Ardmore says it will make a profit in 2025 after racking up £42m loss last time

Ardmore said it expects to turn in a profit for 2025 after the firm racked up a pre-tax loss of £42m for the year to September 2024.

Accounts now filed at Companies House show the firm’s losses for the period widened from the near £11m loss it made in 2023. Turnover for the period was down 14% to £346m with year-end cash standing at £27.6m.

In a note accompanying the accounts, which were signed off earlier this week, Ardmore said the loss in 2024 “arose from a combination of trading losses on certain construction projects, costs associated with remedial works, and the impact of an adjudication award in respect of the Crown Heights project. The adjudication resulted in an award of approximately £15m against Ardmore Construction Limited (ACL).”

Crown Heights is a block of flats in Basingstoke, Hampshire, completed in 2004 for Barratt and which is now having its cladding replaced because of fire safety worries.

The £15m ruling, made in December 2024 and which centred over who was responsible for fire safety defects, was a landmark and following the decision in favour of BDW Trading – Barratt’s main trading arm – ACL went into administration at the end of August last year.

Ardmore added: “The well-publicised administration of ACL took place after the accounting year end and forms part of the Group’s separation of discontinued activities. The preparation and publication of the accounts followed this process, reflecting the complexity of formally concluding these matters.”

In the accounts, Ardmore said ACL had spent £100m on remediation works although had an agreement with its insurers to recoup £75m but that management had concluded ACL was “no longer commercially viable”.

But it warned the issue of ACL’s legacy jobs could dog the firm for a while, saying that the “Ardmore Group of companies have received multiple claims, or notices of intention to raise a claim, relating to historic contracts” carried out by ACL. And it admitted “The expanding scope of Building Liability Orders means that other companies within the Group may also be held jointly and severally liable for claims involving a relevant liability, where it is deemed just and equitable.”

But it said: “The merit, likely outcome and potential impact of these claims is subject to a number of significant uncertainties and, therefore, the Group cannot make any assessment of the likely outcome or quantum of any such litigation as at 30 September 2024.

“The uncertainties relate to the vague nature of these claims, a lack of supporting evidence from claimants, and the lengthy timeframes involved before a reliable estimate of financial cost can be determined.”

It added: “The Group believes it holds strong positions on many claims. However, given the ongoing evolution of legislation and guidance, it remains difficult to determine outcomes with sufficient certainty. Where claims are successful, the financial impact is likely to be partially mitigated through subsequent claims on the supply chain and/or other parties.”

But despite these concerns, the firm said it had turned a corner and added: “Trading performance improved materially following the year end and continued through 2025, with profitability ahead of internal expectations. Management expects to deliver profit before tax of £11m from continuing operations for 2025.”

Chairman Cormac Byrne said: “These results reflect a difficult period for the Group, that has tested every part of the business but they do not reflect where Ardmore is now or the direction we are heading.

“Trading performance improved materially after the year end and, through 2025, we have worked through the issues from earlier projects, strengthened our approach to delivery and governance, and performing ahead of our own internal expectations.

“We are focused on disciplined delivery, strong governance and consistent execution, and we remain confident in Ardmore’s return to sustainable profitability in 2025.”