive directors
gordon watling
1
113 – 4 6 – 123 –
stephen crowther 175 – 8 10 – 193 152
graham matthews
2
113 – 4 6 – 123 201
former directors ––––– 185
2
20
3
nonexecutive directors
philip nolan – 200––– 200 200
sion kearsey
4
– 29––– 29 13
timothy bunting
5
– 60––– 60 45
tony illsley
5
– 60––– 60 45
david tilston
5
– 60––– 60 45
total 401 409 16 22 – 1033 721
notes
1
gordon watling was appointed to the board as chief executive officer on 1 october 2008 and the remuneration details shown for him are from that date
2
graham matthews retired as chief executive officer and resigned from the board on 1 october 2008 his ninemonth notice of termination to the company was satisfied as to i continued remunerated services to the
board and the executive directors for six months ie through to his employment termination date on 31 march 2009 and ii a threemonth payment in lieu of his residual notice period entitlement made upon
termination his notice period payments comprising salary benefits and pension amounted to £185000 in total
3
malcolm quelch resigned from the board on 5 june 2007
4
sion kearsey became entitled to his original £20000 per annum flat fee with effect from 3 august 2007 his entitlement was varied on 1 january 2009 so as to align with the current fee structure for other non
executive directors see nonexecutive directors above
5
notwithstanding their individual date of appointment to the board see nonexecutive directors above messrs bunting illsley and tilston became entitled to their respective nonexecutive fee with effect from
1 july 2007
6
the total emoluments in respect of 2008 included pension contributions of £11000 and £8000 for graham matthews and stephen crowther respectively
directors’ interests in share incentives
at market
31 march exercise value
at lapsed exercised granted 2008 price on date
31 march during during during or date of date of per share of grant date first expiry
plan type
1
2009 the period the period the period appointment grant pence pence exercisable date
gordon watling old share
option plan 157500 – – – 157500
2
16 jul 07 000007 186 16 jul 08 16 jul 10
sharesave 16000 – – 16000 – 10 oct 08 60 75 1 nov 1 1 30 apr 12
ltip 300353
3
– – 300353 – 31 jul 08 nil
3
80 31 jul 1 1 31 jul 1 1
ltip 500000
3
– – 500000 – 05 dec 08 nil
3
39 05 dec 1 1 05 dec 1 1
stephen crowther old share
option plan – – 116760
4
– 116760 30 oct 03 000007 17 30 oct 06 30 oct 13
ltip 309187
3
– – 309187 – 31 jul 08 nil
3
80 31 jul 1 1 31 jul 1 1
notes
1
key to share plans brief explanations of which including any related performance conditions are included in the unaudited information section a of this report
– old share option plan sepura limited 2002 employees’ share option plan unapproved
– ltip longterm incentive plan
– sharesave uk savingsrelated share option scheme
2
the figures shown for gordon watling are as at his date of appointment to the board as chief executive officer on 1 october 2008 his outstanding options under the old share option plan vest and become
exercisable in onethird tranches on each anniversary of the date of grant
3
this relates to an award of performance condition shares under the ltip there is no exercise price payable upon vesting
4
awards under the old share option plan benefited from accelerated vesting upon the company’s stock exchange listing on 3 august 2007 the market price at the date of exercise was 55p per ordinary share
details of directors beneficial and nonbeneficial interests in the ordinary share capital of the company and which do not derive from their
employment are set out in the directors’ report on page 24
save as disclosed there have been no changes between the yearend and 1 june 2009 the date on which this report has been signed in the
directors’ interests in share incentives
the market price of the company’s ordinary shares on 31 march 2009 was £032 each and during the period under review the price
ranged from £030 to £100 per share
on behalf of the board
tony illsley
chairman remuneration committee
1 june 2009
34 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
directors’ remuneration report continued corporate
governance
the directors are responsible for preparing the annual report the
directors’ remuneration report and the group and parent company
financial statements in accordance with applicable law and regulations
company law requires the directors to prepare financial statements for
each financial year under that law the directors have prepared the
group financial statements in accordance with international financial
reporting standards “ifrs” as adopted by the european union and
the parent company financial statements in accordance with applicable
law and united kingdom accounting standards united kingdom
generally accepted accounting practice the group and parent
company financial statements are required by law to give a true and
fair view of the state of affairs of the company and the group and of
the profit or loss of the group for that period
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 that the group financial statements comply with ifrss as
adopted by the european union and with regard to the parent
company financial statements state that applicable uk accounting
standards have been followed subject to any material departures
disclosed and explained in the financial statements and
• prepare the group and parent company financial statements on the
going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the
group will continue in business in which case there should be
supporting assumptions or qualifications as necessary
the directors confirm that they have complied with the above
requirements in preparing the financial statements
the directors are responsible for keeping proper accounting records
that disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial
position of the group and the company and to enable them to ensure
that the financial statements and the directors’ remuneration report
comply with the companies act 1985 and as regards the group
financial statements article 4 of the ias regulation they are also
responsible for safeguarding the assets of the group and the company
and hence for taking reasonable steps for the prevention and detection
of fraud and other irregularities
the directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the
company’s website legislation in the uk governing the preparation
and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in
other jurisdictions
each of the directors whose names and functions are listed on
page 20 confirms that to the best of their knowledge
• the group financial statements which have been prepared in
accordance with ifrss as adopted by the european union give 
a true and fair view of the assets liabilities financial position and
profit of the group and
• the business reviews on pages 4 to 19 includes a fair review of 
the development and performance of the business and the position
of the business and the position of the group together with a
description of the principal risks and uncertainties that it faces 
35 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
statement of directors’ responsibilities we have audited the group financial statements of sepura plc for 
the year ended 31 march 2009 which comprise the consolidated
income statement the consolidated statement of changes in equity the
consolidated balance sheet the consolidated statement of cash flows
and the related notes these group financial statements have been
prepared under the accounting policies set out therein
we have reported separately on the parent company financial
statements of sepura plc for the year ended 31 march 2009 and on
the information in the directors’ remuneration report that is described
as having been audited
respective responsibilities of directors and auditors
the directors’ responsibilities for preparing the annual report and the
group financial statements in accordance with applicable law and
international financial reporting standards “ifrss” as adopted by the
european union are set out in the statement of directors’ responsibilities
our responsibility is to audit the group financial statements in
accordance with relevant legal and regulatory requirements and
international standards on auditing uk and ireland this report
including the opinion has been prepared for and only for the
company’s members as a body in accordance with section 235 of the
companies act 1985 and for no other purpose we do not in giving
this opinion accept or assume responsibility for any other purpose or to
any other person to whom this report is shown or into whose hands it
may come save where expressly agreed by our prior consent in writing
we report to you our opinion as to whether the group financial
statements give a true and fair view and whether the group financial
statements have been properly prepared in accordance with the
companies act 1985 and article 4 of the ias regulation we also
report to you whether in our opinion the information given in the directors’
report is consistent with the group financial statements the information
given in the directors’ report includes that specific information presented
in the business  financial review principal risks  uncertainties
key performance indicators and the corporate social responsibility
statement that is crossreferred from the principal activity and business
review research and development and financial instruments sections of
the directors’ report
in addition we report to you if in our opinion we have not received
all the information and explanations we require for our audit or if
information specified by law regarding director’s remuneration and
other transactions is not disclosed
we review whether the corporate governance statement reflects the
company’s compliance with the nine provisions of the combined code
2006 specified for our review by the listing rules of the financial
services authority 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 other information contained in the annual report and
consider whether it is consistent with the audited group financial
statements the other information comprises only the performance
highlights sepura in focus our customers the chairman’s statement
the strategic update chief executive’s qa inspiring innovation
satisfying customer needs the business  financial review principal
risks  uncertainties key performance indicators our board  senior
management the corporate social responsibility statement the
directors’ report the corporate governance statement the statement
of directors’ responsibilities that part of the directors’ remuneration
report that is unaudited and all of the other information listed on the
contents page we consider the implications for our report if we
become aware of any apparent misstatements or material
inconsistencies with the group financial statements
our responsibilities do not extend to any other information
basis of audit opinion
we conducted our audit in accordance with international standards
on auditing uk and ireland issued by the auditing practices board
an audit includes examination on a test basis of evidence relevant
to the amounts and disclosures in the group financial statements it also
includes an assessment of the significant estimates and judgements
made by the directors in the preparation of the group financial
statements and of whether the accounting policies are appropriate
to the group’s circumstances consistently applied and adequately
disclosed
we planned and performed our audit so as to obtain all the
information and explanations which we considered necessary in order
to provide us with sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that
the group financial statements are free from material misstatement
whether caused by fraud or other irregularity or error in forming our
opinion we also evaluated the overall adequacy of the presentation of
information in the group financial statements
opinion
in our opinion
• the group financial statements give a true and fair view in
accordance with ifrss as adopted by the european union of the
state of the group’s affairs as at 31 march 2009 and of its profit
and cash flows for the year then ended
• the group financial statements have been properly prepared in
accordance with the companies act 1985 and article 4 of the
ias regulation and
• the information given in the directors’ report is consistent with the
group financial statements
pricewaterhousecoopers llp
chartered accountants and registered auditors
cambridge
1 june 2009
36 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
independent auditors’ report to the members of sepura plc 37 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
group financial
statements
2009 2008
before non non before non non
recurring recurring recurring recurring
items
1
items
1
total items
1
items
1
total
note £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
revenue 6 74100 – 74100 68105 – 68105
cost of sales 35214 – 35214 32193 – 32193
gross profit 38886 – 38886 35912 – 35912
selling marketing and distribution costs 9352 397 9749 8770 – 8770
research and development costs 10020 1727 11747 7821 – 7821
administrative expenses 6500 378 6878 4675 2141 6816
other losses gains 20 7 – 7 28 – 28
operating profit 7 13007 2502 10505 14674 2141 12533
financial income 10 364 – 364 654 – 654
financial expense 11 869 – 869 1200 – 1200
net financial expense 505 – 505 546 – 546
profit before income tax 12502 2502 10000 14128 2141 11987
income tax expense 12 1970 701 1269 3319 – 3319
profit for the year
attributable to equity holders 10532 1801 8731 10809 2141 8668
earnings per share p
basic 13 77 13 64 84 16 68
diluted 13 76 13 63 79 16 63
1
nonrecurring items comprise restructuring costs impairment charges and costs associated with the company’s listing as set out in note 7
the results above relate to continuing operations
the accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements
consolidated income statement 38 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
share retained
capital earnings total
note £’000 £’000 £’000
at 1 april 2007 – 13249 13249
excess tax on share option scheme – 6455 6455
net income recognised directly in equity – 6455 6455
profit for the year – 8668 8668
total recognised income and expense – 15123 15123
bonus issue 56 56 –
employee share option scheme value of employee services – 204 204
issue of shares 12 – 12
at 31 march 2008 68 28520 28588
excess tax on share option scheme – 34 34
net income recognised directly in equity – 34 34
profit for the year – 8731 8731
total recognised income and expense – 8765 8765
employee share option scheme value of employee services – 209 209
equity dividends paid 14 – 1733 1733
at 31 march 2009 68 35761 35829
the accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements
consolidated statement of changes in equity 39 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
2009 2008
note £’000 £’000
assets
noncurrent assets
intangible assets 15 22747 18762
property plant and equipment 16 4208 4270
deferred tax asset 17 2411 3596
total noncurrent assets 29366 26628
current assets
inventories 18 10196 8497
trade and other receivables 19 21414 16134
derivative financial instruments 20 – 28
cash and cash equivalents 21 15771 15597
total current assets 47381 40256
total assets 76747 66884
liabilities
current liabilities
borrowings 22 2952 2952
derivative financial instruments 20 7 –
finance lease liabilities 23 – 273
trade and other payables 24 22177 18959
income tax payable 479 429
provisions 25 1734 327
total current liabilities 27349 22940
noncurrent liabilities
borrowings 22 7378 10330
trade and other payables 24 5382 4418
provisions 25 809 608
total noncurrent liabilities 13569 15356
total liabilities 40918 38296
net assets 35829 28588
shareholders’ equity
ordinary share capital 26 68 68
retained earnings 35761 28520
total shareholders’ equity 35829 28588
the financial statements on pages 37 to 61 were approved by the board and authorised for issue on 1 june 2009 and are signed on its
behalf by
gordon watling stephen crowther 
chief executive officer chief financial officer
the accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements
consolidated balance sheet 2009 2008
note £’000 £’000
cash generated from operations 28 19343 24252
income taxes paid – 813
net cash generated from operating activities 19343 23439
cash flow from investing activities
interest received 364 654
purchase of property plant and equipment 1755 2467
capitalised development costs 10861 10380
purchase of other intangible assets 1175 1241
proceeds on disposal of property plant and equipment 10 –
net cash used in investing activities 13417 13434
cash flow from financing activities
repayment of borrowings 3000 1500
interest paid 821 1324
dividends paid to shareholders 1733 –
repayment of capital element of finance leases 198 201
issue of share capital – 12
net cash used in financing activities 5752 3013
net increase in cash and cash equivalents 174 6992
cash and cash equivalents at 1 april 15597 8605
cash and cash equivalents at 31 march 21 15771 15597
the accompanying notes are an integral part of these consolidated financial statements
consolidated statement of cash flows
40 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009 41 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
1 incorporation
sepura plc “company” is a public limited company incorporated and domiciled in england and wales and whose ordinary shares 
of £00005 each are traded on the main market of the london stock exchange the company’s registered office is radio house 
st andrew’s road cambridge cb4 1gr england
the company’s only subsidiary undertakings are sepura distribution limited “sepura distribution” a company registered in england and
wales and sepura deutschland gmbh “sepura germany” a company incorporated in germany both of these companies are wholly
owned subsidiary undertakings of the company the company sepura distribution and sepura germany are collectively referred to below
as the“group”
2 the business of the group
the principal activity of the company is the design development and distribution of secure digital radios for use on public safety networks
operating on the terrestrial trunked radio “tetra” standard sepura germany’s principal activity is the provision of marketing and promotional
services for the company in the german market sepura distribution undertook the same activity as the company prior to becoming dormant on
31 december 2008
3 basis of preparation
these consolidated financial statements have been prepared in accordance with international financial reporting standards “ifrs” as adopted
by the european union international financial reporting interpretations committee “ifric” interpretations and with those parts of the
companies act 1985 applicable to companies reporting under ifrs the financial statements of the parent company which have been
prepared in accordance with uk gaap are presented separately following these consolidated financial statements
the consolidated financial statements have been prepared on the historical cost basis as modified by the revaluation of financial assets and
liabilities including derivative financial instruments at fair value through profit or loss
4 summary of significant accounting policies
interpretations and amendments to published standards effective in the financial statements
for the purposes of the preparation of these consolidated financial statements the group has applied all standards and interpretations that are
effective for accounting periods beginning on or after 1 april 2008
the following interpretations to published standards are effective for accounting periods beginning on or after 1 january 2008
• ifric 11 “ifrs 2 group and treasury share transactions” provides guidance on whether sharebased transactions involving treasury shares
or group entities should be accounted for as equitysettled or cashsettled sharebased payment transactions this has not had any impact on
the group’s accounts and
• ifric 12 “service concession arrangements” and ifric 14 “defined benefit pension schemes” are not relevant to the group
standards interpretations and amendments to published standards that are not yet effective
certain new standards amendments and interpretations to existing standards have been published that are mandatory for the group’s
accounting periods beginning on or after 1 january 2009 or later periods and which the group has not adopted early
• ias 23 revised “borrowing costs”
• ias 27 amended “consolidated and separate financial statements”
• ias 32 revised “financial instruments”
• ias 39 revised “financial instruments recognition and measurement eligible hedged items”
• ifrs 2 amended “sharebased payment”
• ifrs 3 revised “business combinations”
• ifrs 8 “operating segments”
• ifric 13 “customer loyalty programmes”
• ifric 15 “agreements for the construction of real estate”
• ifric 16 “hedges of a net investment in a foreign operation”
• ifric 17 “distributions of noncash assets to owners”
• ifric 18 “transfers of assets from customers”
the directors do not anticipate that the adoption of these standards and interpretations where relevant in future periods will have a material
impact on the group’s financial statements with the exception of ifrs 8 which may impact the way in which the group’s segmental reporting is
presented as it adopts a management segment approach to such reporting ifrs 8 is not effective until the group presents its results for the year
ending 31 march 2010 and a detailed impact assessment will be performed based on the group’s management reporting structure at that time
basis of consolidation
the group financial statements incorporate the financial statements of the company and its subsidiary undertakings subsidiary undertakings 
are all entities including special purpose entities over which the group has the power to govern the financial and operating policies generally
accompanying a shareholding of more than one half of the voting rights the existence and effect of potential voting rights that are currently
exercisable or convertible are considered when assessing whether the group controls another entity subsidiary undertakings are fully
consolidated from the date on which control is transferred to the group they are deconsolidated from the date that control ceases
intercompany transactions balances and unrealised gains on transactions between group companies are eliminated unrealised losses are also
eliminated but are considered an impairment indicator of the asset transferred accounting policies of subsidiary undertakings have been
changed where necessary to ensure consistency with the policies adopted by the group
notes to the group financial statements
for the year ended 31 march 2009 42 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
4 summary of significant accounting policies continued
segment reporting
a reportable geographical segment is a distinguishable component of the group engaged in providing products and services within a particular
economic environment that are subject to risks and returns that are different from those of segments operating in other economic environments
a reportable business segment is a distinguishable component of the group engaged in providing products and services that are subject to risks
and returns that are different from those of other business segments the group’s primary format for segmental reporting is by geographical
segment which is determined by reference to the geographical location of the group’s customers
revenue
revenue is recognised to the extent that it is probable that economic benefits will flow to the group and the revenue can be reliably measured
the following specific recognition criteria must also be met before revenue is recognised
i sale of goods
revenue is recognised when the significant risks and rewards of ownership of the goods have passed to the buyer and revenue can be reliably
measured the group typically recognises goods revenue from the sale of goods on despatch or on receipt of goods by the customer
depending on the incoterms applicable
in a multiple element arrangement some of the elements either hardware or software may remain undelivered or incomplete revenue may be
recognised on the fair value of the elements delivered providing the following conditions are fulfilled
• the element of the product delivered has value to the customer on a stand alone basis and is thus a separately identifiable component within
the arrangement
• the fair value can be reliably attributed to the undelivered element in the event of bundling where undelivered components may not have a
separate invoiced sales price then the fair value of the revenue deferred can be calculated by comparing the underlying product list price of
each element of the bundle compared to the overall bundle price and
• delivery of the undelivered element is probable and under the control of the company ie the technical risk attached to the delivery of the
component is acceptable
if any of these conditions are not met then all revenue under the arrangement is deferred until either the contract is complete or uncertainty over
any of these conditions is removed
ii warranties
as noted above the group assesses whether any of its contracts contain elements which operate independently of other contractual elements
and which should therefore be ‘unbundled’ and accounted for separately the group offers as standard to all customers a product warranty
package generally product warranty packages which are offered as standard with all products are not separately priced are offered for
periods in line with the group’s standard terms of supply at the time of sale and are not considered to be an element capable of ‘unbundling’
in such cases provision is made at the time of sale for the estimated cost of providing the warranty cover based on historical information on 
the cost and frequency of repairs required to the group’s products the group also has backtoback warranties of between twelve and fifteen
months with the majority of its subcontract manufacturers to limit risk on product warranties amounts due from manufacturers under backtoback
warranties are not recognised until the manufacturer has confirmed a reimbursement will be made
in certain cases “enhanced” warranty packages of a longer than standard period are sold to customers as separate products in such cases
the fair value of the revenue associated with the warranty cover is amortised over the underlying period of the warranty cover the fair value of
the revenue is determined by the directors based on market information including the sales price when enhanced warranties are sold on a
standalone basis
iii longterm contracts
from time to time a customer will require a product or product features which have yet to be fully developed and released in those instances
revenue and cost of sales from contracts involving complex longterm software and hardware development are recognised on the percentage 
of completion basis based on costs incurred to date when the outcome of the contract can be estimated reliably the criteria for this are that
total contract revenue and the costs to complete the contract can be estimated reliably it is probable that the economic benefits associated 
with the contract will flow to the group and that the stage of contract completion can be measured when the group is not able to meet 
those conditions the policy is to recognise revenue equal to costs incurred to date to the extent that such costs are expected to be recovered
expected losses are recognised in full at the point at which they are anticipated if the amount of the revenue recognised exceeds the amounts
invoiced to customers the excess amount is recorded in amounts recoverable on contracts within debtors if the amounts invoiced exceed the
revenue recognised the excess amount is recorded as deferred revenue or payments in advance
pensions
the group provides access to a stakeholder pension scheme a defined contribution plan into which employees may elect to contribute via
salary deduction the group makes contributions to the scheme in proportion to the amount contributed by the employees costs are recognised
in the income statement in the period to which they relate
employee share schemes
the group issues equitysettled sharebased payments to its eligible employees equitysettled sharebased payments are measured at fair value
at the date of grant the fair value determined at the grant date of the equitysettled sharebased payments is expensed in the income statement
on a straightline basis over the vesting period based on the group’s estimate of the number of shares that will eventually vest the corresponding
entry is recorded in retained earnings fair value is measured using the blackscholes model the expected life used in the model has been
adjusted based on management’s best estimate for the effects of nontransferability exercise restrictions and behavioural considerations 43 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
4 summary of significant accounting policies continued
financial income
financial income comprises interest receivable on cash balances and deposits and is recognised on an accruals basis
financial expense
financial expense comprises interest payable on credit facilities and is calculated using the effective interest rate method in accordance with
ias 39 “financial instruments recognition and measurement”
income tax
income tax on the result for the year comprises current and deferred tax income tax is recognised in the income statement except to the extent
that it relates to items recognised directly in equity in which case it is recognised in equity
current tax is the expected tax payable on the taxable income for the period using tax rates enacted or substantively enacted at the balance
sheet date and any adjustment to tax payable in respect of previous periods
deferred tax is provided using the balance sheet liability method providing for temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets
and liabilities for financial reporting purposes and the amounts used for taxation purposes the amount of deferred tax provided is based on the
expected manner of realisation or settlement of the carrying amount of assets and liabilities using tax rates enacted or substantively enacted at
the balance sheet date
the carrying amount of deferred tax assets is reviewed at each balance sheet date and reduced to the extent that it is no longer probable that
sufficient taxable profits will be available to allow all or part of the asset to be recovered deferred tax assets and liabilities are offset when
there is a legally enforceable right to set off current tax assets against current tax liabilities and when they relate to income taxes levied by the
same taxation authority and the group intends to settle its current tax assets and liabilities on a net basis
dividends
dividends declared on the company’s equity share capital are recognised as a liability when an irrevocable obligation to pay the dividends is
established in the case of interim dividends this arises when the dividend is paid while for final dividends this is the date at which the dividends
are approved at a shareholders’ general meeting
property plant and equipment
property plant and equipment are stated at historical cost less accumulated depreciation and impairment losses historical cost includes
expenditure that is directly attributable to the acquisition of the items including where relevant the cost of subcontractors direct labour and 
a proportion of attributable overheads subsequent costs are included in the asset’s carrying amount or recognised as a separate asset as
appropriate only when it is probable that future economic benefits associated with the item will flow to the group and the cost of the item can be
measured reliably all other repairs and maintenance are charged to the income statement during the financial period in which they are incurred
depreciation is provided to write off the cost less the estimated residual value of property plant and equipment depreciation for certain
manufacturing plant and machinery is calculated by reference to the number of units produced and for all other assets by equal annual
instalments over their estimated useful economic lives as follows
• plant and machinery 37 years
• it equipment 35 years
no depreciation is charged on assets in the course of construction as their useful economic life has yet to commence on completion the assets
are transferred to the appropriate class of property plant and equipment and depreciation is charged at the above rates
intangible assets
the group undertakes research and development activities with a view to developing new products and product functionality expenditure on
research activities undertaken with the prospect of gaining new technical knowledge and understanding is recognised in the income statement
when incurred
costs incurred on development projects relating to the design and testing of new or improved products are recognised as intangible assets
when it is demonstrable that
• it is technically feasible that the project can be completed and will result in a product that is available for use or sale
• it is intended that the project will be completed and the asset will be used or sold
• the resultant asset can be used or sold
• the resultant asset will generate future economic benefits
• there are sufficient resources to complete the development and use or sell the asset and
• the expenditure attributable to the project can be measured reliably
development expenditures that do not meet these criteria are recognised as an expense in the income statement as they are incurred
development costs previously recognised as an expense are not recognised as an asset in a subsequent period
the expenditure capitalised includes cost of materials subcontractors direct labour and a proportion of attributable overheads capitalised
development expenditure is stated at cost less accumulated amortisation and impairment losses amortisation is provided to write off the cost 
of the development expenditure by equal annual instalments over the products’ estimated useful life of three years commencing from the time 
the asset is available for use the amortisation of capitalised development expenditure is included in research and development costs in the
income statement 44 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
4 summary of significant accounting policies continued
software and similar licences
externally purchased software licences are capitalised on the basis of the costs incurred to acquire and bring to use the specific software the
group also purchases licences to exploit thirdparty intellectual property rights licences are recorded at the historical cost to acquire the licence
less accumulated amortisation and impairment losses and are amortised over the life of the licence or where the licence is indefinite their
estimated useful life which is generally three years
impairment
the carrying value of noncurrent assets is reviewed whenever events or changes in circumstances indicate that the carrying value may not be
recoverable to determine whether there is any indication of impairment if any such indication exists the asset’s recoverable amount is estimated
intangible assets initially recognised during the current annual period which are not yet available for use are also tested for impairment by
reference to the asset’s recoverable amount at the balance sheet date
an impairment loss is recognised for the amount by which the asset’s carrying amount exceeds its recoverable amount the recoverable amount
of property plant and equipment and capitalised software and other licences is the greater of their fair value less costs to sell and value in use
the recoverable amount of capitalised development costs is its value in use in assessing value in use the estimated future cash flows over the
remaining useful economic life of the asset in question are discounted to their present value using a pretax discount rate that reflects current
market assessments of the time value of money and the risks specific to the asset
inventories
inventories including work in progress are stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value being estimated selling price in the ordinary
course of business less applicable variable selling costs in general cost is determined on a first in first out basis and includes transport and
handling costs where necessary provision is made for obsolete slow moving and defective inventories
cash and cash equivalents
cash and cash equivalents comprise cash in hand and call deposits with maturity of less than three months
leases
finance leases which transfer to the group substantially all the risks and benefits incidental to ownership of the leased item are capitalised at the
inception of the lease at the fair value of the leased property or if lower at the present value of the minimum lease payments lease payments are
apportioned between the finance charges and reduction of the lease liability so as to achieve a constant rate of interest on the remaining balance
of the liability finance charges are charged directly against income
capitalised leased assets are depreciated over the shorter of the estimated useful life of the asset or the lease term unless there is reasonable
certainty that ownership will be retained at the end of the lease term in which case they are depreciated over their useful economic life
leases where the lessor retains substantially all the risks and benefits of ownership of the asset are classified as operating leases operating
lease payments are recognised as an expense in the income statement on a straightline basis over the lease term
where the group enters into a finance sale and leaseback the transaction is essentially a financing operation and therefore no profit or loss is
recognised on the sale instead any gain or loss arising on the sale reflecting the difference between the sale price and the previous carrying
value is deferred and amortised over the lease term
restructuring provisions
provisions are recognised when the group has a present legal or constructive obligation as a result of a past event it is probable that the
group will be required to settle that obligation and the amount can be estimated reliably provisions are measured at the best estimate of the
expenditure required to settle the obligation at the balance sheet date and are discounted to present value where the effect is material
warranty provisions
provision is made at the time of sale for the estimated cost of providing warranty cover which cannot be separated from the sale of the
underlying goods the provision is calculated based on historical information on the cost and frequency of repairs required to the group’s
products the group also has backtoback warranties of between twelve and fifteen months with the majority of its subcontract manufacturers 
to limit risk on liabilities arising from manufacturing defects this backtoback warranty has not been netted from the provision the warranty
provision has not been discounted
share capital
ordinary shares are classified as equity incremental costs directly attributable to the issue of new shares or options are shown in equity as a
deduction net of tax from the proceeds
financial instruments
i treasury policies and management
the group’s treasury policies are designed to ensure that adequate financial resources are available for the development of the group’s
businesses
ii trade receivables
trade receivables are recognised initially at fair value and subsequently held at amortised cost using the effective interest rate method less
provision for impairment trade receivables are first assessed individually for impairment or collectively where the receivables are not individually
significant where there is no objective evidence of impairment for an individual receivable it is included in a group of receivables with similar
credit risk characteristics and these are collectively assessed for impairment movements in the provision for doubtful debts are recorded in the
income statement 45 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
4 summary of significant accounting policies continued
iii trade payables
trade payables are recognised initially at fair value and subsequently held at amortised cost trade payables are classified as current liabilities
unless the group has an unconditional right to defer settlement of the liability for at least twelve months after the balance sheet date
iv borrowings
borrowings are recognised initially at fair value net of transaction costs incurred borrowings are subsequently stated at amortised cost any
difference between the proceeds net of transaction costs and the redemption value is recognised in the income statement over the period of the
borrowings using the effective interest rate method borrowings are classified as current liabilities unless the group has an unconditional right to
defer settlement of the liability for at least twelve months after the balance sheet date
v forward contracts
forward currency contracts are classified under ias 39 “financial instruments recognition and measurement” as “at fair value through profit 
or loss” they are recognised initially and remeasured throughout the contract’s life at fair value with changes in fair value taken to the
income statement
foreign currencies
i functional and presentational currency
the presentational currency of the group is pounds sterling £ the functional currency of each group entity is that of the primary economic
environment in which it operates
ii transactions and balances
transactions denominated in foreign currencies have been translated into sterling at the actual rates of exchange ruling at the date of the
transaction monetary assets and liabilities denominated in foreign currencies have been retranslated at rates ruling at the balance sheet date
all exchange gains and losses are taken to the income statement in the year in which they arise
iii group companies
the results and financial position of the group’s overseas subsidiary undertaking are translated into sterling as follows
• assets and liabilities at each balance sheet date presented are translated at the closing rate at the date of that balance sheet
• income and expenses are translated at average exchange rates and
• all resulting exchange differences are recognised as a separate component of equity
5 critical accounting estimates and assumptions
judgements and estimates
the preparation of financial information in conformity with ifrs requires the directors to make critical accounting estimates and judgements that
affect the application of policies and reported amounts of assets and liabilities income and expenses an assessment of the impact of these
estimates and judgements on the financial statements is set out below
the estimates and associated assumptions are based on historical experience and various other factors that are believed to be reasonable under
the circumstances the results of which form the basis of making the judgements about carrying values of assets and liabilities that are not readily
apparent from other sources actual results may differ from these estimates
the estimates and underlying assumptions are reviewed on an ongoing basis revisions to accounting estimates are recognised in the period in
which the estimate is revised if the revision affects only that period or in the period of the revision and future periods if the revision affects both
current and future periods
the estimates and assumptions that have a significant risk of causing a material adjustment to the carrying amount of assets or liabilities within
the next financial year are discussed below
assessment of fair value of undelivered elements in multiple element arrangements
the company enters into a number of multiple element arrangements where typically an element of software which is not fundamental to the
effective operation of the product is delivered after the date of delivery of the initial hardware and software in such circumstances where the
fair value of the undelivered elements can be estimated by management revenue equal to this fair value is separately carved out and deferred
until such items have been delivered the remainder of the revenue is recognised on initial delivery if it was not possible to reasonably estimate
the fair value of undelivered elements then the entire revenue in relation to that multiple arrangement would need to be deferred
assessing whether development costs meet the criteria for capitalisation
the point at which development costs meet the criteria for capitalisation is critically dependent on management’s judgement of the point at which
technical feasibility is demonstrable
the carrying amount of development costs on projects which are not yet available for sale or use was
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
development cost not available for sale or use 9929 10277 46 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
5 critical accounting estimates and assumptions continued
assessing the useful economic lives of capitalised development costs
management have estimated the useful economic lives of capitalised development costs as three years based on historical knowledge of the 
life cycle of the group’s products and technology
if this estimate was reduced from three to two years net assets would be reduced by £1873000 at 31 march 2009 and £5875000 
at 31 march 2008 with a corresponding impact on the group’s reported profit of £175000 and £2459000 respectively
warranty provisions
warranty provision estimation is based on historical information on the cost and frequency of repairs required to the group’s products if
management’s estimates of such costs were increased by 10 then net assets would be reduced by £102000 at 31 march 2009 and
£68000 at 31 march 2008
fair values for employee share schemes
the establishment of fair values in respect of employee services received in exchange for share options requires the exercise of judgement and
estimation in respect of the share price at the date of grant for options granted prior to the listing of the company’s shares when there was no
active market in the company’s shares the life of the option the expected volatility of the underlying shares and the expected dividend yield
if management’s estimation of the fair value of share options at the date of grant were increased by 10 then profit for the year ended
31 march 2009 would be reduced by £15000 and profit for the year ended 31 march 2008 would be reduced by £15000 net assets
would be unaffected by this change
6 segment reporting
the group has a single business segment being the design development and distribution of secure digital radios for use on public safety
networks operating on the tetra standard distribution is either directly to endusers in the uk or through our international distribution partners 
to endusers overseas
the group’s primary reporting format is by geographical segment namely uk and international which is determined by reference to the
geographical location of the group’s customers and reflects the distribution channels referred to above the segments are organised and
managed separately according to the sales focus of the management involved with each segment representing a strategic business unit that
serves a different market all revenue is derived from external operations arising in the uk and there is no intersegmental revenue
with the exception of its sales offices the group does not maintain operating facilities overseas as a result all of the group’s assets and
liabilities are located in the uk with the exception of those associated with its overseas sales offices inventories in transit to or from customers 
or suppliers and test and manufacturing equipment located at suppliers overseas in order to provide further information on the activities of the
group the following tables allocate the results assets and liabilities of the group between the following segments
• uk
revenues and costs incurred in servicing enduser customers in the uk together with those assets and liabilities exclusively associated with
those customers
• international
revenues and costs incurred in servicing our international distribution partners and their enduser customers around the world together with
those assets and liabilities exclusively associated with those customers such as inventory lines designed for specific frequencies used by a
particular overseas market and
• unallocated
costs assets and liabilities which do not relate exclusively to either specific uk or international customers or relate to the operations of the
group as a whole for example many individual inventory lines may be utilised by either uk or international customers and are categorised
as “unallocated” until such time as they are modified for the exclusive use of or are despatched to a particular customer 47 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
6 segment reporting continued
segment reporting details are provided below
united
kingdom international unallocated total
for the year ended 31 march 2009 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
income statement information
segmental revenue 28108 45992 – 74100
segmental gross profit 16797 25637 3548 38886
operating profit 15904 21145 26544 10505
net financial expense – – 505 505
income tax expense – 47 1222 1269
profit for the year 15904 21098 28271 8731
balance sheet information
segment assets
intangible assets – 1767 20980 22747
property plant and equipment – 587 3621 4208
deferred tax asset – – 2411 2411
inventories – 1559 8637 10196
trade and other receivables 7563 13185 666 21414
cash and cash equivalents – 200 15571 15771
7563 17298 51886 76747
segment liabilities
borrowings – – 10330 10330
derivative financial instruments – 7 – 7
trade and other payables 9189 3638 14732 27559
income tax payable – 47 432 479
provisions 1754 789 – 2543
10943 4481 25494 40918
other segment information
balance sheet items
capital expenditure
– property plant and equipment – 225 1530 1755
– intangible fixed assets – 1575 9590 11165
profit and loss items
depreciation 12 287 1507 1806
amortisation – 163 5786 5949
impairment of intangible assets – – 1231 1231
sharebased payment charge – – 209 209
impairment of inventories – – 553 553 48 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
6 segment reporting continued
united
kingdom international unallocated total
for the year ended 31 march 2008 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
income statement information
segmental revenue 26839 41266 – 68105
segmental gross profit 17604 21442 3134 35912
operating profit 16578 16977 21022 12533
net financial expense – – 546 546
income tax expense – – 3319 3319
profit for the year 16578 16977 24887 8668
balance sheet information
segment assets
intangible assets – 355 18407 18762
property plant and equipment 12 649 3609 4270
deferred tax asset – – 3596 3596
inventories – 1430 7067 8497
trade and other receivables 4381 10846 907 16134
derivative financial instruments – 28 – 28
cash and cash equivalents – 27 15570 15597
4393 13335 49156 66884
segment liabilities
borrowings – – 13282 13282
finance lease liabilities – – 273 273
trade and other payables 6125 2899 14353 23377
income tax payable – – 429 429
provisions 507 428 – 935
6632 3327 28337 38296
other segment information
balance sheet items
capital expenditure
– property plant and equipment 27 731 2070 2828
– intangible fixed assets – 146 12346 12492
profit and loss items
depreciation 15 82 1160 1257
amortisation – 165 4475 4640
sharebased payment charge 1 64 139 204
impairment of inventories – – 401 401 49 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
7 operating profit
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
operating profit is stated after charging crediting
cost of inventories recognised as an expense included in cost of sales 30779 27413
depreciation on property plant and equipment
– owned assets 1631 1082
– assets held under finance lease 175 175
– amounts included in capitalised development costs 546 359
loss on disposal of property plant and equipment 1 –
amortisation of intangible assets
– development costs 5575 4377
– software and similar licences 374 263
research and noncapitalised development costs excluding amortisation 4445 3444
operating lease rentals
– land and buildings 1025 898
– plant and machinery 30 37
auditors’ remuneration
– fees payable to the company’s auditors for the audit of the company and consolidated financial statements 50 47
– other services
– pursuant to legislation 24 23
– tax services 30 102
– all other nonaudit services including those incurred in connection with the company’s listing in 2008 24 401
trade receivables impairment 154 77
foreign exchange losses gains 120 1180
nonrecurring costs
impairment of intangible assets see note 15 1231 –
other restructuring costs see note 25 1271 –
admission costs including fees payable to the company’s auditors – 2141
8 employee numbers and costs
the average number of persons employed by the group including executive directors during the year analysed by category was as follows
2009 2008
number number
research and development 186 162
sales marketing and distribution 69 60
general and administration 22 22
production support 29 23
306 267
the aggregate costs of these employees were as follows
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
wages and salaries 15739 13219
social security costs 2215 1454
other pension costs 767 606
expense of share based payments 209 204
18930 15483
9 key management compensation and remuneration of directors
information on the remuneration of directors is given in those sections of the remuneration report described as having been audited and those
elements required by the companies act 1985 and the financial services authority form part of these financial statements the aggregate gains
made on the exercise of share options by directors during the year was £64000 2008 £10996000
the compensation of the five other “key management personnel” as defined within ias 24 was as follows
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
salaries and other shortterm employee benefits 566 644
aggregate gains made on the exercise of share options – 5862
expense of share based payments 74 135
640 6641
10 financial income
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
interest receivable and similar income on shortterm bank deposits 364 654 50 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
11 financial expense
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
interest payable on borrowings and credit facilities 861 1176
interest payable on finance leases 8 24
869 1200
12 income tax expense
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
current tax
income tax for the year 50 21
adjustments in respect of prior years – 205
total current tax 50 226
deferred tax
origination of temporary differences 1219 2720
impact of change in uk tax rate – 373
total deferred tax 1219 3093
total tax in income statement 1269 3319
factors affecting the tax charge for the year
the tax charge for both years is lower than the standard rate of corporation tax in the uk which is 28 2008 30 the differences are
explained below
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
tax reconciliation
profit before income tax 10000 11987
at standard rate of corporation tax in the uk 2800 3596
effects of
research and development enhanced expenditure 1601 672
expenses not deductible for tax purposes principally ipo costs in 2008 62 560
effect of overseas tax rates 8 5
exercise of employee share options – 748
remeasurement of deferred tax due to change in uk tax rate – 373
adjustments in respect of prior years – 205
total tax charge see above 1269 3319
effective tax rate 13 28
on 21 march 2007 the chancellor announced that with effect from 1 april 2008 the standard rate of uk corporation tax would reduce from
30 to 28  and deferred tax balances were therefore remeasured at this rate from that date
13 earnings per share
basic earnings per share has been calculated by dividing earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders by the weighted average number of
shares of the company for each period for diluted earnings per share the weighted average number of shares is adjusted to allow for the
conversion of all dilutive equity instruments
2009 2008
earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders £’000 8731 8668
number of shares
basic weighted average number of shares ‘000 136412 128036
effect of dilutive securities
employee incentive plans ‘000 1913 9350
diluted weighted average number of shares ‘000 138325 137386
basic eps p 64 68
diluted eps p 63 63
the group presents adjusted earnings per share figures which exclude the impact of nonrecurring costs incurred in the current and prior periods
adjusted earnings per share has been based on adjusted basic earnings for each financial period and on the same number of diluted weighted
average shares in issue as the gaap earnings per share calculation above 51 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
13 earnings per share continued
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders 8731 8668
restructuring costs net of tax 1801 –
ipo costs net of tax – 2141
earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders excluding restructuring and ipo costs 10532 10809
adjusted basic eps excluding restructuring and ipo costs p 77 84
adjusted diluted eps excluding restructuring and ipo costs p 76 79
the group also presents an adjusted earnings per share figure which excludes the capitalisation of rd costs together with associated
amortisation and net of uk corporation tax at the standard rate this adjusted earnings per share figure has been based on adjusted basic
earnings for each financial period and on the same number of diluted weighted average shares in issue as the gaap earnings per share
calculation above
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders excluding restructuring and ipo costs 10532 10809
reversal of capitalised rd and associated amortisation net of uk corporation tax at 28 2008 30 3806 4202
adjusted earnings attributable to ordinary shareholders excluding capitalised rd restructuring and ipo costs 6726 6607
adjusted diluted eps excluding capitalised rd restructuring and ipo costs p 49 48
14 dividends
the directors have proposed a final dividend in respect of the financial year ended 31 march 2009 of 085p per ordinary share or
£1163000 based on the ordinary shares in issue at 31 march 2009 the proposed dividend is subject to approval by shareholders and
has not been included as a liability in these financial statements
during the year the company paid an interim dividend of 042p per ordinary share totalling £573000 in respect of the financial year
ended 31 march 2009 and a final dividend in respect of the financial year ended 31 march 2008 of 085p per ordinary share totalling
£1160000
15 intangible assets
capitalisation of software
development and similar
costs licences total
£’000 £’000 £’000
cost
at 1 april 2007 17706 – 17706
additions 10380 2112 12492
at 31 march 2008 28086 2112 30198
additions 10861 304 11165
at 31 march 2009 38947 2416 41363
amortisation
at 1 april 2007 6796 – 6796
charge for the year 4377 263 4640
at 31 march 2008 11173 263 11436
charge for the year 5575 374 5949
impairment 1231 – 1231
at 31 march 2009 17979 637 18616
net book value
at 31 march 2009 20968 1779 22747
at 31 march 2008 16913 1849 18762
at 31 march 2007 10910 – 10910
during the year the group reviewed its portfolio of development projects and identified an alternative more cost effective approach on 
some projects which resulted in an impairment charge of £1231000 relating to the spend on these projects which is no longer of value to
the business 52 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
16 property plant and equipment
assets under plant and
construction machinery it equipment total
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
cost
at 1 april 2007 170 5458 656 6284
transfers 170 166 4 –
additions 609 1833 386 2828
disposals – – 5 5
at 31 march 2008 609 7457 1041 9107
transfers 609 583 26 –
additions 109 1433 213 1755
disposals – 76 11 87
at 31 march 2009 109 9397 1269 10775
accumulated depreciation
at 1 april 2007 – 3212 373 3585
charge for the year – 1065 192 1257
disposals – –55
at 31 march 2008 – 4277 560 4837
charge for the year – 1531 275 1806
disposals – 68 8 76
at 31 march 2009 – 5740 827 6567
net book value
at 31 march 2009 109 3657 442 4208
at 31 march 2008 609 3180 481 4270
at 31 march 2007 170 2246 283 2699
plant and machinery includes the following amounts where the group is a lessee under a finance lease
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
cost 846 846
accumulated depreciation 524 349
net book amount 322 497
capital expenditure which had been contracted for prior to the end of the year but had not been provided for in the financial statements
amounted to £25000 2008 £125000
17 deferred tax
the group’s deferred tax assets and liabilities relate to temporary differences in respect of
equity
intangible property settled other
fixed plant and total share temporary total
assets equipment liabilities losses options differences assets net
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
at 1 april 2007 3273 – 3273 – 3438 69 3507 234
recognised in income 1463 7 1470 8027 9642 8 1623 3093
recognised in equity
– arising on equity settled share options –––– 7020 – 7020 7020
– impact of change in uk tax rate thereon –––– 565 – 565 565
at 31 march 2008 4736 7 4743 8027 251 61 8339 3596
recognised in income 1136 – 1136 149 60 6 83 1219
recognised in equity
– arising on equity settled share options –––– 34– 34 34
at 31 march 2009 5872 7 5879 7878 345 67 8290 2411
deferred tax liabilities have been offset against deferred tax assets at 31 march 2009 as there is a legally enforceable right to offset current tax
assets and current tax liabilities within the same fiscal jurisdiction
the group’s deferred tax assets have been recognised in accordance with ias 12 as based on historical performance and future budgets the
directors believe that it is probable that there will be sufficient taxable profits against which the assets will reverse
on 21 march 2007 the chancellor announced that with effect from 1 april 2008 the standard rate of uk corporation tax would reduce from
30 to 28 and deferred tax balances at 31 march 2008 were therefore remeasured at that rate 53 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
18 inventories
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
raw materials 565 115
work in progress 3626 4271
finished goods and goods for resale 6005 4111
10196 8497
the following writedowns and obsolescence provisions were recognised in respect of inventories
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
charged in the year 553 401
provision at yearend 938 486
19 trade and other receivables
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
trade receivables 20188 15101
less provision for impairment of receivables 217 77
trade receivables net 19971 15024
other receivables 766 328
prepayments and accrued income 677 782
21414 16134
credit risk in relation to trade receivables
the group has some concentration of credit risk due to the influence of large contracts on its business albeit these contracts are directly or
indirectly via the group’s distribution partners largely with government agencies both in the uk and internationally to offset this risk the group
has implemented policies that require appropriate credit checks on potential customers before sales are made customer orders are checked
against preset requirements before acceptance and formal credit control procedures are applied subsequent to invoicing the customer letters 
of credit and payments in advance are also obtained from customers as appropriate
the group does not hold any security or other collateral in respect of its trade receivables and so was exposed to credit risk in respect of the net
trade receivables balance of £19971000 2008 £15024000 management believe that the credit quality of trade receivables which are
within the group’s typical payment terms of between 30 and 60 days is good with £2500000 2008 £1193000 being overdue but not
impaired at year end of these £2020000 2008 £705000 were overdue by less than 30 days there are no trade receivables
balances which would otherwise be past due but have had their terms renegotiated at any reporting date
an impairment provision is maintained in respect of the full amount owed by specific customers which were more than 120 days overdue and
where recoverability of the debt was considered uncertain
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
at 1 april 77 –
utilised in year 14 –
charged to the income statement 154 77
at 31 march 217 77
foreign exchange risk in relation to trade receivables
the carrying amounts of the group’s trade receivables are denominated in the following currencies
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
sterling 7014 4297
us dollar 86 184
euro 12871 10543
total 19971 15024
the group’s overall foreign exchange risk is explained in note 31 “financial instruments” 54 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
20 derivative financial instruments
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
forward foreign exchange contract held for trading 7 28
these forward foreign exchange contracts were taken out to hedge euro receivables of p55m 2008 p57m outstanding at the end of the
year they do not meet the criteria under ias 39 for hedge accounting and are hence classified as “held for trading” the group’s foreign
exchange risk is explained in note 31 “financial instruments”
21 cash and cash equivalents
the denomination and interest rate risk profile of the group’s cash and cash equivalents is as follows
2009 2008
cash at cash at
bank and shortterm bank and shortterm
in hand deposits total in hand deposits total
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
sterling 380 13893 14273 – 13742 13742
us dollar 18 – 18 171 – 171
euro 1480 – 1480 1684 – 1684
total 1878 13893 15771 1855 13742 15597
variable rate 053 046 465 410
deposit accounts represent amounts placed on shortterm deposit on the money markets through accounts held at aa1 to aa3rated banks
2008 aaarated the effective interest rate on deposit accounts was 28 2008 47 the group’s overall interest rate risk is explained 
in note 31 “financial instruments”
22 borrowings
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
bank borrowings are repayable as follows
within one year 2952 2952
in the second year 2952 2952
in the third to fifth year inclusive 4426 7378
10330 13282
less amounts due for settlement within 12 months shown under current liabilities 2952 2952
amount due for settlement after 12 months 7378 10330
the balances above are shown net of issue costs of £170000 2008 £218000 which are being amortised over the life of the loan agreement
on 27 october 2006 the group entered into a £30000000 multicurrency term loan and revolving facilities agreement with a floating
interest rate of 15 over libor £1 5000000 was drawn down against the facility on 27 october 2006 and is repayable in 60 equal
quarterly instalments commencing in december 2007 the unused facility of £15000000 expires on1 1september 2012
the borrowings are secured by a fixed and floating charge over the group’s assets the group created a debenture dated 14 june 2002
updated on 27 october 2006 in favour of ge capital commercial finance limited with fixed and floating charges over all the property and
assets of the business the group has a supplemental charge over intellectual property dated 14 june 2002 in favour of ge capital
commercial finance limited with charges over all intellectual property rights owned by the group and the goodwill attached to these rights
there was no liability under the charges at either reporting date
on 22 november 2006 the group entered into a base rate cap arrangement with a maturity date of 31 december 2009 with a protected
amount of £7500000 and a rate cap of 6 subsequent to the end of the year the group entered into a further cap arrangement which
protects the outstanding balance on a reducing basis as capital is repaid at a rate of 325 consequently the group is exposed to fair
value interest rate risk in respect of its bank borrowings
there is no material difference between the fair values of the bank borrowings and their carrying amounts 55 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
23 finance lease liabilities
the group had the following minimum lease payments under its outstanding finance leases
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
amounts payable within one year – 206
future finance charges – 8
loss on disposal and repurchase of financial assets amortised over the course of the finance lease – 75
amount due for settlement within 12 months – 273
the lease was secured on the asset to which it related
24 trade and other payables
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
trade payables 11947 8654
other taxation and social security 249 1532
accruals and deferred income 9620 8602
payments in advance 361 171
22177 18959
noncurrent
deferred revenue 5382 4418
noncurrent deferred revenue relates to nonstandard warranty package revenues which are amortised over the underlying period of the
warranty cover
at the end of the year the group had entered into supply agreements under which the group has minimum contractual purchase commitments of
£5295000 2008 £5889000 during the three month period subsequent to the year end no loss is expected to be incurred in respect of
these contracts
foreign exchange risk in relation to trade payables
the carrying amounts of the group’s trade payables are denominated in the following currencies
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
sterling 2607 1154
us dollar 369 189
euro 8968 7307
other currencies 3 4
total 11947 8654
the group’s overall foreign exchange risk is explained in note 31 “financial instruments”
25 provisions
restructuring warranty total
£’000 £’000 £’000
at 1 april 2008 – 935 935
charged to the income statement 1271 1008 2279
utilised in year 140 531 671
at 31 march 2009 1131 1412 2543
less amounts due for settlement within 12 months shown under current liabilities 1131 603 1734
amount due for settlement after 12 months – 809 809
restructuring provision
during the year the group undertook a major review of its internal operations resulting in a restructuring to improve efficiency and streamline
costs a provision was made during the year of £13m to cover redundancy and related costs
warranty provision
a warranty provision is made at the time of sale for the estimated cost of providing standard warranty cover which cannot be separated from
the sale of the underlying goods the provision is calculated based on historical information regarding the cost and frequency of repairs required
to the group’s products warranty cover is typically provided over a period of one to five years the group also has backtoback warranties of
between twelve and fifteen months with the majority of its subcontract manufacturers to limit risk on liabilities arising on manufacturing defects 56 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
26 share capital
2009 2008
number £ number £
authorised
ordinary shares of £00005 each 400000000 200000 400000000 200000
allotted calledup and fully paid
ordinary shares of £00005 each 136478580 68239 136353140 68177
during the year the following changes occurred in the company’s issued share capital
2009 2008
number £ number £
at 1 april 136353140 68177 800000 80
bonus issue –– 559200000 55920
5to1 share consolidation –– 448000000 –
exercise of options under employee share option scheme 125440 62 24353140 12177
at 31 march 136478580 68239 136353140 68177
on 18 july 2007 the authorised share capital of the company was increased from £100 to £200000 by the creation of 1999000000
ordinary shares of £00001 each on the same day a bonus issue of 699 new ordinary shares of £00001 each for each ordinary share
of £00001 held was made followed by a share consolidation on the basis of one new ordinary share of £00005 for five ordinary shares
of £00001 each increasing the issued share capital of the company to 112000000 ordinary shares
27 share based payments
share options have been granted to directors and employees under the following schemes
i sepura limited 2002 employees’ share option plan
in july 2002 the company established the sepura limited emi share option plan that entitled employees to purchase shares in the entity under
the government’s enterprise management initiative “emi” scheme the scheme was closed to new employees joining the group after
1 october 2005 save for one individual award made in july 2007
ii long term incentive plan
the group launched its long term incentive plan for senior executives and management in july 2008 which will vest in the event that certain
performance targets in relation to the results for the year ended 31 march 2011 are met in addition to the original grant on 31 july 2008 
a further grant was made to gordon watling upon his appointment as chief executive officer further details are set out in the directors’
remuneration report on pages 31 to 34
iii 2009 employee saye scheme
following shareholder approval at the 2008 agm the company launched an allemployee saye scheme in september 2008
movements in the total number of share options outstanding and their relative weighted average exercise prices are as follows
2009 2008
weighted weighted
average exercise number average exercise number
price in £ per share of options price in £ per share of options
at 1 april 00000007 1132880 00001 180904
impact of bonus issue and share consolidation
1
–– – 25145656
granted 02240000 4648227 00000007 210000
forfeited –
2
85394 00000007 50540
exercised 00000007 125440 00000007 24353140
at 31 march 01872776 5570273 00000007 1132880
1
the number of shares to be issued under options granted prior to the changes in the company’s share capital described in note 26 above were adjusted by a factor of 140 as part of those changes so that the
number of shares to be issued for each ordinary share under option increased by 699 ordinary shares in relation to the bonus issue and decreased by 560 ordinary shares in relation to the 5to1 share
consolidation the exercise price was reduced by a factor of 140 so that the total consideration payable remains the same
2
not applicable for awards under the ltip scheme 57 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
27 share based payments continued
the outstanding options may be analysed as follows
2009 2008
weighted weighted
average exercise number average exercise number
price in £ per share of options price in £ per share of options
vested and exercisable 00000007 902440 00000007 973980
unvested 02234 4667833 00000007 158900
5570273 1132880
share options outstanding at each reporting date have the following expiry date and exercise prices
2009 2008
expiry date exercise price in £ per share number number
1 october 2013 00000007 – 116760
1 october 2014 00000007 9240 15540
1 october 2015 00000007 840700 843080
1 october 2017 00000007 157500 157500
31 july 2018 –
1
2824189 –
14 october 2018 060 1738644 –
5570273 1132880
1
not applicable for awards under the ltip scheme
the weighted average remaining contractual life of the outstanding options was 8 years and 11 months 2008 7 years and 7 months
the fair value of services received in return for share options granted are measured by reference to the fair value of share options granted the
estimate of the fair value of the services received is measured based on the blackscholes model the significant inputs into the model for each
grant during the year and the prior year were
sepura limited
ltip saye saye additional ltip emi plan
date of grant 31 july 15 october 15 october 1 december 16 july 
2008 2008 2008 2008 2007
share price at grant date £085 £052 £052 £039 £116
exercise price – £060 £060 – £00000007
number of employees 40 38 164 1 1
shares under option 2409583 464852 1273792 500000 210000
vesting period 36 months 60 months 36 months 36 months 36 months
expected volatility expressed as standard 
deviation of expected share price returns 40 40 40 40 40
expected option life 39 months 63 months 39 months 39 months 36 months
risk free interest rate
based on national government bonds 50 50 50 50 55
dividend yield 15 15 15 15 15
fair value per option £085 £016 £011 £039 £116
due to the fact that the company did not list until august 2007 the expected volatility has been estimated based on the historical volatility of
comparable listed companies share options are granted under a service condition such conditions are not taken into account in the fair value
measurement of the services received there are no market conditions associated with the share option grants
the group recognised an expense of £209000 2008 £204000 in relation to equitysettled share based payments during the year 58 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
28 cash generated from operations
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
profit before income tax 10000 11987
adjustments for
depreciation charges 1806 1257
amortisation charges 5949 4640
impairment 1231 –
equity settled share based payment charge 209 204
loss on disposal of fixed assets 1 –
loss gain on derivative financial instruments 35 28
financial income 364 654
financial expense 869 1200
cash generated from operations before movements in working capital 19736 18606
increase in inventories 1699 2536
increase decrease in trade and other receivables 5355 3850
increase in trade and other payables 5053 4097
increase in provisions 1608 235
movements in working capital 393 5646
cash generated from operations 19343 24252
29 reconciliation of cash flows to movements in net funds debt
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
net increase in cash and cash equivalents 174 6992
repayment of borrowings 3000 1500
repayment of finance lease liabilities 198 201
changes in net funds resulting from cash flows 3372 8693
amortisation of debt issue costs 48 48
loss on disposal and repurchase of financial
assets amortised over the course of the finance lease 75 82
net movements in net funds 3399 8727
net funds debt at the beginning of the period 2042 6685
net funds at the end of the period 5441 2042
net funds comprises
cash and cash equivalents 15771 15597
borrowings 10330 13282
finance lease liabilities – 273
5441 2042
30 operating lease commitments
commitments under noncancellable operating leases expiring
2009 2008
plant and plant and
machinery property total machinery property total
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
less than one year 5 882 887 5 943 948
between one and five years – 3062 3062 – 2720 2720
later than five years – 1890 1890 – 2532 2532
5 5834 5839 5 6195 6200 59 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
31 financial instruments
financial assets and liabilities
the group’s accounting policies for financial instruments have been applied to the items below
assets as per balance sheet 2008
2009 assets at fair
loans and loans and value through
receivables receivables profit and loss
£’000 £’000 £’000
trade receivables 19971 15024 –
derivative financial instruments – – 28
cash and cash equivalents 15771 15597 –
35742 30621 28
liabilities as per balance sheet 2009 2008
liabilities at fair other other 
value through financial financial
profit and loss liabilities liabilities
£’000 £’000 £’000
borrowings – 10330 13282
finance lease liabilities –– 273
derivative financial instruments 7– –
trade payables – 11947 8654
7 22277 22209
trade receivables
trade receivables are recognised initially at fair value and subsequently remeasured at amortised cost using the effective interest rate method
less provision for impairment a provision for impairment of trade receivables is established where there is objective evidence that the group 
will not be able to collect all amounts due according to the original terms of receivables significant financial difficulties of the debtor probability
that the debtor will enter bankruptcy or financial reorganisation or default or delinquency in payments are considered to be indicators that the
trade receivable is impaired the amount of the provision is the difference between the asset’s carrying amount and the present value of estimated
future cash flows discounted at the effective interest rate the carrying amount of the asset is reduced through the use of an allowance account
and the amount of loss is recognised in the income statement within administrative expenses when a trade receivable is irrecoverable it is
written off against the allowance account for trade receivables subsequent recoveries of amounts previously written off are credited against the
trade receivable impairment provision in the income statement details concerning the credit risk associated with trade receivables are set out in
note 19 above
derivative financial instruments and hedging activities
derivatives are initially recognised at fair value on the date that a derivative contract is entered into and are subsequently remeasured at their
fair value details concerning derivative financial instruments are set out in note 20 above
cash and cash equivalents
cash and cash equivalents include cash in hand deposits held at call with banks and other shortterm highly liquid investments with original
maturities of three months or less further details are set out in note 21 above
financial risk management
the group’s operations expose it to financial risks that include the effects of changes in certain currency rates credit risk and interest rate risk
the group has in place risk management procedures that seek to limit the adverse effects on the financial performance of the group by
monitoring the movements in relevant currency and interest rates and a credit control procedure to minimise the risk of customer debt default
the board of directors sets the policies for liquidity credit and interest rate risk and these are implemented by the group’s finance department
which has a procedures manual that sets out specific guidelines for managing currency interest and credit risk in circumstances where it is
appropriate financial instruments are used to manage those risks 
market risk management
the group is not exposed to market risks other than currency and interest rate risks
foreign exchange risk
currency denominated bank accounts are maintained to provide some cover for timing differences and a currency exchange hedging policy
has been agreed by the board of directors the group invoices its customers in sterling pounds gbp us dollars usd or euros p and the
majority of the group’s suppliers also trade in these currencies the exposure to other currencies is not material to the group’s operations
i euro
the group has a partial natural hedge as the main product costs are denominated in euros and this exposure is offset by euro receivables from
the group’s international business however there remains a net exposure due to timing differences as the international business grows and the
board has agreed a policy of taking out forward contracts against major euro transactions and against significant net monthly exposures
however as the criteria for hedge accounting were not met the forward contracts at the end of the year are classified as held for trading and
have been measured at fair value through profit or loss 60 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the group financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
31 financial instruments continued
the group had the following current assets and liabilities denominated in euros
2009 2008
q’000 p’000
outstanding forward contracts 5500 5737
trade receivables denominated in euros 13896 13352
other receivables denominated in euros – 80
cash balances denominated in euros 1598 2091
trade payables denominated in euros 9682 9224
other creditors denominated in euros 3187 5206
percentage of current assets not matched by forward contracts 0 0
the yearend rate and the average rate for the year were as follows
2009 2008
yearend rate q108£1 p126£1
average rate for the year q120£1 p143£1
if the euro had weakened or strengthened by 10 against sterling then the following additional foreign exchange gains losses would have
been reported
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
euro weakens 242 334
euro strengthens 296 409
ii us dollar
purchases and receipts in us dollars are dealt with through the group’s us dollar current account with further purchases of currency to meet
us dollar denominated liabilities being made as necessary on a spot basis any significant us dollar revenues or purchases are hedged on order
confirmation
the group had the following current assets and liabilities denominated in us dollars
2009 2008
’000 ’000
trade receivables denominated in us dollars 123 300
trade payables denominated in us dollars 529 189
cash balances denominated in us dollars 26 340
percentage of current assets not matched by forward contracts 100 100
if the us dollar had weakened or strengthened by 10 against sterling then the following additional foreign exchange gains losses would
have been reported
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
us dollar weakens 24 21
us dollar strengthens 29 25
liquidity risk
prudent liquidity risk management implies maintaining sufficient cash and shortterm deposits and the availability of funding through an adequate
amount of committed credit facilities
a multicurrency term loan and revolving facilities agreement was entered into on 27 october 2006 further details on this facility including the
maturity profile of the debt and the unutilised credit facilities available are included in note 22 above at 31 march 2009 the group had
drawn down £15000000 against a total available facility of £30000000 the current level of draw down commits the group to make
quarterly interest payments and quarterly repayments of principal of £750000 while the group has sufficient cash reserves and expects future
trading to enable it to meet its cash flow obligations under the term loan should the group’s trading performance prevent it from doing so then
the lender has recourse to security over all of the group’s assets 61 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
group financial
statements
31 financial instruments continued
the table below analyses the group’s financial liabilities which will be settled on a net basis into relevant maturity groupings based on the
remaining period at the balance sheet date to the contractual maturity date the amounts disclosed in the table are the contractual undiscounted
cash flows
less than between between
one year 1  2 years 2  5 years
£’000 £’000 £’000
at 31 march 2009
borrowings 3317 3336 4793
trade payables 11947 – –
at 31 march 2008
borrowings 4032 3804 8518
finance lease liabilities 206 – –
trade payables 8654 – –
borrowings and finance lease liabilities are sterlingdenominated
cash flow and fair value interest rate risk
the group had interest bearing cash deposits of £13893000 2008 £13742000
the amount drawn down against the multi currency term loan and revolving facilities agreement described above is at floating rates exposing
the group to cash flow interest rate risk however subsequent to the end of the year the group has also entered into a base rate cap hedging
agreement with a rate cap of 325 covering all of its borrowings the fair value of this hedging agreement is immaterial
fair value estimation
the fair value of foreign exchange contracts is determined by comparing contracted forward exchange rates with the prevailing exchange rates
at the balance sheet date
the nominal value less impairment provision of trade receivables and payables approximates to their fair value the book value of all other
financial assets and liabilities approximate to fair value
capital risk management
the group’s objectives when managing capital are to safeguard the group’s ability to continue as a going concern in order to provide returns
for shareholders and benefits for other stakeholders and to maintain an optimal capital structure to reduce the cost of capital in order to maintain
or adjust the capital structure the group may adjust the amount of dividends paid to shareholders return capital to shareholders issue new
shares or sell assets to reduce debt at 31 march 2009 the group had net funds of £5441000 2008 £2042000
32 contingent liability
the group has entered into a bank guarantee of p11000 in respect of premises leased by its subsidiary sepura deutschland gmbh and has
entered into a number of guarantee and performance bond arrangements in the normal course of business provision is made for any amounts
that the directors consider may become payable under such arrangements
33 related party transactions
the directors consider kelso place asset management llp “kelso place” to be a related party by virtue of the fact that sion kearsey is a
director of both kelso place and sepura plc kelso place was paid £98000 during the year ended 31 march 2008 for management services
during the period up to listing at which point such fees ceased the directors consider this transaction to have been on an arm’s length basis
34 ultimate controlling party
the directors do not consider that sepura plc has an ultimate controlling party as no individual shareholder is able to exercise control over
the company
35 post balance sheet events
as reported in the company’s preclose statement made on 31 march 2009 the proposed uk restructuring programme the purpose for which
is explained in the business  financial review on page 8 was completed on 1 may 2009 there were no other post balance sheet events of
any significance 62 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
we have audited the parent company financial statements of sepura
plc for the year ended 31 march 2009 which comprise the company
balance sheet and the related notes these parent company financial
statements have been prepared under the accounting policies set out
therein we have also audited the information in the directors’
remuneration report that is described as having been audited
we have reported separately on the group financial statements of
sepura plc for the year ended 31 march 2009
respective responsibilities of directors and auditors
the directors’ responsibilities for preparing the annual report the
directors’ remuneration report and the parent company financial
statements in accordance with applicable law and united kingdom
accounting standards united kingdom generally accepted accounting
practice are set out in the statement of directors’ responsibilities
our responsibility is to audit the parent company financial statements
and the part of the directors’ remuneration report to be audited in
accordance with relevant legal and regulatory requirements and
international standards on auditing uk and ireland this report
including the opinion has been prepared for and only for the
company’s members as a body in accordance with section 235 of the
companies act 1985 and for no other purpose we do not in giving
this opinion accept or assume responsibility for any other purpose or to
any other person to whom this report is shown or into whose hands it
may come save where expressly agreed by our prior consent in writing
we report to you our opinion as to whether the parent company
financial statements give a true and fair view and whether the parent
company financial statements and the part of the directors’ remuneration
report to be audited have been properly prepared in accordance with
the companies act 1985 we also report to you whether in our
opinion the information given in the directors’ report is consistent with
the parent company financial statements the information given in the
directors’ report includes that specific information presented in the
business  financial review principal risks  uncertainties key
performance indicators and the corporate social responsibility
statement that is crossreferred from the principal activity and business
review research and development and financial instruments sections of
the directors’ report
in addition we report to you if in our opinion the company has not
kept proper accounting records if we have not received all the
information and explanations we require for our audit or if information
specified by law regarding directors’ remuneration and other
transactions is not disclosed
we read the other information contained in the annual report and
consider whether it is consistent with the audited parent company
financial statements the other information comprises only the
performance highlights sepura in focus our customers the
chairman’s statement the strategic update chief executive’s qa
inspiring innovation satisfying customer needs the business 
financial review principal risks  uncertainties key performance
indicators our board  senior management the corporate social
responsibility statement the directors’ report the corporate
governance statement the statement of directors’ responsibilities that
part of the directors’ remuneration report that is unaudited and all of
the other information listed on the contents page we consider the
implications for our report if we become aware of any apparent
misstatements or material inconsistencies with the parent company
financial statements our responsibilities do not extend to any other
information
basis of audit opinion
we conducted our audit in accordance with international standards
on auditing uk and ireland issued by the auditing practices board
an audit includes examination on a test basis of evidence relevant to
the amounts and disclosures in the parent company financial statements
and the part of the directors’ remuneration report to be audited it
also includes an assessment of the significant estimates and judgements
made by the directors in the preparation of the parent company
financial statements and of whether the accounting policies are
appropriate to the company’s circumstances consistently applied 
and adequately disclosed
we planned and performed our audit so as to obtain all the information
and explanations which we considered necessary in order to provide
us with sufficient evidence to give reasonable assurance that the parent
company financial statements and the part of the directors’ remuneration
report 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 parent company financial statements and the part of the
directors’ remuneration report to be audited
opinion
in our opinion
• the parent company financial statements give a true and fair 
view in accordance with united kingdom generally accepted
accounting practice of the state of the company’s affairs as at
31 march 2009 
• the parent company financial statements and the part of the
directors’ remuneration report to be audited have been properly
prepared in accordance with the companies act 1985 and
• the information given in the directors’ report is consistent with the
parent company financial statements
pricewaterhousecoopers llp
chartered accountants and registered auditors
cambridge
1 june 2009
independent auditors’ report to the members of sepura plc 63 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
company financial
statements
2009 2008
note £’000 £’000
fixed assets
tangible assets 4 4717 4597
intangible assets 5 1230 1470
investments 6 17 17
5964 6084
current assets
stock 7 10196 4612
current asset investments 8 10000 –
debtors 9 29543 18380
cash at bank and in hand 5571 15570
55310 38562
creditors amounts falling due within one year 11 25316 19927
net current assets 29994 18635
total assets less current liabilities 35958 24719
creditors amounts falling due after more than one year 12 12760 10330
provision for liabilities and charges 14 2543 935
net assets 20655 13454
capital and reserves
called up share capital 15 68 68
profit and loss account 17 20587 13386
total shareholders’ funds 18 20655 13454
the parent company financial statements on pages 63 to 70 were approved by the board and authorised for issue on 1 june 2009 and are
signed on its behalf by
gordon watling stephen crowther 
chief executive officer chief financial officer
the accompanying notes are an integral part of these financial statements
company balance sheet
at 31 march 2009 64 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
1 principal accounting policies
basis of accounting
the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the companies act 1985 and in accordance with applicable accounting
standards in the united kingdom a summary of the more important accounting policies which have been reviewed by the board of directors
in accordance with financial reporting standard “frs” 18 “accounting policies” and have been applied consistently is set out below
the financial statements are prepared in accordance with the historical cost convention
turnover and warranty costs
turnover represents the invoiced amount of goods sold excluding value added tax for contracts which do not involve complex longterm
software and hardware development revenue is recognised on despatch turnover also includes warranty income as appropriate
revenue and cost of sales from contracts which do involve complex longterm software and hardware development are recognised on the
percentage of completion basis based on costs incurred to date when the outcome of the contract can be estimated reliably the criteria for 
this are that total contract revenue and the costs to complete the contract can be estimated reliably it is probable that the economic benefits
associated with the contract will flow to the company and that the stage of contract completion can be measured when the company is not
able to meet those conditions the policy is to recognise revenue equal to costs incurred to date to the extent that such costs are expected to be
recovered expected losses are recognised in full at the point at which they are anticipated if the amount of revenue recognised exceeds the
amounts invoiced to customers the excess amount is recorded in amounts recoverable on contracts within debtors if the amounts invoiced
exceed the revenue recognised the excess amount is recorded as deferred revenue or payments in advance
in a multielement arrangement some of the elements either hardware or software may remain undelivered or incomplete revenue may be
recognised on the fair value of the elements delivered providing the following conditions are fulfilled
• if the element of the product delivered has value to the customer on a standalone basis and is thus a separable element from the
undelivered element 
• if the fair value can be reliably attributed to the undelivered element in the event of bundling where undelivered components may not have a
separate invoiced sales price then the fair value of the revenue deferred can be calculated by comparing the underlying product list price of
each element of the bundle to the overall bundle price and
• if the delivery of the undelivered element is probable and under the control of the company ie the technical risk attached to the delivery of
the component is acceptable
if any of these conditions are not met then all revenue under the arrangement is deferred until the contract is complete or uncertainty over any of
these conditions is removed
in accordance with the requirements of frs 5 application note g “reporting the substance of transactions revenue recognition” the company
assesses whether any of its contracts contain elements which operate independently of other contractual elements and which should therefore
be ‘unbundled’ and accounted for separately the company offers as standard to all customers a product warranty package generally in the
case of product warranty packages which are offered as standard with all products are not separately priced and are offered for periods in
line with the company’s standard terms of supply at the time of sale such standard warranty packages are not considered to be an element
capable of ‘unbundling’ in such cases provision is made at the time of sale for the estimated cost of providing the warranty cover based on
historical information on the cost and frequency of repairs required to the company’s products the company also has backtoback warranties
of between twelve and fifteen months with the majority of its subcontract manufacturers to limit risk on product warranties amounts due from
manufacturers under backtoback warranties are not recognised until the manufacturer has confirmed a reimbursement will be made
in certain cases “enhanced” warranty packages of a longer than standard period are sold to customers as separate products in such cases
the fair value of the revenue associated with the warranty cover is amortised over the underlying period of the warranty cover the fair value of
the revenue is determined by the directors based on market information including the sales price when warranties are sold on a standalone
basis
research and development expenditure
all ongoing research and development expenditure is written off in the period in which it is incurred
investments in subsidiary undertakings
investments in subsidiary undertakings are stated at cost less provision for impairment if any
tangible fixed assets
the cost of tangible fixed assets is their purchase cost together with any incidental costs of acquisition including where relevant the cost of
subcontractors direct labour and a proportion of attributable overheads tangible fixed assets are carried at cost and are depreciated from the
date they come into use depreciation is provided to write off the cost less the estimated residual value of tangible fixed assets depreciation for
certain manufacturing plant and machinery is calculated by reference to the number of units produced and for all other assets by equal annual
instalments over their estimated useful economic lives as follows
• plant  machinery 37 years
• it equipment 35 years
provision is made against the carrying value of tangible fixed assets where impairment is deemed to have occurred
no depreciation is charged on assets in the course of construction as their useful economic life has yet to commence on completion the assets
are transferred to the appropriate class of tangible fixed assets and depreciation is charged at the above rates
notes to the parent company financial statements
for the year ended 31 march 2009 65 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
1 principal accounting policies continued
intangible assets
the company purchases licences to exploit thirdparty intellectual property rights licences are recorded at the historical cost to acquire the
licence less accumulated amortisation and impairment losses and are amortised over the life of the licence
leases
finance leases which transfer to the company substantially all the risks and benefits incidental to ownership of the leased item are capitalised
at the inception of the lease at the fair value of the leased property or if lower at the present value of the minimum lease payments lease
payments are apportioned between the finance charges and reduction of the lease liability so as to achieve a constant rate of interest on the
remaining balance of the liability finance charges are charged directly against income
capitalised leased assets are depreciated over the shorter of the estimated useful life of the asset or the lease term
leases where the lessor retains substantially all the risks and benefits of ownership of the asset are classified as operating leases operating
lease payments are recognised as an expense in the profit and loss account on a straightline basis over the lease term
stocks and work in progress
stocks and work in progress are stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value in general cost is determined on a first in first out basis
and includes transport and handling costs where necessary provision is made for obsolete slow moving and defective stocks
current asset investments
shortterm bank deposits are stated at cost less provision for impairment if any
cash flow
the company has taken advantage of the exemption in frs 1 revised 1996 “cash flow statements” which provides that where a company is
a member of a group and a consolidated cash flow statement is published the company does not have to prepare a cash flow statement
deferred taxation
provision is made for deferred taxation using full provision accounting when an event has taken place by the balance sheet date which gives
rise to an increased or reduced tax liability in the future in accordance with frs 19 “deferred taxation” deferred tax assets and liabilities are
not discounted
pension scheme arrangements
the company contributes to defined contribution plans for employees the company contributes to these schemes based upon various fixed
percentages of employee compensation and such contributions are expensed as incurred
the company provides no other postretirement benefits to its employees
financial instruments
the company has taken advantage of the exemption under frs 29 “financial instruments disclosures” for parent company financial statements
as the disclosures in respect of the company are included in the consolidated financial statements
foreign currencies
transactions denominated in foreign currencies have been translated into sterling at actual rates of exchange ruling at the date of the transactions
except to the extent that these transactions were covered by forward foreign exchange contracts monetary assets and liabilities denominated in
foreign currencies have been translated at rates ruling at the balance sheet date except to the extent that the assets and liabilities are covered
by forward foreign exchange contracts all exchange gains and losses are taken to the profit and loss account in the year in which they arise
transactions assets and liabilities covered by forward foreign currency contracts are translated at the forward foreign currency contract rate 
share options
the company issues equitysettled sharebased payments to employees and directors of the company in accordance with frs 20 “sharebased
payment” equitysettled sharebased payments are measured at fair value at the date of grant fair value is measured by use of the blackscholes
pricing model the fair value determined at the grant date of the equitysettled sharebased payments is expensed on a straightline basis over
the vesting period based on the company’s estimate of the number of shares that will eventually vest the corresponding credit is recognised 
in reserves
2 profit for the financial year
as permitted by section 230 of the companies act 1985 the parent company’s profit and loss account has not been included in these
financial statements the parent company’s profit after taxation was £8725000 2008 £11031000
the total number of employees of the company at 31 march 2009 was 304 2008 286 total staff costs excluding charges for share
options were £18292000 2008 £14913000 information on the remuneration of directors is given in those sections of the
remuneration report described as having been audited and those elements required by the companies act 1985 and the financial services
authority form part of these financial statements no emoluments related specifically to their work for the company
3 dividends
the directors have proposed a final dividend in respect of the financial year ended 31 march 2009 of 085p per ordinary share or
£1163000 based on the ordinary shares in issue at 31 march 2009 the proposed dividend is subject to approval by shareholders and
has not been included as a liability in these financial statements
during the year the company paid an interim dividend of 042p per ordinary share totalling £573000 in respect of the financial year ended
31 march 2009 and a final dividend in respect of the financial year ended 31 march 2008 of 085p per ordinary share totalling £1160000
company financial
statements 66 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the parent company financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
4 tangible fixed assets
assets under plant and it
construction equiment equpment total
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
cost
at 1 april 2008 609 7391 1443 9443
transfers 609 583 26 –
additions 109 1737 195 2041
disposals – 76 11 87
at 31 march 2009 109 9635 1653 11397
accumulated depreciation
at 1 april 2008 – 4263 583 4846
charge for the year – 1665 245 1910
disposals – 68 8 76
at 31 march 2009 – 5860 820 6680
net book value at 31 march 2009 109 3775 833 4717
net book value at 31 march 2008 609 3128 860 4597
included within plant and machinery are assets held under finance leases with a net book value of £322000 2008 £497000 depreciation
of £175000 2008 £175000 has been charged in the year in respect of these assets
capital expenditure which had been contracted for prior to the end of the year but had not been provided for in the financial statements
amounted to £25000 2008 £125000
5 intangible assets
licences
£’000
cost
at 1 april 2008 1710
additions –
at 31 march 2009 1710
accumulated amortisation
at 1 april 2008 240
charge for the year 240
at 31 march 2009 480
net book value at 31 march 2009 1230
net book value at 31 march 2008 1470
6 investments
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
shares in group undertakings 17 17
the company owns the entire issued share capital of the following subsidiary undertakings whose results are included within the consolidated
financial statements of sepura plc for the year ended 31 march 2009
proportion of nominal value
name of undertaking country of incorporation description of shares held of shares held by the group
sepura distribution limited england and wales two ordinary shares of £1 each 100
sepura deutschland gmbh germany one ordinary share of p250 and
one ordinary share of p24750 100
sepura distribution limited was involved in the sale and distribution of secure digital radios for use on public safety networks operating on the
“tetra” standard sepura distribution limited ceased to trade on 31 december 2008
sepura deutschland gmbh provides marketing and promotional services for sepura plc and prior to 31 december 2008 sepura distribution
limited in the german market 67 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
7 stock
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
raw materials 565 4071
work in progress 3626 94
finished goods and goods for resale 6005 447
10196 4612
there is no material difference between the balance sheet value of stock and its replacement cost
8 current asset investments
shortterm investments of £10000000 2008 £nil comprise shortterm bank deposits which are classified as cash in the group’s financial
statements which are prepared under ifrs
9 debtors
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
amounts falling due within one year
trade debtors 19918 –
other debtors 812 598
deferred tax asset see note 10 8034 8105
prepayments and accrued income 677 782
amounts due from group undertakings 102 8895
29543 18380
amounts due from group undertakings do not bear interest and have no fixed repayment terms
10 deferred tax
the company’s deferred tax assets and liabilities relate to timing differences in respect of
tangible equitysettled
fixed share
assets losses options net
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
at 1 april 2008 7 8027 85 8105
credited charged to the profit and loss account – 149 78 71
at 31 march 2009 7 7878 163 8034
deferred tax liabilities have been offset against deferred tax assets as there is a legally enforceable right to offset current tax assets and current
tax liabilities within the same fiscal jurisdiction
the company’s deferred tax asset has been recognised as based on historical performance and future budgets the directors believe that it is
probable that there will be sufficient taxable profits against which the assets will reverse the net deferred tax asset has been classified within
debtors in note 9 above
on 21 march 2007 the chancellor announced that with effect from 1 april 2008 the standard rate of uk corporation tax would reduce from
30 to 28 and deferred tax balances at 31 march 2008 were therefore remeasured at that rate
there was no unprovided deferred taxation at the end of either year
11 creditors amounts falling due within one year
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
trade creditors 11947 8654
bank loans see note 13 2952 2952
finance leases see note 13 – 198
corporation tax 433 393
other taxation and social security 249 1532
accruals and deferred income 9735 6198
25316 19927
company financial
statements 68 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the parent company financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
12 creditors amounts falling due after more than one year
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
accruals and deferred revenue 5382 –
bank loans see note 13 7378 10330
12760 10330
13 loans and other borrowings
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
bank loans 10330 13282
finance leases – 198
10330 13480
the balances above are shown net of issue costs of £170000 2008 £218000 which are being amortised over the life of the loan agreement
on 27 october 2006 the company entered into a £30000000 multicurrency term loan and revolving facilities agreement with a floating
interest rate of 15 over libor £15000000 was drawn down against the facility on 27 october 2006 and is repayable in 60 equal
quarterly instalments starting in december 2007 the unused facility of £15000000 expires on 11 september 2012
the borrowings are secured by a fixed and floating charge over the group’s assets the company created a debenture dated 14 june 2002
updated on 27 october 2006 in favour of ge capital commercial finance limited with fixed and floating charges over all the property 
and assets of the business the group has a supplemental charge over intellectual property dated 14 june 2002 in favour of ge capital
commercial finance limited with charges over all intellectual property rights owned by the group and the goodwill attached to these rights
there was no liability under the charges at either reporting date
on 22 november 2006 the group entered into a base rate cap arrangement with a maturity date of 31 december 2009 with a protected
amount of £7500000 and a rate cap of 6 subsequent to the end of the year the group entered into a further cap arrangement which
protects the outstanding balance on a reducing basis as capital is repaid at a rate of 325 consequently the group is exposed to fair
value interest rate risk in respect of its bank borrowings
there is no material difference between the fair values of the bank borrowings and their carrying amounts
maturity of financial liabilities
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
in one year or less or on demand 2952 3150
in more than one year but not more than five years 7378 10330
10330 13480
finance leases
future minimum payments under finance leases are as follows
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
amounts payable
within one year – 206
less finance charges allocated to future periods – 8
– 198 69 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
14 provision for liabilities and charges
restructuring warranty total
£’000 £’000 £’000
at 1 april 2008 – 935 935
charged to the profit and loss account 1271 1008 2279
utilised during the year 140 531 671
at 31 march 2009 1131 1412 2543
restructuring provision
during the year the company undertook a major review of its internal operations resulting in a restructuring to improve efficiency and streamline
costs a provision was made during the year of £13m to cover redundancy and related costs
warranty provision
the warranty provision is an estimate of the future costs of rectifying potential defects in products shipped to customers whilst they are under
warranty cover warranty cover is typically provided over a period of one to five years
15 called up share capital
2009 2008
number £ number £
authorised
ordinary shares of £00005 each 400000000 200000 400000000 200000
allotted calledup and fullypaid
ordinary shares of £00005 each 136478580 68239 136353140 68177
during the year the following changes occurred in the company’s issued share capital
2009 2008
number £ number £
at 1 april 136353140 68177 800000 80
bonus issue –– 559200000 55920
5to1 share consolidation –– 448000000 –
exercise of options under employee share option scheme 125440 62 24353140 12177
at 31 march 136478580 68239 136353140 68177
on 18 july 2007 the authorised share capital of the company was increased from £100 to £200000 by the creation of 1999000000
ordinary shares of £00001 each on the same day a bonus issue of 699 new ordinary shares of £00001 each for each ordinary share
of £00001 held was made followed by a share consolidation on the basis of one new ordinary share of £00005 for five ordinary shares
of £00001 each increasing the issued share capital of the company to 112000000 ordinary shares
16 share options
information on share options which have been granted to directors and employees are given in note 27 to the company’s consolidated
financial statements
17 profit and loss account
£’000
at 1 april 2008 13386
profit for the financial year 8725
dividends paid 1733
credit in respect of employee share scheme charges 209
at 31 march 2009 20587
18 reconciliation of movements in shareholders’ funds
2009 2008
£’000 £’000
profit for the financial year 8725 11031
dividends paid 1733 –
issue of shares for cash consideration – 12
credit in respect of employee share options 209 204
net additions to shareholders’ funds 7201 11247
opening shareholders’ funds 13454 2207
closing shareholders’ funds 20655 13454
company financial
statements 70 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
notes to the parent company financial statements continued
for the year ended 31 march 2009
19 operating lease commitments
at 31 march 2009 the company had annual commitments under noncancellable operating leases as follows
other other
operating land and operating land and
leases buildings leases buildings
2009 2009 2008 2008
£’000 £’000 £’000 £’000
expiring within one year 5 48 5 44
expiring between two to five years inclusive – 137 – 210
expiring after more than five years – 630 – 630
5 815 5 884
20 contingent liability
the company has entered into a bank guarantee of p11000 in respect of premises leased by its subsidiary sepura deutschland gmbh and
has entered into a number of guarantee and performance bond arrangements in the normal course of business provision is made for any
amounts that the directors consider may become payable under such arrangements
21 related party transactions
the directors consider kelso place asset management llp “kelso place” to be a related party by virtue of the fact that sion kearsey is a
director of both kelso place and sepura plc kelso place was paid £98000 during the year ended 31 march 2008 for management services
during the period up to listing at which point such fees ceased the directors consider this transaction to have been on an arm’s length basis
the company has taken advantage of the exemption from disclosure available to parent companies under frs 8 “related party disclosures”
where transactions and balances between group entities have been eliminated on consolidation
22 ultimate controlling party
the directors do not consider that sepura plc has an ultimate controlling party as no individual shareholder is able to exercise control over
the company
23 post balance sheet events
as reported in the company’s preclose statement made on 31 march 2009 the proposed uk restructuring programme the purpose for which
is explained in the business  financial review on page 8 was completed on 1 may 2009 there were no other post balance sheet events of
any significance 71 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
shareholder analysis
as at 31 march 2009
• the number of registered shareholders was 350 and the number of ordinary shares in issue was 136478580 and
• 43 of the company’s issued ordinary shares are held in public hands within the meaning of paragraph 6119 of the listing rules and
the remaining 57 are held privately
number of percentage of number of percentage of
holders total holders shares total shares
holding range
1 to 5000 86 2457 170712 012
5001 to 10000 45 1286 332018 024
10001 to 50000 115 3286 2861883 210
50001 to 100000 36 1028 2644472 194
100001 to 250000 32 914 4956610 363
250001 to 500000 9 257 3229243 237
500001 to 1000000 5 143 2985279 219
1000001 and over 22 629 119298363 8741
total 350 10000 136478580 10000
held by
individuals 139 3971 15410764 1129
institutions and companies 211 6029 121067816 8871
total 350 10000 136478580 10000
company registrar
equiniti provide a range of shareholder information online you can check your holding and find practical help on transferring shares and
updating your personal details at wwwshareviewcouk equiniti may also be contacted on 0871 384 2030 calls to this number are charged
at 8p per minute from a bt landline other telephony providers’ costs may vary or by writing to equiniti aspect house spencer road
lancing west sussex bn99 6da
shareholder enquiries
if you have an enquiry about the company’s business or about something affecting you as a shareholder other than queries which are dealt
with by the registrar you should contact the company secretary by letter or by telephone at the company’s registered office
sepura website
additional information about sepura including previous annual and interim reports current share price and company news is available on our
website at wwwsepuracom
shareholder information
other information share dealing service
an internet and telephone share dealing service is operated by the company’s registrar equiniti enabling shareholders to buy and sell sepura
plc ordinary shares on the london stock exchange shareholders who are interested in using these services should visit wwwshareviewcouk
or telephone 0845 603 7037
unsolicited mail
the company is required by law to make its share register available upon request to the public and organisations which may use it as a
mailing list resulting in shareholders receiving unsolicited mail shareholders wishing to limit the receipt of such mail should write to the mailing
preference service dma house 70 margaret street london w1w 8ss or register online at wwwmpsonlineorguk
sharegift
shareholders who hold only a small number of shares where dealing costs make it uneconomic to sell them may wish to consider donating
them to charity though sharegift a registered charity administered by the orr mackintosh foundation the relevant share transfer form can be
obtained from their website wwwsharegiftorg or by writing to sharegift 5 lower grosvenor place london sw1w 0ej or by telephoning
44 0 20 7828 1151
dividends  payments to mandated accounts  dividend reinvestment plan
we recommend to you that you have all your future dividends paid direct into your nominated bank or building society account via the bankers’
automated clearing system bacs this service provides you with cleared funds on the dividend payment date is more secure than sending a
cheque by post and avoids the inconvenience of paying each dividend by cheque a tax voucher will still be sent to your registered address
you can take advantage of this convenient and popular method of payment by visiting wwwshareviewcouk or by completing the dividend
mandate form that will be sent to you with your dividend cheque on 14 august 2009 alternatively you can contact the company’s registrar
equiniti by telephone 0871 384 2030 or by writing to them at aspect house spencer road lancing west sussex bn99 6da please
quote your shareholder reference number as detailed on your dividend tax voucher or share certificate
shareholders have the opportunity of using their cash dividend payments to increase their shareholding in sepura plc through the dividend
reinvestment plan “drip” participation in the drip will mean that in future all your dividends will be reinvested in sepura plc shares which will
be purchased on your behalf in the market on or as soon as practicable after the relevant dividend payment an explanatory booklet which
also contains the terms and conditions of the drip and an application form will be sent to you on 3 july 2009 if you wish to join the drip
please read the terms and conditions carefully and return the completed application form in the reply paid envelope provided alternatively you
can access the details and download the application form from the investor section of the company’s website drip mandates must be received
by 24 july 2009 in order to be valid for the 2009 final dividend
annual general meeting
the annual general meeting of the company will be held at 1200 noon on tuesday 21 july 2009 at the offices of goldman sachs
international peterborough court 133 fleet street london ec4a 2bb each shareholder is entitled to attend and vote at the meeting the
arrangements for which and the business to be conducted thereat are described in a separate circular comprising a letter from the
chairman notice of meeting explanatory notes and a replypaid form of proxy which accompanies this document
shareholder information continued
72 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009 contact details advisers  financial calendar 2009 10
sepura plc is a public limited company registered in england no 04353801 and
its ordinary shares are traded on the official list of the london stock exchange 
ticker sepu
sepura plc is the parent company of the sepura group of companies unless
otherwise stated the text in this annual report does not distinguish between the
activities and operations of the parent company and those of its subsidiary
undertakings
this is the annual report of sepura plc for the 12 month period ended 31 march
2009 and complies with uk legislation and regulations it is also available on the
company’s website
© sepura 2009 the name ‘sepura’ and its logo device and all other brand or
product names referred to in this annual report are registered trademarks or
trademarks pending registration in accordance with the relevant national laws
worldwide of the sepura group of companies all rights reserved
cautionary statement
the purpose of this annual report is to provide information to the members 
of the company the annual report contains certain forwardlooking statements 
with respect to the operations performance and financial condition of the group 
by their nature future events and circumstances can cause results and developments 
to differ materially from those anticipated no undertaking is given to update the
forwardlooking statements whether as a result of new information future events or
otherwise nothing in this annual report should be construed as a profit forecast 
an invitation to deal in the ordinary shares of sepura plc
directors’ liability and indemnity arrangements
under the companies act 2006 a new safe harbour limits the liability of directors 
in respect of certain statements in and omissions from this annual report under
english law the directors would be liable to the company but not any third party 
if any errors were made as a result of reckless or knowing misstatement or dishonest
concealment of a material fact but they would not otherwise be liable this annual
report has been drawn up and presented in accordance with and in reliance upon
english law and the liabilities of the directors shall be limited and restricted
accordingly
designed and produced by bexon woodhouse  wwwbexonwoodhousecom
printed by royle print a carbon neutral company
this annual report is printed on material which is up to 50 recycled elemental
chlorine free and comes from a certified sustainable resource both paper mill 
and printer have iso14001 accreditation
contact details and advisers
company secretary
carol nunn
registered and head office
sepura plc
radio house
st andrew’s road
cambridge cb4 1gr
united kingdom
tel 44 0 1223 876000
fax 44 0 1223 879000
email infosepuracom
wwwsepuracom
registered in england 
no 4353801
registrar
equiniti
aspect house
spencer road
lancing
west sussex bn99 6da
united kingdom
service helpline
tel 0871 384 2623 uk
wwwshareviewcouk
auditors
pricewaterhousecoopers llp
abacus house
castle park
cambridge cb3 0an
united kingdom
tel 44 0 1223 460055
wwwpwccom
joint sponsor and stock brokers
goldman sachs international
peterborough court
133 fleet street
london ec4a 2bb
tel44 0 20 7774 1000
wwwgscom
citi group global markets limited
canada square
canary wharf
london e14 5lb
tel44 0 20 7766 4500
wwwciticom
bankers
royal bank of scotland
legal advisors
linklaters llp
eversheds llp
financial pr consultants
powerscourt limited
financial calendar 200910
annual general meeting 21 july 2009
fy09 final dividend key dates
exdividend 15 july 2009
record 17 july 2009
payment 14 august 2009
fy10 interim results announcement
provisional november 2009
fy10 interim dividend key dates
exdividend 2 december 2009
record 4 december 2009
payment 6 january 2010
financial yearend 31 march 2010
fy10 preliminary results announcement
provisional june 2010
subject to directors’ decision to declare wwwsepuracom
sepura plc
radio house
st andrew’s road
cambridge cb4 1gr
united kingdom
t 44 01223 876000
f 44 01223 879000
e infosepuracom


Summary:
 01 sepura plc 
annual report  accounts 2009
financial highlights
• revenue up 9 to £74 1m benefitting from the strong euro
with volumes up 7
• gross margin maintained
• operating profits down 12 to £13m before nonrecurring costs
1
• closing net funds increased to £54m with cash of £158m
• diluted eps before nonrecurring costs
1
down 4 mitigated by 
a lower tax rate
• proposed final dividend held at 085p increasing annual dividend 
to127p per share
operational highlights
• gordon watling appointed as chief executive officer
• new stp8000 handheld radio drives continuing sales wins in germany
• comprehensive restructuring of business concluded to improve efficiency 
• european manufacturing transferred to melecs
• additional output moved to chinese manufacturing partner tcb
• uk replacement success continues
2009 2008
£’000 £’000 change
international revenue 45992 41266 11
uk revenue 28108 26839 5
total revenue 74100 68105 9
gross margin 525 527
operating profit excluding nonrecurring costs
1
 13007 14674 12
operating profit 10505 12533 16
diluted eps 63p 63p –
diluted eps excluding nonrecurring costs
1
 76p 79p  4
annual dividend 127p 085p 49
adjusted diluted eps excluding capitalisation
of research and development expenditures
2
 49p 48p 2
1
nonrecurring costs comprise restructuring costs of £13m and impairment of capitalised rd of £12m in 2009 
and ipo costs of £21m in 2008
2
adjusted diluted eps excluding nonrecurring costs and excluding the capitalisation of research and development costs 
together with associated amortisation and net of uk corporation tax at the standard rate
performance highlights 
company overview
summary financial information