Sturgess Van Damme

BATH & WEST SHOW SOCIETY REPORTS STRONG FIRST QUARTER, FOLLOWING MAJOR LOSSES IN 2007

Last year‘s bad weather and national livestock crises helped turn a £100,000 expected profit into a £537,000 loss for the Bath & West Show Society.

The cumulative costs arising from the impact of bad weather and animal movement restrictions, imposed during the Foot & Mouth and Blue Tongue outbreaks, amounted to almost £350,000.

Other exceptional items, totalling £286,000, included one-off costs associated with the Society reporting a 14 month year for 2007 in order to change its accounting year to match the expanded show-dates calendar, and the start-up costs for the Royal Smithfield event.

Figures for the first quarter of 2008, however, are already well ahead of previous years, with projected trading results for the year now totalling more that £413,500.

The financial results were presented to the annual meeting of the Society‘s full Council today (Thursday, 8th May) by the Hon Treasurer, Nicholas Hutchen, and the Financial Controller, David Stitch.

They pinpointed the effects on the Society‘s finances of last year‘s weather and livestock set-backs, which combined to create a dire year for the entire agricultural sector.

“Weather, alone, cost us £187,000, with lower attendance at the rain-hit 2007 Bath & West Show and the cancellation of the weather affected Bristol Flower Show”, said Mr Hutchen.

“Livestock restrictions caused by the FMD and then the Blue Tongue episodes saw the cancellation of the Royal Smithfield Christmas Fair and the postponement of the 2007 Dairy Show. The resulting costs totalled more than £160,000”, he added.

Meanwhile, the current financial year has seen a strong start.

“Our projected surplus for Bath & West‘s trading company of £413,648 for 2008, based on the first quarter‘s results, is about twice the comparable figure for 2006, and well ahead of last year”, said David Stitch. “Coupled with the success of the Spring Festival of Food & Drink, two potentially productive dairy shows, and strong advance bookings for trade stands at this year‘s main show, prospects for 2008 look very good”, he added.

Council members were also briefed on progress towards the modernisation plan for the showground by Chief Executive, Dr Jane Guise.

A development masterplan group was established during 2007, led by the Chief Executive of Somerset County Council, with activity funded by the County Council and Mendip District Council.

“This has built on the earlier feasibility studies and technical reports on planning and highways, towards refining a masterplan for modernisation that can reposition this superb site as a year-round visitor attraction, and reduce our exposure to the vagaries of weather and animal disease”, said Dr Guise.

“We are now in detailed discussions with our partners, Somerset County Council and Mendip District Council, whose members have expressed strong support for our vision of a 21st Century facility that has a bigger, year-round role. The site already generates about £164 million per year for the sub-regional economy, but that contribution can be expanded significantly”, she added.

Dr Guise also briefed Council members on the outcome of last Autumn‘s staffing review, which resulted in the loss of six jobs – four in the maintenance unit and two cleaners.

“Both of these functions have been outsourced to contractors, reflecting the fact that our business, unlike most, has occasional peaks and frequent troughs of need for these services. It does, unfortunately, make more sense to buy these services when we need them, rather than sustain the cost of full time staff”, she explained.

“Those changes were sufficient to meet the staff cost reductions we identified last November”, she added.

ENDS 8th May 2008

Further information:

Jane Guise, Chief Executive: 01749-822201

Martha Harley, Head of Marketing & PR: 01749-822240 or 07796-900542