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Bellway

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Employees 1001-5000
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FY2012 Annual Report · Bellway
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Bellway p.l.c.
Seaton Burn House,  
Dudley Lane,  
Seaton Burn,  
Newcastle upon Tyne  
NE13 6BE

Tel: (0191) 217 0717 
Fax: (0191) 236 6230 
DX: 711760 Seaton Burn

www.bellway.co.uk

annual  
report 
and accounts 

2012 

www.bellway.co.uk

 
 
 
 
 
 
SiNcE iTS FoRmATioN 
more than  
50 years ago, 

Bellway 
100,000 

HAS BuiLT ovER 

homes.

it is  
recognised 
throughout the industry 
for building  
quality 
homes.

Front cover:  
The Fort, Rochester, Kent

This page: 
The coppice, Takeley, Essex

Back cover: 
city Peninsula, London Borough 
of Greenwich

For more information on our business, go to 

www.bellway.co.uk

Yorkshire
2 Deighton Close
Wetherby
West Yorkshire LS22 7GZ
Tel: (01937) 583 533
Fax: (01937) 586 147
DX: 16815 Wetherby

Other Subsidiary

Bellway Housing Trust 
Limited
Seaton Burn House
Dudley Lane
Seaton Burn
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE13 6BE
Tel: (0191) 217 0717
Fax: (0191) 236 6230
DX: 711760 Seaton Burn

Bellway p.l.c.
Seaton Burn House, Dudley Lane, Seaton Burn, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE13 6BE
Tel: (0191) 217 0717; Fax: (0191) 236 6230; DX 711760 Seaton Burn; Website: www.bellway.co.uk

Bellway Homes Limited

East Midlands
No. 3 Romulus Court
Meridian East
Meridian Business Park
Braunstone Town
Leicester LE19 1YG
Tel: (0116) 282 0400
Fax: (0116) 282 0401

Essex
Bellway House
1 Rainsford Road
Chelmsford
Essex CM1 2PZ
Tel: (01245) 259 989
Fax: (01245) 259 996
DX: 121935 Chelmsford 6

North East
Bellway House, Kings Park
Kingsway North
Team Valley, Gateshead
Tyne and Wear 
NE11 0JH
Tel: (0191) 482 8800
Fax: (0191) 491 4537
DX: 745710 Gateshead 7

North London
Bellway House
Bury Street, Ruislip
Middlesex HA4 7SD
Tel: (01895) 671 100
Fax: (01895) 671 111

North West
Bellway House
2 Alderman Road
Liverpool L24 9LR
Tel: (0151) 486 2900
Fax: (0151) 336 9393

Northern Home Counties
Oak House
Woodlands Business Park
Breckland, Linford Wood
Milton Keynes MK14 6EY
Tel: (01908) 328 800
Fax: (01908) 328 801
DX: 729383 Milton Keynes 16

Scotland
Bothwell House
Hamilton Business Park
Caird Street
Hamilton ML3 0QA
Tel: (01698) 477 440
Fax: (01698) 477 441
DX: HA13 Hamilton

South East
Bellway House
London Road North
Merstham
Surrey RH1 3YU
Tel: (01737) 644 911
Fax: (01737) 646 319

Thames Gateway
Osprey House
Crayfields Business Park
New Mill Road
Orpington
Kent BR5 3QJ
Tel: (01689) 886 400
Fax: (01689) 886 410

Wales
Alexander House
Excelsior Road
Western Avenue
Cardiff CF14 3AT
Tel: (029) 2054 4700
Fax: (029) 2054 4701

Wessex
Bellway House
Embankment Way
Castleman Business Centre
Ringwood
Hampshire BH24 1EU
Tel: (01425) 477 666
Fax: (01425) 474 382  
DX:  45710 Ringwood

West Midlands
Bellway House
Relay Point
Relay Drive, Tamworth
Staffordshire B77 5PA
Tel: (01827) 255 755
Fax: (01827) 255 766
DX: 717023 Tamworth

Designed and produced by Radley Yeldar (www.ry.com) using the paperless proofing system Wizardry.

Bellway p.l.c. are committed to caring for the environment and looking for sustainable ways to minimise our impact on it. 
This report has been printed on Core Silk, a paper which is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council®.

The paper is made at a mill with EMAS and ISO 14001 environmental management system accreditation.

This report was printed using vegetable oil based inks by a CarbonNeutral® printer certified to ISO 14001
environmental management system and registered to EMAS theEco Management Audit Scheme.

FSC – Forest Stewardship Council. This ensures there is an audited chain of custody from the 
tree in the well-managed forest through to the finished document in the printing factory.

ISO 14001 – A pattern of control for an environmental management system against which 
an organisation can be credited by a third party.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

1

Business Review

Financial Highlights

Completed sales  
(homes)   
+6.2%

Average selling price  
(£) 
+6.3%

Total Group revenue  
(£m)
+13.3%

Operating margin  
(%)
+34.1%

Profit before taxation  
(£m)
+56.8%

Earnings per ordinary  
share (p)     
+57.8%

Total dividend per  
ordinary share (p)     
+60.0%

Net asset value per  
ordinary share (p)
+5.1%

Forward order book at  
30 September (£m)
+4.7%

Business Review

1  Financial Highlights
3  Chairman’s Statement
7 

 Chief Executive’s Operating 
Review

15  Corporate Responsibility Policy
16   2012 Corporate Responsibility 

Statement

19   Key Performance Indicators 

(Non-Financial)
21  Environmental Policy
22  Group Finance Director’s Review
26  Operating Risk Statement
Governance

28  Board of Directors
29  Advisers
30   Chairman's Statement on 
Corporate Governance
31  Report of the Directors
39   Report of the Board on Directors’ 

Remuneration

48   Statement of Directors’ 

Responsibilities in respect of the 
Annual Report and Accounts
49   Independent Auditor’s Report 
to the Members of Bellway p.l.c.

Accounts

50  Group Income Statement
50   Statements of Comprehensive 

Income

51  Statements of Changes in Equity
53  Balance Sheets
54  Cash Flow Statements
55  Accounting Policies
60  Notes to the Accounts

Other Information

80  Five Year Record
81  Shareholder Information
86  Notice of Annual General Meeting
89  Glossary
IBC Principal Offices

201220112010768.31,149.51,004.2886.120122011201044.4105.367.2201220112010163,175186,648175,61320122011201029.765.541.520122011201010.020.012.52012201120106.711.48.52012201120104,5955,2264,922201220112010396.7438.4418.82012201120108569338882

DESIGNED
and built
to meet

local
needs

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

3

‘‘
Bellway” ... has delivered ... “its 
third successive year of growth 
in volume, average selling price 
and operating margin” ... “as a 
result, profit before tax has risen 
by 57% to £105.3 million.”

Business Review

Chairman’s Statement

INTRODuCTION

I am pleased to report, in respect of my last full year as 
Chairman, that consumer demand for new homes has 
shown continued resilience and this, coupled with stability 
in the mortgage market, has enabled Bellway to deliver 
its third successive year of growth in volume, average 
selling price and operating margin. The Group has 
achieved this growth primarily due to the increasing 
proportion of completions derived from new sites 
acquired since the downturn. As a result, profit before 
tax has risen by 57% to £105.3 million.

The Board remains mindful of concerns in the wider 
economy and therefore maintains a cautious approach 
towards gearing and employs strict capital disciplines 
with regard to land acquisition. Due to this approach, 
the improvement in profitability has been achieved 
with an average of only £21.9 million net bank debt 
throughout the year, whilst the Group’s return on capital 
has increased to 10.1% from 7.0% last year. Against this 
backdrop of continued growth and low net debt, I am 
pleased to report that the Board is proposing to increase 
the final dividend by 59% to 14.0p per ordinary share, 
resulting in a total dividend for the year of 20.0p per 
ordinary share. This continues Bellway’s policy of always 
paying an annual dividend to shareholders, with almost 
one third of earnings being returned in respect of the 
year ended 31 July 2012.

TRADING AND RESulTS

Consumer demand for new homes is strengthened by 
our ability to offer a range of selling incentives and this, 
combined with a programme of new site openings, has 
enabled the Group to legally complete the sale of 5,226 
homes (2011 – 4,922), an increase of 6.2% compared 
to last year. The average selling price of these homes 
has risen by 6.3% to £186,648 (2011 – £175,613), the 
highest the Group has ever achieved. This has resulted 
in housing turnover rising in the year by 12.8% to 
£975.4 million.

The growth in both volume and average selling price 
has been driven by the Group's strong performance 
in the south of the country, particularly in London, with 
our southern divisions accounting for 63% (2011 – 61%) 
of housing turnover in the year. The increase in volume 
and average selling price has been further strengthened 
due to the increase in private completions, which have 
risen by 13.4% from 3,843 to 4,358 homes. 

Other turnover in the year was £28.8 million which, 
when combined with housing turnover of £975.4 million, 
resulted in total growth in turnover of 13.3% for the 
financial year to £1,004.2 million. 

The operating margin continues to improve and has 
increased to 11.4%, from 8.5% last year, as the Group 
continues to deliver a greater proportion of completions 
from higher margin sites acquired since the downturn, 
whilst simultaneously maintaining robust cost controls. 
As a consequence, operating profit has increased by 52% 
to £114.6 million compared with £75.2 million in the 
previous year. The operating margin in the second half 
of the financial year reached 12.5%. Net finance charges 
total £9.3 million (2011 – £8.0 million), resulting in profit 
before tax of £105.3 million, an increase of 57% on the 
previous year. Basic earnings per share have risen by 58% 
to 65.5p per share. 

1

1  Kings Wood Park, Epping, Surrey

2   Lee Fields, Royston, 
South Yorkshire

3   Sunbeam Gardens, Coventry, 

West Midlands

2

3

4

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Business Review
Chairman’s Statement (continued)

The balance sheet remains strong, with modest net bank 
debt of £40.6 million at 31 July 2012, which when 
combined with the Group’s £20 million preference 
shares, represents gearing of only 5.3%. Land creditors 
remain relatively low at only £120.6 million and, with 
bank facilities of £300 million, the Group retains its 
capacity to grow. The net asset value of 933p per 
ordinary share is a new year end record for the Group.

DIvIDEND

The Board is proposing to increase the final dividend 
by 59% from 8.8p to 14.0p per ordinary share. 
This produces a total dividend for the year of 20.0p, 
an increase of 60% compared with the previous year 
and this is covered 3.3 times by earnings. 

The final dividend will be paid on 16 January 2013 
to all ordinary shareholders on the Register of 
Members on 14 December 2012. The ex-dividend 
date is 12 December 2012.

PEOPlE

The skills and commitment of all those who work for 
and with the Group are critical to the success of the 
business. I would like to express the Board’s gratitude 
to all the Group’s employees, sub-contractors and other 
partners for their effort and commitment which has 
contributed to the ongoing growth of Bellway.

BOARD CHANGES

As previously announced, I will be retiring as non-
executive Chairman on 31 January 2013 and would like 
to thank the Board, our employees and all connected 
with Bellway for their tremendous support throughout 
my 51 years service with the Group. 

I will be replaced by the current Chief Executive, John 
Watson, who will become non-executive Chairman with 
effect from 1 February 2013 and he will be succeeded by 
Ted Ayres, the current Operations Director, who has been 
with Bellway for over ten years.

I would like to take this opportunity to wish both John 
and Ted every success in their new roles and look forward 
to them continuing their significant contributions to the 
Group in the years to come.

OuTlOOK

Reservations since 31 July 2012 have remained in line 
with expectations and ahead of last year assisted by the 
availability of the government’s recently introduced 
NewBuy scheme, which provides up to 95% loan to value 
mortgage products in England. Assuming support from 
government is maintained and consumer demand follows 
a similar pattern to last year, the Board intends to maintain 
its strategy of growth in volume, average selling price and 
margin via a combination of changes in mix, together with 
the ongoing increase in the proportion of completions 
from newly acquired, higher margin land. This should 
allow the Group to continue to deliver sustainable and 
responsible growth in net asset value whilst maintaining 
annual dividend payments to shareholders commensurate 
with earnings growth.

Howard Dawe

Chairman 
15 October 2012

1

3

2

4

1   Interior at Cherry Orchard, 

Weston Favell, Northamptonshire

5

2   The Avenues, Uddingston, 

South Lanarkshire

3   Boundary Park, Wolverhampton, 

West Midlands

4   Sales Adviser Lee Blackmore 
at Potters Mews, Cardiff
5   The Water Tower, London 

Borough of Lambeth

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

5

RE-dEVElOPinG
bROWnFiEld
sites

6

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

7

‘‘
The Group’s average selling 
price has increased to 
£186,648” ... representing “an 
average annual increase of 
6.6% since July 2009.”

Business Review

Chief Executive’s 
Operating Review

CONTINuING OuR THREE 
PRONGED STRATEGY
There is an increasing realisation that more housebuilding 
is a catalyst for growth in the UK and with the assistance 
of government initiatives in the new homes market, we 
remain optimistic and believe that our business model will 
make the most of gradually improving market conditions.

At the start of the year the Group set itself a target of 
improving returns by growing volumes, average selling 
price and operating margin whilst, simultaneously, 
maintaining strict capital disciplines, thereby improving 
the return on capital employed.

Even though the national output of new homes 
is reported to be at or near an all time low of 
approximately 120,000 homes, Bellway has now achieved 
three consecutive years of increased volume output. 
We ended the year under review with completions 
up by 6.2% to 5,226 homes. This was supported by an 
increase in the completion of private homes of 13.4% 
to 4,358. This volume growth is primarily derived from 
increasing the average number of sales outlets to 208 
from 195, having opened 40 new outlets during the year. 
This increase was supported by a stronger market in the 
south of England where the Group continues to benefit 
from exposure to the London boroughs. Completions to 
Housing Associations declined to 868 (2011 – 1,079) of 
which 608 were in the south.

In addition to increased volume, revenue growth is 
also being achieved as the Group’s average selling price 
has increased to £186,648 (2011 – £175,613). This 
represents an average annual increase of 6.6% since 
July 2009, during a period of nil house price inflation. 
The average selling price has increased in the north by 
4.8% to £151,376 and in the south, by 5.9% to £216,031. 
The average selling price of private homes exceeded 
£200,000 for the first time and is up 4.6% to £200,287 
compared to the previous year. The Group has 
benefited from a number of private completions from 
high value sites such as Sunningdale in Berkshire and 
Crouch End in north London where the average 
selling price is £433,000 and £371,000 respectively. 
The average selling price of Housing Association 
homes was broadly similar to last year at £118,171. 

The operating margin has increased from 8.5% to 11.4% 
and is supported by strong control of the cost base, 
together with some 55% of completions during the year 
coming from higher profit margin sites, acquired since 
2008, compared with 27% in the previous year. 

The effect of growth in volume, average selling price 
and operating margin has resulted in an increase of 
57% in profit before tax to £105.3 million from £67.2 
million the previous year.

lAND BANK AND FuTuRE 
MARGIN GROwTH
With a strong balance sheet and £300 million of bank 
facilities currently in place the Group’s land teams are 
expanding and have been able to acquire land at gross 
margins in excess of 20%. Our approach to land buying 
is governed, not only by the gross margin but also by the 
capital required to develop each new outlet, the period 
of the development and the anticipated sales rate. 
Minimum targets are therefore set specifically in relation 
to the return on capital employed which, if achieved, will 
result in enhanced shareholder return. 

1

2

1  The Ridings, Shalbourne,Wiltshire

2   Claire Callender who moved to 

Gelli’r Rhedyn, Fforestfach, Swansea 
and her sister Stephanie who lives at 
our development at Parc Penderri, 
Penllergaer, Swansea

3

3  Bellefield, Liverpool, Merseyside 

Completed sales (homes)

5,226 
+6.2%

8

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Bellway developments 
in london boroughs
‘‘
the Group continues to benefit from 
exposure to the London boroughs.”

North London

Enfield

Barnet

Harrow

Haringey

waltham 
Forest

Redbridge

Hillingdon

Brent

Camden

Hackney

Ealing

Islington

Newham

Tower
Hamlets

Hammersmith 
& Fulham

City of 
westminster

City of 
lONDON

2 

5

Kensington & 
Chelsea

2 

Greenwich

Hounslow

Richmond upon Thames

wandsworth

lambeth

Southwark

lewisham

2 

Merton

Kingston 
upon 
Thames

Sutton

Croydon

Bromley

South East

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

9

1

1   Limehouse Lock, Limehouse, London Borough of Tower Hamlets

2   New Festival Quarter roof garden, Poplar, London Borough of 

Tower Hamlets

3  Moselle Place, Hornsey, London Borough of Haringey

2

3

25   Current Sites

25   Future Sites

Havering

Barking & 
 Dagenham

Bexley

Essex

Thames Gateway

10

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

1

1  Leavesden development site,  
  Hertfordshire

Business Review
Chief Executive’s Operating  
Review (continued)

Whilst cash expenditure on land and land creditors 
increased to £305 million, a conservative approach 
to gearing is still being maintained in light of current 
market conditions. The short and medium-term land 
bank, excluding long-term land, amounted to 31,136 
plots at the end of July 2012 (2011 – 31,086). This is 
divided into 17,636 plots owned with detailed planning 
permission and a further 13,500 plots which are either 
owned or contracted pending a planning permission, 
which we refer to as the ‘pipeline’. We have acquired 
some 54% of the short and medium-term plots since 
the housing market downturn and the short and 
medium-term land bank is evenly spread across 
the country.

During the year, 4,776 new plots were brought into 
the land bank with planning permission, of which 2,304 
plots were new acquisitions and a further 2,472 plots 
were converted from the pipeline after receiving 
planning permission. 

The average plot cost at the start of the financial year was 
£35,800 and this increased to £39,000 at the year end. 
Sites located in areas such as Lambeth and Fulham, in 
south and south west London respectively, carry higher 
plot costs but, similarly, higher selling prices compared to 
the Group’s current average selling price. Despite this high 
land plot cost, the gross margins and return on capital 
disciplines referred to earlier are not compromised. 

In addition, our long-term land holdings, typically held 
under option, represent some 2,800 acres. Within this 
part of the land bank are 3,900 plots which are currently 
allocated in emerging plans, of which 1,773 plots are 
presently the subject of planning applications. The Group 
had, at 31 July 2012, agreed terms for the acquisition of 
a further 4,700 plots, all at a variety of stages within the 
planning process and of these, circa 500 plots have been 
acquired since the year end.

DIvISIONAl PERFORMANCE

The current structure of 13 divisions is managed by our 
Regional Chairmen who report to the Operations 
Director. We construct and sell homes throughout the 
UK with the exception of the north of Scotland, the 
south west of England and Northern Ireland. 

The northern divisions, covering a geographical area 
from the Midlands up to central Scotland, legally 
completed 2,375 homes, an increase of 30 compared 
to the previous year. The North East and East Midlands 
divisions performed well, increasing volumes to 525 and 
409 completions respectively. The average selling price in 
the northern divisions was £151,376, an increase of 4.8%, 
driven largely by changes in product mix.

 
Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

11

2

2  Customer care in action

The seven divisions trading in the south benefited from 
a stronger market and accounted for 63% of housing 
turnover, representing 2,851 homes, an increase of 274 
homes on the previous year. Our Thames Gateway 
division retains a strong presence in and around the east 
of London where 725 homes were legally completed. 
Overall, the average selling price of the southern 
divisions increased by 5.9% to £216,031. The average 
selling price in the South East division is now the highest 
in the Group at just over £286,000. 

CuSTOMER CARE AND THE wIDER 
COMMuNITY
During the course of a year we monitor customer 
satisfaction levels by employing an independent company 
who benchmark our performance. We continue to 
generate strong satisfaction scores which, this year, 
reached 93.8% in respect of ‘Recommend Bellway to a 
Friend’. Additionally, Head Office management contacts 
customers directly on a regular basis with any findings or 
concerns reported to divisional management. We aim to 
respond to customer complaints within seven days, with 
a 24 hour helpline in the case of emergencies, and the 
Group has been awarded a 5 star rating by the House 
Builders Federation following a survey of our customers. 
Every year the NHBC run a Pride in the Job Award for 
site construction staff and this year we received 23 
awards which is our fourth consecutive year of 
improvement. This reflects the amount of training being 
undertaken in the business, especially at site level, which 
is set to increase in the future. In addition, for the second 
year running, our East Midlands division has won the 
NHBC Regional Award for the East of England. We 
have seen a fall in our accident rate per employee 
during the year and no statutory notices have been 
served on the Group now for over three years. During 
the year five sites received commendation awards in 
respect of health and safety standards.

The Group seeks to ensure that all employees and 
sub-contractors on our building sites carry a CSCS 
qualification, further highlighting our commitment to 
a trained workforce. 

Looking forward, whilst we need to keep customers 
as our primary focus, we must also work with all 
stakeholders to manage the effects of our operations 
on the environment. Progress during the year, with 
regard to corporate responsibility, is published in full 
on our website. The Group has engaged the services 
of an external consultant to advise on all corporate 
responsibility matters including benchmarking, setting 
targets and objectives and reporting.

In order to minimise the effect on the local community 
ever increasing consultation is taking place both before 
and during the development process. We have also now 
registered some 128 sites with Considerate 
Constructors, an independent third party body which 
assesses our working practices and ensures the 
minimum of disruption during the construction period.

MARKET PlACE AND OuTlOOK

In March 2012, NewBuy, a new sales incentive, was 
introduced which is underwritten by the government 
and allows buyers to acquire new build houses and 
apartments, provided they are able to access a 5% 
deposit. This was in response to a continued lack of 
availability of affordable high loan to value mortgages, 
particularly for first time buyers, despite strong demand 
in the market place. Encouragingly, this incentive was 
used to reserve 133 homes in the period up to 31 July 
2012. A similar scheme was introduced into Scotland 
during September 2012. The Group has continued to 
operate a part-exchange scheme and this has accounted 
for 13% of completions in the financial year ended July 
2012. In addition, the use of FirstBuy in England and 
other Group shared equity schemes in Scotland and 
Wales accounted for only 6% of total completions, 
a reduction from 10% in the previous year.

12

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Business Review
Chief Executive’s Operating  
Review (continued)

These and other incentives were employed throughout 
the course of the year to support the weekly sales rate 
of 101 per week (2011 – 93). This represents an increase 
of 9% in the sales rate and can be attributed to stability 
in both the mortgage market and unemployment levels 
in the UK and consequently, cancellation rates have 
remained stable at around 13%. 

In addition to increasing the volume of completions 
during the course of the year, the enhanced sales rate 
has resulted in an order book at the end of the year 
rising in volume terms to 2,533 from 2,497 in 2011. 
The average selling price of the order book was up 2% 
to £174,176, representing some £441.2 million in value 
terms, an increase of £14.4 million on the previous year. 

The recent government announcement on housing 
issues highlighted a number of initiatives to stimulate 
housebuilding, some of which will have implications and 
opportunities for the Group. These initiatives include the 
proposed extension of FirstBuy, the increase in the 
amount of public land made available for development 
purposes, the review of Section 106 Agreements entered 
into prior to 6 April 2010 and a capital programme for 
private, rented and affordable housing. We welcome 
these initiatives, the full effects of which will become clear 
in the coming months.

We are targeting to increase the number of sales outlets, 
once again, by around 5% by the end of this financial year 
and as more new land comes into production, this will 
underpin our strategy of increasing volumes, average 
selling price and operating margin. This, combined with a 
strong balance sheet, will leave the Group well positioned 
to further enhance net asset value and shareholder 
return in the new financial year.

John Watson

Chief Executive
15 October 2012

1

2

1   Old Killingworth Manor, 

Killingworth, Tyne and Wear

2   Interior at The Old Stables, 

Rochester, Kent 

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

13

3

4

3   The Singh family who used 
part-exchange to move to 
Grosvenor Park, Barnsley, 
South Yorkshire

4   Site Manager Graham Towler 
(left) and Group Health and 
Safety Manager Nigel Squires at 
Park View, Darlington, Teesside 

14

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Building
vibrant
and
sustainable
places
to live and work

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

15

1

2

1  Forest Walk, callander, perthshire

2   George carey church of england 
primary school, barking riverside, 
london borough of barking & 
Dagenham, built as part of a 
section 106 planning agreement

Business Review

Corporate  
Responsibility Policy

through sustainable construction we aim to create  
new communities and lasting environments for people 
now and in the future.

bellway believes that its reputation is critical to the 
creation of long-term value for its shareholders.  
We recognise that financial success is reinforced by  
our behaviour beyond the balance sheet. protecting 
and enhancing our reputation and social licence to 
operate are significant elements of sustained financial 
success.

at bellway, the term corporate responsibility 
describes how we manage the environmental, social 
and economic effects of our business.

through bellway’s commitment to corporate 
responsibility we: 

 „  engage and respond to stakeholders, including 

shareholders, employees, customers, government 
and communities that we affect thereby improving 
internal and external awareness.

 „  comply with all relevant legislation as a minimum 

standard.

 „  work towards recognised good practice in 
sustainability and corporate responsibility.

 „  treat all employees fairly and invest in training for 
the medium and long-term to bring out the best 
in our people.

 „  provide a healthy and safe environment in which 
to work through an effective health and safety 
management system. 

 „  demonstrate continual improvement in our  
approach to sustainable developments  
(in both design and practice).

 „  recognise and respond to the challenges and 

opportunities that are presented by climate change.

 „  invest in the communities we develop in a way that 

contributes to local community needs.

 „  manage our environmental footprint and aim 

to enhance our performance in areas where we 
operate, particularly in relation to energy and waste.

 „  consider and respond to the social and 

environmental effects of the homes we develop 
and communities that we create.

the following structure has been put in place to achieve 
these commitments:

 „  the chief executive is responsible for this 

policy and reports to the board and external 
stakeholders on the performance of all corporate 
responsibility matters.

 „  the chief executive is supported by the 

corporate responsibility Group which includes 
senior employees from within the Group who are 
responsible for the development and review of  
this policy. they in turn delegate to managers within 
each of the divisions who are responsible 
for implementation.

bellway is committed to reporting annually on its 
approach to corporate responsibility and has established 
key performance indicators to enable others to judge 
our performance. this policy does not replace existing 
policies in relation to environmental issues and health and 
safety, but has been developed to work in conjunction 
with them. all policies are available on the bellway 
website www.bellway.co.uk and are reviewed annually.

16

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

the business environment is constantly evolving 
and recent years have seen an increasing emphasis 
on corporate responsibility. this evolution has been 
reflected in mounting pressure on business for 
greater transparency and accountability in 
environmental and social performance alongside 
economic performance.

Business Review

2012 Corporate 
Responsibility 
Statement

Over the last 12 months the focus on climate change 
has continued to grow and the effect of climate change 
on the planet is a cause for concern which is genuine 
and must be taken seriously. the way we live consumes 
natural resources and it is up to all of us to manage 
these resources prudently. 

Our table of Key performance indicators (‘Kpis’) 
demonstrates bellway’s performance covering a period 
of up to five years against a range of headings and shows 
the progress we are making in, for example, reducing 
waste and introducing more renewable technology. 

this year we will be introducing new measures into 
our corporate responsibility programme to improve 
the collection and reporting of data and we will be 
assisted by a third party adviser, trucost, who are a 
leading provider of environmental information.

in 2009 we published five strategic principles that govern 
our approach to creating sustainable living environments:

 „ protection of the environment in which we work.

 „ prudent use of natural resources.

 „  creating environments that have the potential  

to augment economic growth and employment 
opportunities.

 „  social considerations that recognise the needs 

of a changing and advancing population.

 „  the development of communities that will 

endure and where people will aspire to live.

the following examples demonstrate how bellway 
is performing in relation to these principles.

Water management is now a national priority. 
last year 110 sites were developed using sustainable 
Urban Drainage systems (‘sUDs’). in rochester, Kent, 
our development used porous paving which provides 
several benefits. it reduces the volume of water run-off 
and therefore negates the need for the construction 
of new sewers. it also reduces the pressure on existing 
water courses while replenishing natural ground water 
reserves and captures pollutants especially hydrocarbons 
in the sub-base that would otherwise have entered 
drainage systems.

at Hither Green in london, we are developing a former 
biscuit factory. prior to development, the site was 
covered in hard standing, allowing substantial water 
run-off. the redevelopment of the site has allowed 
us the opportunity to introduce a water management 
system using cellular blocks that provides underground 
water attenuation using flow valves that permit water to 
enter the public sewers at a reduced rate. the scheme 
has been designed to cope with a one in one hundred 
year storm together with a 30% increase to 
accommodate future climate change.

CReAtInG envIROnmentS tO 
AuGment eCOnOmIC GROwth And 
emPlOyment OPPORtunItIeS
this year saw the first home owners moving into our 
large brownfield regeneration scheme at barking in east 
london. this site was an industrial area once used for 
electricity power generation. the site has over half a mile 
frontage on to the river thames. Our initial phase of 
development, comprising 139 social and 157 private 
homes, is currently in the course of development. 
in conjunction with our partners and well ahead of our 
legal obligations we have contributed substantial funds 
towards the development of the rivergate centre which 
incorporates a new primary school, a place of worship 
and community facilities such as meeting rooms and 
coffee shops. Jobs have been created during the 
construction of this large facility and permanent job 
opportunities are available to help with the day to day 
running of the centre. needless to say a new school 
constructed early in the development process goes a 
long way to creating a sustainable environment.

PROteCtIOn Of the envIROnment 
And PRudent uSe Of nAtuRAl 
ReSOuRCeS
all timber used in the construction of our homes 
is sourced from managed forestry. Floor coverings 
and floor joists are constructed from waste timber 
products. Our underground drainage suppliers are 
now using up to 50% of regraded polymers in the 
manufacturing process. these are examples of supply 
chain management reducing our reliance on the use 
of natural resources. 

SOCIAl COnSIdeRAtIOnS tO meet the 
needS Of A GROwInG POPulAtIOn
almost 800 homes have been constructed during 
the course of the year to lifetime Homes standard. 
this standard means that the design of the home is 
flexible and can be adapted to changing life-time needs. 
Floor joists are constructed to accommodate the 
possibility of a lift or hoist. the downstairs Wc will 
typically be designed to accommodate a future shower. 
there were 1,614 homes constructed last year on sites 
where the layout was designed using a ‘secured by 

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

17

Unlike solar hot water panels photovoltaic (‘pv’) panels 
generate electricity from sunlight which can then be used 
to power household appliances. last year we installed 
592 pv panels which, we estimate, reduced cO2 
emissions by around 710 tonnes.

wORkfORCe

the building industry relies heavily on the abilities of 
its skilled craftsmen and a large number of our 
employees have worked for bellway for many years, 
having started their careers with the Group. We use 
several measurements to judge the performance of 
our workforce, including customer satisfaction which in 
respect of the metric ‘recommend bellway to a friend’, 
this year reached 93.8%. in recognition of our focus on 
customer satisfaction, we were, this year, awarded 5 star 
status in the HbF customer satisfaction survey. every 
year the nHbc audit our sites and award pride in the 
Job Quality awards and this year, 23 of our site 
managers received an award and we are particularly 
proud in this regard of Gary sidney, a site Manager 
from our east Midlands division, who received a 
regional award for his work at our poppyfields 
development in nottinghamshire. this marks our fourth 
consecutive year of improvement.

the health and safety of our employees, sub-contractors, 
customers and members of the general public is a key 
priority of our business and a copy of our Health and 
safety policy is displayed in each bellway site and office. 
a system of monitoring our work places, including 
areas open to members of the public and methods of 
work are continually monitored by both our in-house 
health and safety team and external health and safety 
consultants to ensure risks are being identified and are 
either removed or reduced to the lowest practical level.

We continue to run specific initiatives to raise health and 
safety awareness. this year, in particular, we are targeting 
the safety of operatives engaged in off-loading materials 
from delivery vehicles by handing out safety leaflets and 
displaying posters on-site to promote best practice.

Our commitment to high standards of health and safety 
has been recognised by both rospa and the nHbc. 
During the year four of our sites received commendation 
awards for health and safety from the nHbc and, 
in addition, we have received a silver award from rospa, 
recognising the Group’s robust health and safety 
management practices.

ChARItABle dOnAtIOnS

the company operates in a variety of different 
communities. Despite, and because of, the harsh 
economic climate, bellway continues to support a range 
of charities and this year we have donated £45,875 
covering a broad range of areas, but with a particular 
focus on housing, health, young people and the 
environment. in addition, our employees also operate 
their own charitable initiatives, including, for example, 
dress down days. 

Further information concerning our approach to 
social responsibility can be found on our website 
www.bellway.co.uk/corporate-responsibility.

Design’ initiative. this creates an environment where the 
public realm in particular is safeguarded as far as is 
reasonably practicable from vandalism and theft.

the develOPment Of COmmunItIeS 

almost 69% of our developments last year were 
constructed on brownfield land, namely land with 
a previous use and our site at eastleigh, near 
southampton, is a typical example. it was previously a 
cable manufacturing facility with 12,500 square feet of 
office accommodation. it is now being re-developed with 
over 300 new homes and the office block is being 
brought back into beneficial use. a travel plan is being 
put into place which will subsidise the cost of bicycles 
for residents. 

Our development on the south bank of the river tyne 
at Gateshead, which was once a redundant railway 
siding, is now being re-developed with a mixture of 
almost 700 town houses and apartments together with 
a three acre office park. this site is within walking 
distance of the iconic sage building and a town centre 
that is undergoing large scale re-development. Our 
development has views over the river and will provide a 
safe and attractive new community on what was once 
an industrial eyesore.

ReduCInG wASte

One of the key objectives of our environmental policy 
is to minimise any adverse affects on the environment 
and we believe by conducting our operations in a socially 
responsible way both the community and bellway will 
prosper. as detailed in the table of Kpis on page 19, over 
the last five years the amount of waste being taken to 
land fill sites has reduced. a simple measure of this 
performance is the number of building skips used for 
every home sold. Managing spoil not only reduces our 
cost it reduces the amount of waste material leaving the 
site and also saves the company substantial sums of 
money where the cost of hiring a skip can be as much 
as £200. On a site in nottinghamshire we have 
adjusted land levels to retain some 50,000 cubic 
metres of spoil that would otherwise have gone to 
landfill. crushing demolition material on site to be 
recycled as hardcore under footpaths and roads 
is now common practice. 

eneRGy effICIenCy/SuPPly ChAIn

Our policy also recognises that we need to respond 
to the challenges and opportunities that are represented 
by climate change. Our environmental aims are 
communicated throughout the Group, including 
appropriate sub-contractors and suppliers. this year, in 
conjunction with our suppliers, we have been trialling a 
new building block which, during manufacture, is fired at 
a reduced temperature compared to traditional concrete 
blocks and so emits less harmful cO2. in addition, each 
block is constituted from 20% recycled sawdust, paper 
and minerals. We found that using this block reduces 
the construction process by approximately six weeks for 
an average sized home. trials are still being undertaken 
but we are hopeful in future it will be used more widely 
throughout the Group. 

last year we installed 514 solar hot water panels, 
which save energy and reduce fuel bills for occupiers 
and as a renewable energy source they also offset 
carbon emissions. according to the energy saving 
trust an average system will save around 250kg of cO2 
per year when displacing a gas heating system. We 
estimate that, as a result of installing these systems, over 
a 12 month period, we prevented around 128.5 tonnes 
of cO2 being emitted in to the atmosphere.

18

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

1

2

3

1  Work in progress on new homes 
at the alders, Wolverhampton, 
West Midlands 

2  pupils from sayes court primary 

school visit the Oaks, addlestone, 
surrey

3  preparing a home for inspection 

by its new owner

Business Review

key Performance Indicators (non-financial)

We use these non-financial Kpis to help us measure our performance against our corporate responsibility objectives. Financial Kpis are set 
out at page 23 of this report.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

19

Key Performance Indicators

Commercial

total number of homes sold

number of homes sold to registered providers

number of plots with planning permission

number of sites registered with the considerate constructors scheme(1)

number of homes built to lifetime Homes standards(2)

Environmental

percentage of homes developed on brownfield sites

number of homes per hectare

number of ecoHomes with at least ‘very Good’ rating

number of homes built to code level 3

number of homes built to code level 4(3)

number of homes built with renewable energy technology

percentage of homes built using timber frame

number of homes built using thin joint technology(3)

Measure of waste (number of 7m3 skips per home sold)

number of active sites with a biodiversity plan in place(4)

number of compliance breaches

number of homes with energy efficient lighting(3)

number of homes with rainwater harvesting(3)

number of homes with waste recycling facilities(4)

number of current sites with sUDs designed into the scheme(1)

number of trees planted(2)

number of current sites with car clubs(1)

number of homes with access to a cycle store(3)

number of sites within 500 metres of a transport node(4)

Employees

employee turnover(5) 
number of site workers (including sub-contractors) accredited with cscs 
cards

number of apprentices employed

number of nHbc pride in the Job awards received

Health and Safety

Financial year ended 31 July

2008

2009

2010

2011

2012

6,556

1,337

4,380

980

4,595

943

4,922

1,079

5,226

868

22,500

19,260

17,602

18,086

17,636

–

–

79%

63

1,194

48

–

307

30%

–

4.30

–

6

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

56

–

84%

67

786

428

–

636

23%

–

3.60

–

0

–

–

–

89

690

80%

63

480

1,186

–

1,653

15%

–

3.78

–

1

–

–

–

77

86

108

1,119

77%

59

693

1,371

36

128

798

69%

57

464

964

249

2,092

2,865

13%

126

3.44

–

1

3,973

224

–

89

5%

50

2.92

36

1

5,155

260

1,613

110

–

5

–

–

8,484

8,843

6,894

7

–

–

6

9

2,278

2,079

–

206

33.7%

65.2%

21.0%

13.8%

14.6%

1,042

1,793

3,489

4,037

3,622

149

20

30

15

33

18

43

22

69

23

rate of over three-day lost time accidents per 100,000 employees

980.18

973.24

945.18

767.90

761.18

number of health and safety prosecutions

Creating community value

0

1

0

0

0

Financial contributions under section 106 agreements

£17.0m

£2.0m £13.0m £30.9m £39.4m

Man hours contributed to charitable initiatives(4)

number of plots built to secured by Design principles(4)

number of work placements offered to local people in the last three years(4)
number of employment opportunities provided to tenants or residents in the 
last three years(4)

Stakeholder

percentage of customers who would recommend bellway to a friend 
(annualised)

number of suppliers/contractors who have worked for bellway for at least 
three years(2)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

191

1,614

91

58

80%

89%

86%

91%

94%

–

–

2,777

2,916

3,579

(1) 2009 was the first year of reporting. (2) 2010 was the first year of reporting. (3) 2011 was the first year of reporting. (4) 2012 was the first year of reporting. (5) includes redundancies.

20

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

1

2

1  solar panels at 

Waterside, leicester, 
leicestershire

2  trinity Green, Duston, 
northamptonshire

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

21

 „  consider the role that bellway can play in helping  
to contribute to the principles of sustainable 
development within the UK.

 „  recognise and respond to the challenges and 
opportunities that are presented by climate 
change. 

in addition to our key objectives, the Group has identified 
a number of specific priority areas upon which we 
particularly focus:

 „  consideration of environmental aspects in the 

selection and procurement of land for development, 
including implications for biodiversity and 
sustainable development.

 „  meeting and where possible, exceeding government 
targets for the redevelopment of brownfield land.

 „  influencing the design of sites, housing, and fittings  
to minimise the effects on both the natural and 
built environment.

 „  providing environmental benefits and minimising 
nuisance arising from construction activities and 
preventing pollution on development sites and 
surrounding areas.

 „  consideration of environmental issues within  

our corporate functions and everyday business  
decision-making processes.

the above statement will be balanced against economic 
considerations.

Business Review

environmental Policy

bellway is one of the largest housebuilding groups in 
the UK. the housebuilding process affects the 
environment by the use of land and consumption of 
resources throughout the development process. it is 
our objective to ensure that, at the conclusion of a 
development, an attractive and desirable new 
environment has been created that will be sustainable 
over time.

recognising that we have responsibilities, not only to 
limit the negative effects of our operations on the 
environment, but also to enhance it, this statement sets 
out our policies for managing the environmental 
aspects across our business.

Key objectives are to:

 „  minimise any deleterious effects on the environment 

and where possible to seek environmental 
enhancements, concentrating on areas where 
there is most room for improvement.

 „  aim to meet and, where practicable, exceed all 

relevant environmental legislation and regulations.

 „ improve our environmental performance. 

 „  set specific environmental objectives and periodically 
review progress against these objectives to ensure 
that bellway’s environmental aims and their 
importance are communicated throughout the 
Group, including to appropriate sub-contractors, 
suppliers and other parties, and that a copy of this 
policy statement is displayed in all bellway sites 
and offices.

22

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

‘‘‘‘
the Group has achieved 
growth in both earnings 
and net asset value whilst 
simultaneously increasing 
its annual dividend payment 
to shareholders.”

Business Review

Group finance 
director’s Review

GROuP SummARy

bellway is reporting a 56.8% increase in profit before 
tax to £105.3 million (2011 – £67.2 million), having 
completed its third successive year of growth in volume, 
average selling price and operating margin.

the Group has achieved this growth in profitability whilst 
simultaneously improving the return on capital employed 
(‘rOce’) from 7.0% to 10.1%. the improvement in 
rOce has been achieved whilst increasing investment in 
land in order to facilitate future growth in both earnings 
and net asset value. the increased investment in land is 
set against a backdrop of low net debt, having ended the 
year with gearing of only 5.3%, including the Group’s 
preference shares of £20 million.

the Group now has bank facilities of £300 million, having 
renewed a bi-lateral facility with one of its major banking 
partners during the year. the growth in earnings, 
combined with this balance sheet strength has allowed 
the board to propose a 60% increase in the total 
dividend for the financial year ended 31 July 2012. the 
Group is therefore well positioned to maintain its policy 
of paying an annual dividend to shareholders and 
achieving future sustainable capital growth, whilst 
remaining mindful of wider economic conditions.

GROuP ReSultS

the Group achieved a 6.2% increase in the number of 
legal completions to 5,226 for the year to 31 July 2012 
(2011 – 4,922) and a 6.3% increase in the average selling 
price to £186,648 (2011 – £175,613). the increase in 
average selling price is primarily due to an increasing 
proportion of completions in the south, where the 
average selling price was £216,031 (2011 – £203,973), 
and a 13.4% increase in the number of private units 
across the Group with an average selling price of 
£200,287 (2011 – £191,492). 

as a result of the increase in completions and average 
selling price, revenue from sales of new homes increased 
by 12.8% from £864.4 million to £975.4 million. Other 
revenue of £28.8 million, which principally comprises land 
and ground rent sales, has increased by £7.1 million from 
£21.7 million. accordingly, total Group revenue increased 
by 13.3% from £886.1 million to £1,004.2 million. 

the following table provides additional information on the composition of homes sold and average selling price, 
analysed between north, south, private and social.

Homes sold (number)

Private

Social

Total

north

south

Group total

average selling price (£000)

north

south

Group average

2012

2,115

2,243

4,358

2012

159.9

238.4

200.3

2011

2,006

1,837

3,843

2012

260

608

868

2011

339

740

1,079

2012

2,375

2,851

5,226

Private

Social

Total

2011

153.1

233.5

191.5

2012

82.1

133.6

118.2

2011

93.5

130.8

119.1

2012

151.4

216.0

186.6

2011

2,345

2,577

4,922

2011

144.4

204.0

175.6

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

23

the gross margin has increased by 260 basis points 
to 16.1% (2011 – 13.5%) primarily because the 
proportion of completions from land acquired following 
the downturn, at margins in excess of 20%, has increased 
from 27% to 55%. the Group continues to sell units on 
land acquired prior to the downturn where the land 
value was written down to a gross margin of 5.5%, 
and at 31 July 2012 had 3,302 units remaining to sell. 

administrative expenses have decreased to 4.7% of 
revenue (2011 – 5.0%) as the operating divisions have 
achieved growth without significantly increasing their 
overhead base. in monetary terms, administrative 
expenses have increased slightly from £44.2 million 
to £47.5 million, as divisional teams are bolstered 
in order to facilitate future growth.

Overall the Group has increased operating profit 
by 52.4% to £114.6 million (2011– £75.2 million), 
representing a 290 basis points increase in operating 
margin to 11.4% (2011 – 8.5%). this improvement 
was more pronounced in the second half of the 
financial year where the Group achieved an operating 
margin of 12.5%.

fInAnCe COStS

net finance costs have increased by £1.3 million from 
£8.0 million to £9.3 million. the Group has benefited 
from a modest average net bank debt position of £21.9 
million during the year and net bank finance costs of 
£4.7 million (2011 – £2.8 million) representing interest, 
commitment fees payable on undrawn facilities and 
the arrangement fees associated with the renewal of 
£170 million of bi-lateral bank facilities agreed earlier 
in the year.

notional interest on land acquired on deferred 
payment terms has decreased slightly by £0.1 million 
to £3.0 million, whilst the interest payable on the Group’s 
£20 million of preference shares, repayable in april 2014, 
remains at £1.9 million. additionally, there is net 
interest income of £0.3 million (2011– net expense 
£0.2 million).

Profit before taxation*  
(£m)         

12.5p

+56.8%

Operating margin*  
(%)         

41.5p 
+34.1%

£67.2m £886.1m 

dividend per ordinary  
share (p)         
+60.0%

net asset value  
per ordinary share (p)
+5.1%

total Group revenue  
(£m)         

+13.3%

8.5%

earnings per ordinary  
share* (p)         
+57.8%
Operating margin*  
(%)

(2011): 8.5%

+0.0%

* pre-exceptional items.

201220112010768.31,149.51,004.220092008683.8886.120122011201044.4165.7105.32009200829.867.220122011201029.7104.265.52009200817.741.520122011201010.024.120.0200920089.012.52012201120106.716.111.4200920086.78.52012201120108568719332009200883988824

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Business Review
Group finance director’s Review 
(continued)

tAxAtIOn

the tax charge is £26.0 million on profit before tax of 
£105.3 million at an effective rate of 24.7% (2011– tax 
charge of £17.0 million at an effective rate of 25.3%). 
the effective rate is below the Group’s standard rate for 
the year of 25.3% (2011 – 27.3%) following conclusion 
of the prior year’s corporation tax returns.

eARnInGS PeR ShARe

basic earnings per ordinary share (‘eps’) have increased 
by almost 58% to 65.5p compared to 41.5p in 2011.

dIvIdend

the board is proposing an increase in the final dividend 
of 59.1% to 14.0p per ordinary share (2011 – 8.8p) 
producing a total dividend for the year of 20.0p 
compared to 12.5p for 2011. the total dividend 
is covered 3.3 times (2011 – 3.3 times).

BAlAnCe Sheet

the net assets attributable to shareholders increased 
by £59.8 million to £1,133.1 million (2011 – £1,073.3 
million), with net assets per ordinary share rising 
accordingly by 45p to 933p (2011 – 888p).

the Group holds 2,728 (2011 – 2,428) shared equity 
assets at a value of £35.1 million (2011 – £33.5 million), 
representing a significant discount to vacant possession 
value (note 14). private completions have increased by 
13.4% during the year, however this has been achieved 
whilst restricting the use of shared equity incentives to 
only 6% of completions (2011 – 10%). the Group’s total 
investment in shared equity assets represents only 3% of 
net asset value, thereby helping to minimise the amount 
of capital resource directed away from investment in 
potential land opportunities.

inventories have increased from £1,270.3 million to 
£1,399.8 million, reflecting the increased investment 
in land during the year, the rise in the average number 
of sites from 195 to 208, and continued investment 
in street scenes as demanded by customers prior to 
purchase. the Group ended the year with net bank 
debt of £40.6 million (2011 – net cash of £3.4 million) 
having spent £305 million (2011 – £250 million) on 
land and land creditors.

the valuation of the bellway p.l.c. 1972 pension scheme 
(the ‘scheme’) at 31 July 2012 shows an increase in 
the ias 19 deficit of £3.1 million to £11.5 million 
(2011 – £8.4 million), primarily as a result of the 
reduction in corporate bond rates during the year. 
this increase is after a cash contribution of £1.2 million 
paid by the Group into the scheme on 31 July 2012. 
the Group is expecting to make cash contributions 
totalling £1.2 million during the year ending 31 July 2013.

land creditors have increased from £83.2 million to 
£120.6 million but remain modest in comparison to the 
net assets of the business. the Group tries to use its 
relatively low cost of finance to its advantage by offering 
cash payments on legal completion to land vendors 
where appropriate, although deferred terms are used 
when this is a cost effective method of financing.

RetuRn On CAPItAl emPlOyed

rOce is a key metric used by the Group during the 
land acquisition process and for monitoring performance 
thereafter. the Group rOce has increased from 7.0% to 
10.1% in the year, reflecting the margin improvement 
arising from the higher proportion of completions 
achieved from post-downturn land acquisitions. 
the inclusion of land creditors as capital in the rOce 
calculation, thereby reflecting their longer term financing 
nature, has a minimal effect, reducing rOce to 9.3% 
at 31 July 2012 (2011 – 6.6%).

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

25

1

2

1 site compound

2 the Willows, canterbury, Kent

CAPItAl mAnAGement

tReASuRy POlICy And lIquIdIty RISk

Other than the proceeds obtained from the issue of 
ordinary shares and reinvestment of retained profits, 
the Group’s activities are financed principally through 
a combination of bank borrowings, cash in hand and its 
£20 million preference shares, redeemable in april 2014. 
During the year the Group renewed £170 million of 
bi-lateral bank facilities with its major banking partners. in 
addition, the Group often obtains deferred payment 
terms in its contracts for land purchases. the following 
table provides the composition of the capital structure 
of the business:

the Group’s treasury policy has, as its principal objective, 
the maintenance of flexible bank facilities in order to 
meet anticipated borrowing requirements. an internal 
cash forecasting system enables the Group to plan and 
assess its future treasury needs. relationships with banks 
and overall cash management are co-ordinated centrally. 

short-term cash surpluses are placed on deposit at 
competitive rates with high quality counterparties. Other 
than disclosed above, there are no financial instruments, 
derivatives or commodity contracts.

equity
preference shares
net bank debt
Capital 
employed

2012
£000

1,133.1
20.0
40.6

1,193.7

2011
£000

1,073.3
20.0
–

1,093.3

CRedIt RISk

the Group’s credit risk is largely alleviated as the vast 
majority of the Group’s sales are made on completion 
of a legal contract, at which point monies are received 
in exchange for transfer of legal title. those completions 
where shared equity incentives are used do represent 
some exposure to credit risk but this is small, given the 
high number of counterparties.

bank facilities which expire during the course of the 
following financial years are as follows:

InteReSt RAte RISk

by 31 July 2014
by 31 July 2015
by 31 July 2016
by 31 July 2017
TOTAL

£25 million
£125 million
£80 million
£70 million
£300 million

the board remains satisfied with the level of the Group’s 
borrowing facilities and whilst mindful of wider economic 
uncertainties, believe bellway’s balance sheet retains 
significant capacity for growth.

the Group’s attitude to interest rate risk is influenced by 
the existing and forecast conditions prevailing at the time 
that each new interest bearing instrument is entered 
into. this will determine, amongst other things, the term 
and whether a fixed or floating interest rate is obtained. 

OveRAll

the Group has achieved growth in both earnings and 
net asset value whilst simultaneously increasing its annual 
dividend payment to shareholders. the ongoing balance 
sheet strength, combined with the significant investment 
in land at higher post-downturn margins, means the 
Group is well positioned to continue to deliver 
improving returns to shareholders.

Keith Adey

Finance Director
15 October 2012

26

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Business Review

Operating Risk Statement

risk is a natural constituent of any business and the management of risk is a key operating component of the Group. 
the manner in which this is carried out is highly important to the long-term success of the business. the Group 
has identified, evaluated and put in place strategies to mitigate the principal risks faced by the business, which are 
shown in the table below:

Area of Risk

Description of Risk

Mitigation of Risk 

Land

Planning

Sales

the inability to source suitable land 
at satisfactory margins would have a 
detrimental effect on the Group’s land 
bank and consequently, its future 
success. 

  endeavour to ensure that a land bank with planning 
permission for at least three years’ construction 
programme is in place on a rolling basis. 

  thorough pre-purchase due diligence and viability 

assessments.

  authorisation of land purchases in line with robust 

Group procedures.

Delays and the increased complexity 
of the planning process hampers and 
slows the Group’s growth prospects.

  centralised and regional planning Directors provide 

advice and support to divisions to assist with 
progressing the planning permission process.

ensuring that the effects of any 
diminution in the size of the 
marketplace, the ability of prospective 
customers to access credit facilities or 
the sales prices achieved are managed 
in such a way as to limit any adverse 
financial or operational effects on the 
Group’s performance.

Construction ensuring that appropriately skilled 
personnel are available and that 
suitable materials are also available 
at the right price.

Environment Housebuilding has a significant effect 

Health and 
Safety

on the environment and it is important 
that the effects of the Group’s 
developments are, as far as possible, 
positive rather than negative.

it is important to ensure that the 
Group has adequate systems in place 
to mitigate, as far as possible, the 
dangers to people inherent in the 
construction process.

  in consultation with Head Office, local divisional 

management determines product range and pricing 
strategy commensurate with regional market conditions. 

  Use of sales incentives, where appropriate, to 

encourage the selling process, such as part-exchange 
and express Mover.

  Use of government-backed schemes to encourage 

home ownership, where appropriate.

  ensuring that construction rates are managed to ensure 

stock availability matches sales rates.

  identifying training needs and allocating appropriate 

resources to training.

  ensuring systems are in place for engaging, monitoring 
and controlling work carried out by sub-contractors.

  ensuring competitive reward systems are in place.
  ensuring Group purchasing arrangements are in place 

to secure materials at competitive prices.

  it is our objective to ensure that at the conclusion 

of a development an attractive and sustainable new 
environment has been created that will continue over 
time. see our environmental policy on page 21, or our 
website at www.bellway.co.uk, for further information.

  the board considers health and safety issues at each 

board meeting. 

  regular visits to sites by senior management 

(independent of our divisions) and external consultants 
to monitor health and safety standards and 
performance against the Group’s health and safety 
policies and procedures.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

27

Area of Risk

Description of Risk

Mitigation of Risk 

Personnel

Information 
Technology

attracting and retaining the correct 
personnel is key to the Group’s 
long-term success. Failure to do so will 
severely affect the Group’s ability to 
perform in a highly competitive market.

it is vital that the Group has suitable 
information systems in place to ensure 
that, as far as possible, a smooth flow of 
information is transmitted throughout 
the Group and that the risk of system 
loss is mitigated and supported by 
appropriate contingency plans.

Asset 
Protection 

the way in which the Group carries 
out its operations can have a material 
effect on the value of its assets.

Treasury 
Management

ensuring suitable financial resources, 
at appropriate costs, are in place to 
meet Group requirements.

Legal and 
Regulatory 
Compliance

Disadvantageous contractual 
obligations, regulatory fines or 
adverse publicity by failing to comply 
with current laws and regulations or 
failing to have appropriately worded 
contracts in place.

  the Group offers competitive salary and benefits 

packages. 

 Divisional training plans are in place.
 succession planning for key posts.
  90% of site workers (including sub-contractors) 

are fully accredited under cscs.

  Group-wide systems are in place which are 

centrally controlled with an outsourced support 
function in place.

  the Group prepares viability assessments on all of its 
land purchases and construction projects, and keeps 
these under regular review to protect, wherever 
possible, the value of its assets.

  central negotiation and control of banking facilities 
to ensure liquidity and debt levels are appropriate.

 Facilities distributed across various sources.
 careful management and monitoring of cash forecasts.

  central secretariat, human resources and legal 

functions advise divisions on compliance and ensure 
policies and procedures are kept up to date to 
minimise risk of non-compliance.

in addition, the board ensures that adequate insurance cover is maintained to underpin and support the many 
areas in which the Group is exposed to risk of loss. 

28

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance

Board of directors

1 hOwARd dAwe

nOn-exeCutIve ChAIRmAn 
date of Birth: 7 April 1944

3 ted AyReS 

OPeRAtIOnS dIReCtOR 
date of Birth: 10 October 1962

Mr Dawe joined bellway in 1961, was appointed a director in 1977 
and was appointed chief executive in 1985. in May 1997 he was 
appointed acting chairman and chairman on 1 november 1999 
when he relinquished the role of chief executive. On 1 november 2004, 
he became non-executive chairman. He is chairman of the nomination 
committee. He will retire from the board on 31 January 2013.

Mr ayres joined bellway in January 2002 as a divisional Managing Director, 
becoming southern regional chairman in 2006, and was appointed to the 
board as Operations Director on 1 august 2011. He is a member of the 
board committee on non-executive Directors’ remuneration. He will 
succeed Mr Watson as chief executive on 1 February 2013. 

2 JOhn wAtSOn 

ChIef exeCutIve 
date of Birth: 21 March 1954

4 keIth Adey

fInAnCe dIReCtOR 
date of Birth: 13 May 1979

Mr Watson, a chartered surveyor, joined bellway in 1978. He was later 
appointed Managing Director of the north east division, a position which 
he held for 12 years. He joined the board as technical Director in 1995 
and became chief executive on 1 november 1999. He is chairman 
of the board committee on non-executive Directors’ remuneration. 
He will step down from his current role on 31 January 2013 to succeed 
Mr Dawe as non-executive chairman.

Mr adey, a chartered accountant, was appointed to the board as Finance 
Director on 1 February 2012. He joined the company in December 2008 
as Group chief accountant and prior to joining bellway he worked at 
Grainger plc and KpMG. He is a member of the board committee on 
non-executive Directors’ remuneration. 

6

5

1

3

4

2

8

7

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

29

5 PeteR JOhnSOn 

7 JOhn CuthBeRt OBe

SenIOR IndePendent nOn-exeCutIve dIReCtOR 
date of Birth: 17 April 1948

nOn-exeCutIve dIReCtOR 
date of Birth: 9 February 1953

Mr Johnson, a chartered accountant, was appointed a non-executive 
director on 1 november 2003. He had been, on his retirement in 
september 2000, a partner in KpMG for 23 years. He is a non-executive 
director of sunderland Marine Mutual insurance company limited 
and Honorary treasurer of the University of newcastle upon tyne. 
He became senior independent non-executive director on 16 January 
2009 and is chairman of the audit committee and is also a member 
of both the board committee on executive Directors’ remuneration 
and the nomination committee.

Mr cuthbert, a chartered accountant, was appointed a non-executive 
director on 1 november 2009. He worked in the water industry from 
1991 to 2010, when he retired as Managing Director of northumbrian 
Water Group plc, having formerly been Managing Director of north 
east Water plc and Managing Director of essex and suffolk Water plc. 
He is a member of the audit and nomination committees and the board 
committee on executive Directors’ remuneration. 

6 mIke tOmS

nOn-exeCutIve dIReCtOR 
date of Birth: 1 July 1953

8 kevIn wRIGhtSOn 

GROuP COmPAny SeCRetARy 
date of Birth: 27 October 1954

Mr toms was appointed a non-executive director on 1 February 2009. 
He is currently a non-executive director of birmingham airport Holdings 
limited. He was formerly an executive director of baa plc and was 
non-executive chairman of northern ireland electricity plc. He was 
also a non-executive director of viridian Group plc and UK coal plc. 
He is a member of the royal institution of chartered surveyors 
(Mrics) and a member of the royal town planning institute (Mrtpi). 
He is chairman of the board committee on executive Directors’ 
remuneration, and a member of the audit and nomination 
committees of the board.

Mr Wrightson, a chartered secretary, joined bellway in 1990. He has held 
senior posts within the Group, including that of Deputy Group secretary, 
before being appointed as Group company secretary on 1 august 2002.

Advisers

Group Company 
Secretary  
and Registered Office
Kevin Wrightson Fcis  
bellway p.l.c.  
seaton burn House  
Dudley lane, seaton burn  
newcastle upon tyne  
ne13 6be  
registered number 1372603

Registrars and  
Transfer Office 
capita registrars limited 
the registry 
34 beckenham road 
beckenham 
Kent  
br3 4tU

Financial Advisers 
n M rothschild & sons 
limited

Stockbrokers 
citigroup Global Markets 
limited

Bankers 
barclays bank plc  
lloyds banking Group plc

Auditors 
KpMG audit plc

30

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance

Chairman’s Statement 
on Corporate Governance

i am pleased to report that the company has complied 
with the UK corporate Governance code throughout 
the year under review. as chairman, i am responsible for 
the leadership of the board and ensuring that it conducts 
itself in an effective manner. the board has agreed clearly 
defined roles for myself and the chief executive and the 
non-executive directors challenge management and 
contribute to strategy. the board, its committees and 
individual directors are subject to annual performance 
evaluation and all directors are subject to annual 
re-election by shareholders. appointments to the board 
will always be made on merit against objective criteria, 
and the board strongly supports the principle of 
boardroom diversity, in all aspects. in the current financial 
year, the nomination committee will be commencing a 
search for a new non-executive director to strengthen 
the board's non-executive element in light of Mr 
Watson's forthcoming appointment as non-executive 
chairman on 1 February 2013. i am also pleased to 
confirm that the board will, in this financial year, for 
the first time be carrying out its annual performance 
evaluation, using external third party facilitators, 
in accordance with the requirements of the UK 
corporate Governance code.

Howard Dawe

chairman
15 October 2012 

Governance

Report of the directors

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

31

the directors have pleasure in submitting the annual report and accounts of bellway p.l.c. to the shareholders for the year ended 
31 July 2012.

PRInCIPAl ACtIvItIeS

the company is a holding company, owning subsidiary undertakings which continue to be engaged principally in housebuilding 
in the United Kingdom (‘UK’).

PeRfORmAnCe And PROSPeCtS

a review of the Group’s performance and prospects that fulfils the requirements of the business review can be found in the chairman’s 
statement on pages 3 and 4, the chief executive’s Operating review on pages 7 to 12 the corporate responsibility policy on page 15, 
the 2012 corporate responsibility statement on pages 16 and 17, the environmental policy on page 21 and the Group Finance 
Director’s review on pages 22 to 25. in addition, information in respect of the principal operating risks of the business is set out in the 
Operating risk statement on pages 26 and 27.

ReSultS And dIvIdendS

the profit for the year attributable to equity holders of the parent company amounts to £79.3 million (2011 – £50.1 million).

the directors have proposed a final ordinary dividend for the year ended 31 July 2012 of 14.0p per share. this has not been included 
within creditors as it was not approved before the year end. Dividends paid during the year comprise a final dividend of 8.8p per share 
in respect of the previous year ended 31 July 2011, together with an interim dividend in respect of the year ended 31 July 2012 of 6.0p 
per share.

the directors recommend payment of the final dividend on Wednesday 16 January 2013 to shareholders on the register of Members 
at the close of business on Friday 14 December 2012.

dIReCtORS

all the directors of the company, who are shown on pages 28 and 29, served throughout the year, with the exception of Mr adey who 
was appointed on 1 February 2012, replacing Mr leitch who was a director at the start of the year and retired on 31 January 2012.

dIReCtORS’ COntRACtS

Details of the terms of appointment of all the directors are given in the report of the board on Directors’ remuneration on pages 
42 and 43.

dIReCtORS’ InteReStS

the directors’ interests in the share capital of the company and in share ownership plan arrangements are given in the report of the 
board on Directors’ remuneration on pages 39 to 47.

tAkeOveRS dIReCtIve

the information for shareholders required pursuant to the relevant companies’ legislation which implements the takeovers Directive 
is disclosed in this report and in the shareholder information section on page 83.

32

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance
Report of the directors (continued)

NotifiAble ShAReholdeRS’ iNteReStS

As at 31 July 2012 and at the date of this report the Company had been notified of the following interests amounting to 3% or more of 
the voting rights in the issued ordinary share capital of the Company: 

Blackrock Inc

Fidelity International Ltd/FMR Corp

JP Morgan Chase & Co

AXA Framlington Investment Management

Kames Capital

Polaris Capital Management LLC

HBOS PLC

As at 31 July 2012 

As at the date of this report

Number of 
shares with 
voting rights

% total  
voting  
rights

Number of 
shares with 
voting rights

% total  
voting  
rights

13,183,635

10.86

13,183,635

10.86

9,300,000

7.66

9,300,000

5,712,902

5,603,638

4,901,242

4,897,018

4,261,453

4.70

4.61

4.04

4.03

3.51

5,712,902

5,603,638

4,901,242

4,897,018

4,261,453

7.66

4.70

4.61

4.04

4.03

3.51

3.20

Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) Limited

3,890,282

3.20

3,890,282

CoRpoRAte GoveRNANCe

Introduction
The Board acknowledges the importance of, and is committed to the principle of, achieving and maintaining a high standard of corporate 
governance. This report, together with the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration, as detailed on pages 39 to 47, describes 
how the Principles of Good Governance, which are set out in the UK Corporate Governance Code, are applied by the Group.

Statement of Compliance with the UK Corporate Governance Code
The Board considers that it has complied with the detailed provisions of the UK Corporate Governance Code throughout the year 
to 31 July 2012 and up to the date of this report. The UK Corporate Governance Code is publicly available free of charge from FRC 
publications, tel: 020 8247 1264, e-mail: customer.services@cch.co.uk and online at: www.frcpublications.com.

Statement about Applying the Principles of Good Governance
The Group has applied the Principles of Good Governance, including both the Main Principles and the Supporting Principles, 
by complying with the UK Corporate Governance Code as reported above. Further explanations of how the Main Principles and 
Supporting Principles have been applied are set out below and, in connection with the remuneration of the directors, in the Report of 
the Board on Directors’ Remuneration. 

The Chairman’s Statement, the Chief Executive’s Operating Review and the Group Finance Director’s Review present a balanced 
and comprehensive assessment of the Group’s position and prospects.

The Board
At the date of this report the Board consists of seven directors whose names, responsibilities and other details appear on pages 28 and 
29. Three of the directors are executive and four of the directors, including the Chairman, are non-executive. The Board discharges 
its responsibilities by providing entrepreneurial leadership of the Company within a framework of prudent and effective controls, which 
enables risk to be assessed and managed. It sets the Company’s strategic aims, ensures that the necessary financial resources and 
personnel are in place for the Company to meet its objectives and reviews management performance. It also defines the Company’s 
values and standards and ensures that its obligations to its shareholders are understood and met.

The Board has adopted a schedule of matters which are specifically reserved for its decision which includes strategy and management, 
structure and capital, financial reporting and controls, internal controls, contracts and agreements, communication, Board membership 
and other appointments, remuneration, delegation of authority, corporate governance matters, policies and other miscellaneous items.  
In addition, it has a series of matters that are dealt with at regular Board meetings including an operational review, a financial review, 
land acquired, major projects, personnel, risk and health and safety. It has also adopted a framework of delegated commercial and 
operational authorities which define the scope of powers delegated to management below Board level.

All directors have access to the advice and services of the Group Company Secretary and all the directors may take independent 
professional advice at the Group’s expense where they judge it necessary to discharge their responsibility as directors.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

33

The Company’s Articles of Association (‘Articles’) require one-third of the directors to offer themselves for re-election each year at the 
Annual General Meeting (‘AGM’) and all directors to seek re-election at least every three years. The Articles also require new directors 
appointed since the last AGM to offer themselves for re-election at the next AGM. In addition, the UK Corporate Governance Code 
includes a provision that all directors should be subject to annual re-election. As a result, all of the directors, with the exception of Mr 
Dawe, retire from the Board and offer themselves for re-election at the forthcoming AGM. Mr Dawe retires from the Board on 31 
January 2013 and is therefore not retiring and seeking re-election at the AGM. The directors’ biographies are shown on pages 28 and 29. 
None of the executive directors hold external directorships.

Board Effectiveness
The Chairman is responsible for leading the Board and ensuring it operates effectively. In this regard it pays due cognisance to the FRC's 
document entitled Guidance on Board Effectiveness dated March 2011. The directors possess an appropriate balance of skills and 
experience to meet the requirements of the business.

During the year there were ten Board meetings, three Audit Committee meetings, eight meetings of the Board Committee on Executive 
Directors’ Remuneration, one meeting of the Board Committee on Non-Executive Directors’ Remuneration and seven Nomination 
Committee meetings. The Board holds a separate meeting once a year dedicated entirely to strategy. In addition, the Board aims to visit 
four divisions each year, and last year visited the East Midlands, West Midlands, North London and Thames Gateway divisions, as well as 
receiving presentations at Board meetings from senior head office and divisional management. 

There were no absences from any Board or Board Committee meetings by any director during the year.

The non-executive directors met twice during the year, including one occasion when the Chairman was not present.

Training and Development
The Board received appropriate training and updates on various matters relevant to its role, as and when required. Training needs 
are reviewed as part of the performance evaluation process and on an ongoing basis. Mr Adey benefited from a Board induction 
programme which included meetings with the Company’s various advisers, and he has also attended a formal training course designed 
specifically for new directors of listed companies. In addition, prior to his appointment as a director, Mr Adey occupied the role of Group 
Chief Accountant and was therefore already well versed in the operations, practices and procedures of the Group.

Board Balance and Independence
The roles of Chairman and Chief Executive, which are recorded in writing and approved by the Board, are separate, with a clear division 
of responsibilities, ensuring a balance of responsibility and authority at the head of the Group.

The senior independent non-executive director is Mr Johnson, who is available for shareholders to contact with any queries or concerns 
they may have.

Each of the non-executive directors, excluding the Chairman, has at all times acted independently of management and has no 
relationship which would materially affect the exercise of his independent judgement and decision making. The Company considers 
all of its non-executive directors, excluding the Chairman, to be independent, as defined in the UK Corporate Governance Code. 

With the forthcoming retirement of Mr Dawe as non-executive Chairman on 31 January 2013 and with the appointment of two new 
executive directors in the last 15 months, in Mr Ayres and Mr Adey, the Board felt it was important that there was a degree of experience 
and continuity in Board membership in the early years following their appointments. Consequently, the Board has decided to 
appoint, with effect from 1 February 2013, Mr Watson (the current Chief Executive) to the role of non-executive Chairman 
for a period of three years, with Mr Ayres assuming the role of Chief Executive in his place from the same date.

For similar reasons, and following rigorous review, it has been decided to extend the appointment of the senior independent 
non-executive director, Mr Johnson, for a further period of 15 months, at the conclusion of his current appointment letter on 
31 October 2012. The review included consideration of Mr Johnson’s independence, taking into account his experience in the 
public and private sector, his detailed knowledge of the Group’s business, his ability to challenge management and to make an 
effective contribution to strategy. Taking all this into account, the Board considers that Mr Johnson remains independent by 
reference to his character and judgement. 

As required under the provisions of the UK Corporate Governance Code, major investors were consulted in advance of decisions being 
taken and they were in support of the proposals. 

Whenever any director considers that he is interested in any contract or arrangement to which the Group is or may be a party, 
due notice is given to the Board. No such instances of any significance have arisen during the year.

34

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance
Report of the directors (continued)

Board Evaluation
During the year the directors undertook an evaluation of the performance and effectiveness of the Board, its Committees and 
individual directors. The evaluation was performed using a system of self-assessment. This involved the Chairman, acting on behalf 
of the Board, evaluating the performance of the other individual directors, and the non-executive directors, led by the senior 
independent non-executive director, assessing the performance of the Chairman, taking into account the views of the executive 
directors. The Board, led by the Chairman, evaluated its own performance, and the standing Committees, led by the Chairman 
of each, evaluated their own performance.

As part of the process of ensuring Board effectiveness, the non-executive directors, led by the senior independent non-executive director, 
met without the Chairman present. Additionally, the Chairman held a meeting with the non-executive directors without the executives 
present. The Chairman also had meetings with each of the executive directors.

The Board and its Committees reviewed the results of these evaluations and are satisfied with the evidence they provided about the 
balance, effectiveness and performance of the Board and its Committees and the effectiveness and commitment of each director.

Following formal rigorous evaluation, the Chairman, acting on behalf of the Board, is satisfied as to the effectiveness and commitment 
of all of the directors.

The Board Committees
The Board has formally constituted Audit, Remuneration and Nomination Committees. The terms of reference for the Audit and 
Nomination Committees and the Board Committee on Executive Directors’ Remuneration are available either on request, at the AGM 
or on the Group’s website: www.bellway.co.uk.

Audit Committee
The Audit Committee comprises three independent non-executive directors, Mr Johnson (Chairman), Mr Toms and Mr Cuthbert, who 
were members of the Committee throughout the year. The Committee meets at least three times a year and met three times during 
the year under review. Its activities during the year related to routine matters including the review of risk, internal controls, auditor 
performance and review of half year and annual financial statements. The Committee met the auditor without management present 
on two occasions. In addition, the Committee Chairman had regular contact with the Finance Director and the external auditor.

The Committee’s responsibilities include the following:

 „  to monitor the integrity of the financial statements of the Company and any formal announcements relating to the Company’s 

financial performance.

 „ to review and make recommendations in relation to the half year and annual accounts prior to submission to the Board.

 „  to assess the scope and effectiveness of the systems established by management to identify, assess, manage and monitor 

financial and non-financial risks.

 „  to review management’s reports on the effectiveness of systems for internal financial control, financial reporting and 

risk management.

 „ to consider the appointment/re-appointment of the external auditor and assess its independence each year.

 „  to recommend the audit fee to the Board and pre-approve any fees in respect of non-audit services provided by the external 
auditor and to develop and monitor the Company’s policy on the provision of non-audit services by the external auditor and 
to ensure that the provision of non-audit services does not restrict the external auditor’s independence or objectivity.

 „  to agree the nature and scope of the audit and review the quality control procedures and steps taken by the auditor to respond 

to changes in regulatory and other requirements.

 „  to oversee the process for selecting the external auditor and make appropriate recommendations through the Board to the 

shareholders to consider at the AGM.

 „ to consider annually whether there is a need for an internal audit function and make a recommendation to the Board.

 „ to review the Group’s procedures for handling allegations from ‘whistleblowers’.

 „ to review annually the Group’s compliance with its Anti-Bribery Policy.

The Board believes that Mr Johnson, the Committee Chairman, has recent relevant financial experience as a Chartered Accountant. 
The Group has a written Independent Auditor Policy in place which seeks to preserve the independence of its auditor by defining 
those non-audit services the independent auditor may and may not provide. There are clearly defined levels of approval depending 
on the value of work to be provided. Where fees exceed £100,000, or where total non-audit fees equate to 100% of audit fees, Board 
approval would be required. In respect of any material project with fees in excess of £200,000 where the auditor is considered for the 
provision of services, this would be the subject of a competitive tendering process.

The Committee recommended to the Board that the external auditor should be re-appointed at the forthcoming AGM. It reached 
this conclusion based on the on-going performance of the incumbent auditor.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

35

board Committee on executive directors’ Remuneration
The Board Committee on Executive Directors’ Remuneration comprises Mr Toms (Chairman), Mr Johnson and Mr Cuthbert, 
who were members of the Committee throughout the year.

The Committee meets at least twice a year and during the year it met on eight occasions. Its duties are to review and recommend the 
basic salary, taxable benefits, terms and conditions of employment, including performance-related payments, long-term incentive plans and 
other benefits of the executive directors and the Chairman. During the year, in addition to routine matters, the Committee consulted 
with major shareholders about remuneration matters, considered the government’s proposals on executive pay and approved clawback 
arrangements with the executive directors. The Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration on pages 39 to 47 contains details of 
directors’ remuneration and the Group’s policies in relation to directors’ remuneration. The Committee is also responsible, in consultation 
with the Chief Executive, for monitoring the total remuneration packages of senior executives below Board level.

board Committee on Non-executive directors’ Remuneration
The Board Committee on Non-Executive Directors’ Remuneration comprises the executive directors and is chaired by the Chief 
Executive. It meets at least once a year to review and recommend the terms, conditions and remuneration of the non-executive 
directors. Last year it met on one occasion to review the fees and terms of appointment of the non-executive directors.

Nomination Committee
The Nomination Committee comprises Mr Dawe (Chairman), Mr Johnson, Mr Toms and Mr Cuthbert, who were all members 
of the Committee throughout the year. The Committee’s main duties are to formulate plans for succession for both executive 
and non-executive directors and, in particular, for the key roles of Chairman and Chief Executive and to make recommendations 
regarding appointments to the Board. 

The Committee meets at least twice a year and last year met on seven occasions. During the year, the Committee made recommendations 
to the Board in relation to the succession plans for the Chairman, Chief Executive and Finance Director, and on the re-appointment of 
the senior independent non-executive director, whose current letter of appointment expires on 31 October 2012.

Appointments to the Board are made on merit through a formal, rigorous and transparent process against objective criteria 
recommended by the Committee, with due regard given to the benefits of diversity on the Board, in all aspects. The Committee 
also guides the whole Board in arranging orderly succession for appointments to the Board. The appointment of a non-executive 
director is for a specified term and re-appointment is not automatic and is made on the recommendation of the Committee. 

Other committees of the Board are formed to perform certain specific functions as required from time to time.

diReCtoRS’ RemuNeRAtioN

The principles and details of directors’ remuneration are detailed in the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration on 
pages 39 to 47.

ACCouNtAbility ANd Audit

The statement on going concern and the Statement of Directors’ Responsibilities in respect of the Annual Report and Accounts are 
shown on pages 36 and 48 respectively.

The Audit Committee, whose role is detailed above, has meetings at least twice a year with the Company’s auditor, KPMG Audit Plc.

Internal Control
The Board is responsible for the Group’s system of internal control and also for reviewing its effectiveness. The Board has reviewed the 
effectiveness of the system of internal control throughout the year and up to the date of approval of the Annual Report and Accounts. 
The system is regularly reviewed by the Board in accordance with the guidance contained in the Turnbull Report ‘Internal Control 
Guidance for Directors of Listed Companies Incorporated in the United Kingdom’. The Board acknowledges its responsibility 
to establish, maintain and monitor a system of internal control relating to operational, financial and compliance controls and risk 
management to safeguard the shareholders’ interests in the Company’s assets. This system, however, is designed to manage and 
meet the Group’s particular requirements and reduce the risk to which it is exposed rather than eliminate the risk of failure 
to achieve business objectives. It can provide only reasonable and not absolute assurance against material misstatement or loss.

The Board reviews the effectiveness of the system of internal control and, in particular, it reviews the process for identifying and evaluating 
the significant risks affecting the business and the policies and procedures by which these risks are managed on an on-going basis.

Management is responsible for the identification and evaluation of significant risks applicable to particular areas of the business together 
with the design and operation of suitable controls. These significant risks, which are described in the Operating Risk Statement on pages 
26 and 27, are regularly assessed and cover all aspects of the business, and in particular land acquisition, planning, construction, health 
and safety, information and reporting systems, sales, environmental issues, personnel, asset protection, treasury management and 
legal and regulatory compliance. In addition, there is a responsibility to mitigate risk by the provision of adequate insurance cover 
and by management reporting on material changes in the business or external environment affecting the risk profile.

36

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance
Report of the directors (continued)

There is a system of regular reporting to the Board which provides for appropriate details and assurances on the assessment and control 
of risks.

The continuing role of the Board is, on a systematic and on-going basis, to review the key risks inherent in the business, the operation 
of the systems and controls necessary to manage such risks and their effectiveness and to satisfy itself that all reasonable steps are being 
taken to mitigate these risks. The key areas of control are as follows:

 „  the Board has agreed a list of key risks which affect the Group and has considered the extent to which the measures taken  

by the Group mitigate those risks.

 „  an established monitoring structure is in place, which provides short lines of communication and easy access to members  

of the Board.

 „  delegation of clearly defined responsibilities to the Regional Chairmen and divisional boards with clear procedures and authority limits 

in place to provide and maintain effective controls across the Group.

 „ a comprehensive reporting system entailing annual budgets, regular forecasting and financial reporting.

 „ a central treasury function operates at Head Office.

 „ regular meetings with divisional and regional management attended by members of the Board to review divisional performance.

 „  the acquisition of land and land interests is subject to checking by management and, in certain circumstances, approval by the Board to 

ensure that purchasing criteria are met.

 „ regular reviews of site costs and revenues by senior Head Office management which are reported to the Board.

 „  regular visits to sites by in-house health and safety teams and external consultants to monitor health and safety standards  

and performance.

 „  a number of the Group’s key functions are dealt with centrally. These include finance, banking and treasury, taxation, financial services, 

pensions, insurance, information technology, legal, personnel and company secretarial. 

The Company does not have a separate internal audit function and, as recommended by the UK Corporate Governance Code, the 
Audit Committee considers annually whether there is a need for such an internal audit function and makes a recommendation to the 
Board. During the year, having considered the robust systems and strong controls already present in the Group and as described above, 
the Audit Committee recommended that no separate internal audit function was presently required. The position will continue to be 
monitored by the Audit Committee on behalf of the Board.

Whistleblowing Arrangements
Throughout the year the Group has operated a ‘whistleblowing’ arrangement whereby all employees of the Group are able, via 
an independent external third party, to confidentially report any malpractice or matters of concern they have regarding the actions of 
management and employees. This facility is also available for employees to report any breaches of the Company’s Anti-Bribery Policy. 
The Audit Committee and the Board regularly review the effectiveness of this arrangement.

RelAtioNS with ShAReholdeRS

The Company encourages active dialogue with its private and institutional shareholders, both current and prospective. Meetings are held 
with both existing and prospective institutional shareholders on a regular basis and as requested. Shareholders are also kept up to date 
with Company affairs through the Annual and Half  Year Reports, Trading Updates and Interim Management Statements. The AGM is used 
to communicate with institutional and private investors and their participation is encouraged by the taking of questions by the whole 
Board, both during, and also informally, before and after the meeting. The senior independent non-executive director is always available 
to discuss issues with current and prospective shareholders and institutions, as required. In addition, the whole Board is regularly updated 
on shareholder and investor views and activities at Board meetings by the Chief Executive and the Finance Director. During the year the 
senior independent non-executive director and the chairman of the Board Committee on Executive Directors’ Remuneration spoke 
with a number of major shareholders on succession planning and corporate governance matters. 

Further information for shareholders is available under Shareholder Information on pages 81 to 85 and also on the Group’s website 
at www.bellway.co.uk.

GoiNG CoNCeRN

After making due enquiries, the directors have a reasonable expectation that the Group has adequate resources to continue 
in operational existence for the foreseeable future. For this reason, they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing 
the accounts as discussed further on page 55.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

37

employeeS

The Group is an equal opportunities employer. It is the Group’s policy to develop and apply, throughout the Group, procedures and 
practices which are designed to ensure that equal opportunities are provided to all employees of the Group, or those who seek 
employment with the Group, irrespective of their age, colour, disability, ethnic origin, gender, marital status, nationality, parental status, race, 
religion, belief or sexual orientation.

All employees, whether part-time, full-time or temporary, are treated fairly and equally. Selection for employment, promotion, training or 
other matters affecting their employment is on the basis of aptitude and ability. All employees are assisted and encouraged to develop 
their full potential and the talents and resources of the workforce are fully utilised to maximise the efficiency of the organisation.

It is Group policy to give full and fair consideration to the employment needs of disabled persons (and persons who become disabled 
whilst employed by the Group) and to comply with any current legislation with regard to disabled persons. Training at each division is 
planned and monitored through an annual training plan. 

The importance of good communications with employees is recognised by the directors. Each division maintains good employee relations 
using a variety of means appropriate to its own particular needs, with guidance when necessary from Head Office. 

New employees, when eligible, are invited to join the Company’s pension and life assurance arrangements and the savings related share 
option scheme. The Company also offers a private medical scheme, childcare vouchers and personal accident insurance arrangements. 
In accordance with statutory requirements, the Company also has a designated stakeholder pension arrangement.

eNviRoNmeNtAl iSSueS

The Board recognises the importance of environmental issues and, when carrying out its business, endeavours to make a positive 
contribution to the quality of life, both for the present and the future. An Environmental Policy, approved by the Board, has been adopted 
by all trading entities within the Group. Environmental issues are addressed in the Corporate Responsibility Policy on page 15, the 2012 
Corporate Responsibility Statement on pages 16 and 17, the Environmental Policy on page 21, and in the Corporate Responsibility 
section of the Group’s website www.bellway.co.uk, a copy of which is available from the Group Company Secretary at the Company’s 
registered office.

heAlth ANd SAfety At woRk

The Group promotes all aspects of health and safety throughout its operations in the interests of employees, sub-contractors, visitors 
to its sites and premises and the general public. Health and safety issues are considered at each Board meeting, and are addressed in 
the Chief Executive’s Operating Review on pages 7 to 12, in the Corporate Responsibility Policy on page 15, in the 2012 Corporate 
Responsibility Statement on pages 16 and 17, and in the Corporate Responsibility section of the Group’s website www.bellway.co.uk.

doNAtioNS

During the year the Group made no political contributions but donated £45,875 (2011 – £20,716) for charitable purposes. 
The Company made no political contributions or charitable donations during the year (2011 – £nil).

SiGNifiCANt RelAtioNShipS

The Company is party to a number of banking agreements with major clearing banks. The withdrawal of such facilities could have 
a material effect on the financing of the business. Other than the foregoing, the Group has contractual and other arrangements in place 
with suppliers and other third parties which support its business activities. None of these arrangements are considered to be critical to 
the performance of the business.

SupplieRS

The Group agrees terms and conditions under which business transactions with suppliers are conducted. The policy is that payments 
to suppliers are made in accordance with these terms and conditions, provided that the supplier is also complying with the terms and 
conditions. The Group’s current policy concerning the payment of the majority of its materials suppliers and sub-contractors is for 
payment to be made at the month end following the month of the invoice. For other supplies, particularly land, the terms are many and 
varied. Trade creditors due within one year at 31 July 2012 of £76.3 million (2011 – £80.0 million) resulted in a creditor payment period 
of 24 days (2011 – 25 days). Land creditors due within one year were £89.1 million (2011 – £57.5 million). Including land creditors, the 
creditor payment period was 52 days (2011 – 43 days). 

The parent company had no land or trade creditors at 31 July 2012 (2011 – £nil).

38

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance
Report of the directors (continued)

puRChASe of the CompANy’S owN ShAReS

The Company was given authority at the 2012 AGM to purchase its own ordinary and preference shares. As at the date of this report 
no market purchases have been made by the Company and this authority will expire at the end of the 2013 AGM when shareholders 
will be asked to renew this authority for a further year. Market purchases, for which shareholder authority is not required, have been 
made by the trustees of the employee share schemes (see note 20 for further details).

diReCtoRS’ ANd offiCeRS’ liAbility iNSuRANCe ANd iNdemNifiCAtioN of diReCtoRS

The Company carries appropriate insurance cover in respect of possible legal action being taken against its directors and senior 
employees, and the Articles provide the directors with further protection against liability to third parties, subject to the conditions set 
out in the Companies Act 2006. Such qualifying third party indemnity provision remains in force as at the date of this report.

diSCloSuRe of All RelevANt iNfoRmAtioN to AuditoR

The directors who held office at the date of this report confirm that, so far as they are each aware, there is no relevant audit information 
of which the Company’s auditor is unaware and each director has taken all the steps that he ought to have taken as a director to make 
himself aware of any relevant audit information and to establish that the Company’s auditor is aware of that information.

AuditoRS 

In accordance with section 489 of the Companies Act 2006, a resolution for the re-appointment of KPMG Audit Plc as auditor of the 
Company is to be proposed at the forthcoming AGM. 

AGm – SpeCiAl buSiNeSS

Five resolutions will be proposed as special business at the AGM to be held on Friday 11 January 2013. Explanatory notes on these 
resolutions are set out in Shareholder Information on page 81.

By order of the Board

Kevin Wrightson

Group Company Secretary 
15 October 2012

Governance

Report of the board on directors’ 
Remuneration

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

39

how RemuNeRAtioN foR the exeCutive diReCtoRS iS deteRmiNed

The remuneration of the executive directors is determined by the Board Committee on Executive Directors’ Remuneration 
(the ‘Committee’) within a framework set by the Board. As at the date of this report, the Committee’s members are three non-executive 
directors, Mr Toms (Chairman), Mr Johnson and Mr Cuthbert. None of the Committee members has a personal financial interest, other 
than as shareholders, in the matters to be decided. There are no conflicts of interest arising from cross-directorships and no day-to-day 
involvement in running the business. The Terms of Reference of the Committee are available on the Group’s website www.bellway.co.uk. 
During the year, the Group Company Secretary provided advice on issues other than those relating to his own remuneration. 
The Committee also received independent external advice from New Bridge Street (‘NBS’), a trading name of Aon plc. NBS was 
appointed by the Committee and does not provide any other services to the Company other than to the Board Committee on 
Non-Executive Directors’ Remuneration.

The Chairman’s remuneration is also determined by the Committee.

NoN-exeCutive diReCtoRS’ RemuNeRAtioN

The remuneration of the non-executive directors (apart from the Chairman) is determined by the Board Committee on 
Non-Executive Directors’ Remuneration, which comprises the executive directors. The Board Committee on Non-Executive Directors’ 
Remuneration also receives advice from the Group Company Secretary and NBS.

CoNtext ANd key poiNtS

This report covers a year during which the Committee was busy with two primary activities, both of which were undertaken 
with the benefit of prior consultation with major investors, in accordance with the UK Corporate Governance Code.

The first was the setting and review of base salaries and pension provision for the new generation of executive directors at Bellway, 
together with preparation for the further changes to take place in early 2013.

Last year we reported on our decision to set basic pay for the two new executive directors at levels significantly below those 
of their more experienced predecessors, but with a stated intention of raising these towards competitive market levels as they 
establish themselves in their roles. As described below, the Company’s operating performance has progressed significantly since 
these appointments and the Committee has recognised the contribution made by the new directors. From 1 August 2012 
we implemented the first of a series of rises in basic pay which should in due course lead to pay levels which are competitive 
with other comparable housebuilders. The Board subsequently has decided to promote Mr Ayres to Chief Executive in February 
2013 and the Committee will follow the same policy by appointing him on a salary of £400,000, significantly below the level 
currently earned by Mr Watson, but with the express intention that he should progress towards full market levels, subject to 
experience and satisfactory performance. When Mr Watson moves to the Chairman’s role the Committee intends to take the 
opportunity to rebase the Chairman’s fee downward to £180,000. The Committee has also examined the policy for pension 
provision and has set the value of the Company contribution at 20% of salary for both new executive directors.

The second area of focus was the setting of annual bonus parameters. For 2012 the total bonus potential was set at 120% of 
basic salary, with 90% of the bonus potential accounted for by reference to an operating profit target. The Committee set the 
target at a level which would require a substantial increase in operating profit, and the performance delivered was at the higher 
end of the range and a payment of 89.2% has been earned. The additional 30% of the bonus potential was accounted for by 
non-financial measures, namely land bank management, health and safety and customer care, and a payment of 30% has 
been earned. Progress has been made in each of these areas and in the latter case, 93.8% of Bellway’s customers would 
now recommend Bellway to a friend, with customer care being a very important issue for the Company.

Finally, during the year, the Committee also introduced clawback provisions for both the annual bonus and long-term incentive 
plans (‘LTIPs’) in line with best practice.

Looking forward to 2012/13, other than the proposed salary increases set out above, the Committee does not anticipate 
any further changes to the policy.

objeCtiveS of the RemuNeRAtioN poliCy

The aim of the Committee is to ensure that the Company has competitive remuneration packages in place in order to recruit, 
retain and motivate executive directors in the overall interests of shareholders, the Company, its employees and its customers.

The Committee has set, as an objective, a policy of paying a level of remuneration at around the median of a peer group of similar UK 
housebuilding businesses, subject to experience and performance. The Committee has used this comparative approach to benchmarking 
with caution, recognising the risk of upward only reviews of remuneration and different sizes of comparator businesses. The structure 
of the package has been designed to ensure that the performance-related elements of remuneration (annual bonus and LTIPs) 
constitute a significant proportion of an executive’s potential total remuneration package, but are only receivable if demanding and 
stretching performance targets are achieved. The Committee considers that the remuneration policy is fully competitive with the market, 
with a significant element of the package payable in the form of share-based incentives, subject to long-term performance conditions.

40

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance
Report of the board on directors’ Remuneration (continued)

The structure of the performance conditions for annual bonus and long-term incentives has been designed to provide a strong link to 
the Company’s performance, namely a focus on maximising profit in a sustainable fashion and generating superior shareholder returns. 
This approach generates strong alignment of interest between senior executives and shareholders.

In framing the Company’s remuneration policy for executive directors, the Committee has given full consideration to the best practice 
provisions in the UK Corporate Governance Code and the Association of British Insurers’ (‘ABI’) guidance. 

When determining the elements of remuneration for the executive directors, the Committee takes into consideration the pay and 
conditions of employees throughout the Group as a whole, paying particular attention to the levels of pay increase awarded to the 
workforce generally. All employees, including the executive directors, can join the Company’s savings related share option arrangements. 
All employees have access to pension arrangements, most have access to life assurance benefits and a significant proportion of 
employees benefit from health insurance, a company car or car allowance. The Committee is apprised of any significant policy 
changes for the workforce generally.

SummARy of RemuNeRAtioN poliCy

The policy in relation to each component of executive remuneration is described below:

Component

Policy and link to strategy

Opportunity

Operation

Changes from 1 August 2012

Salary

Details set out later 
in report.

To be market competitive 
and therefore assists in 
recruiting and retaining 
executives. Reflects 
individual role and 
experience.

Annual Bonus

Long-term incentives 
(performance shares 
and matching shares)

To reward achievement of 
a combination of financial 
and non-financial 
operational-based 
performance targets.

To encourage long-term 
value creation, to aid 
retention, to encourage 
shareholding, and to 
promote alignment of 
interest with shareholders.

Pension

To provide a range and 
value which is market 
competitive.

Benefits

To provide a range 
and value which is 
market competitive.

120% of base salary.

Maximum 100% 
of salary for 
performance shares. 
For matching shares 
up to 2:1 equivalent 
to bonus investment 
(maximum of 25% 
of net cash bonus).

30% of salary paid 
as salary supplement 
in lieu of pension 
contribution for the 
Chief Executive and 
pension contribution of 
10% and 16% of salary 
for the new directors.

Market levels.

Salary levels set by reference 
to the mid market level of 
a peer group of similar UK 
housebuilding businesses, 
taking account of individual 
performance and experience. 
The salaries of the two new 
executive directors have been 
positioned below the median, 
with a view to progressing these 
over time as experience is 
gained, subject to performance.

By providing the opportunity to 
earn a bonus for outstanding 
operational performance, both 
financial and non-financial. 

By using share-based incentives 
with performance conditions 
which are aligned with 
shareholders’ interests, such 
as Total Shareholder Return 
(‘TSR’), which are assessed 
over a three-year period.

Pension contribution and/or 
salary supplement in lieu 
of pension contribution.

Salary changes 
described below under 
‘Salaries and fees’.

No change.

No change.

Policy for pension 
contribution 
harmonised to 
20% of salary for 
new directors.

Car or car allowance, life 
assurance and health insurance. 

No change.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

41

SAlARieS ANd feeS

Salaries are reviewed on 1 August each year, taking into account the general settlement across the Company. Any changes are 
implemented from that date.

For the year under review, Mr Watson received a 3% increase in basic salary which reflected the average percentage increase across the 
workforce generally. For 2012/13, Mr Watson has been awarded a 3% increase in basic salary, which again reflects the average percentage 
increase across the workforce generally for the same period. 

Mr Ayres was promoted to the Board on 1 August 2011 and Mr Adey was promoted to the Board on 1 February 2012. Their 
commencing salaries were significantly below those of their predecessors and market benchmarks. As disclosed in last year’s report 
and elsewhere in this report, the Committee’s intention is that these will be progressively adjusted as they develop and adapt into 
their new roles, subject to performance. 

With effect from 1 August 2012, Mr Ayres’ salary has been increased from £250,000 to £300,000 and will be increased to £400,000 on 
appointment to the role of Chief Executive in February 2013. With effect from 1 August 2012 Mr Adey’s salary has been increased from 
£200,000 to £225,000. 

The Chairman’s fee increased by 3%, which is in line with the average percentage increase across the workforce generally for the same 
period. 

Fee levels for non-executive directors reflect the time commitment and responsibilities of the role, including membership or chairmanship 
of Board Committees. Fees are reviewed annually, taking into account the level of fees for similar positions in comparable companies. 
For the year under review, fees were increased by 3% which is in line with the average percentage increase across the workforce 
generally. Following a review of non-executive director fees, with effect from 1 August 2012 the following fees are payable which 
represent an aggregate rise of just over 3%; Mr Johnson £58,500, Mr Toms £54,500 and Mr Cuthbert £51,500.

Non-executive directors are not entitled to any benefits (with the exception of the Chairman) or pension. They do not participate 
in any bonus or long-term incentive plan and they are not entitled to compensation on termination of their agreements, other than 
normal notice provisions of three months’ notice given by either party.

ANNuAl boNuS SCheme

For the 2012/13 financial year the bonus opportunity will be unchanged at 120% of basic salary. The performance conditions relate 
to a stretching target range of operating profit (90%) and personal performance (30%), with personal performance being assessed 
by reference to land bank management, health and safety and customer care. The Committee considers that performance in relation to 
targets based on annual profitability and personal non-financial metrics provide a good link to the long-term performance of the business. 
The focus on profitability is balanced by there being a meaningful weighting of the overall bonus on a number of core non-financial KPIs 
which are considered to have a strong link to short and long-term shareholder returns.

The performance conditions for the annual bonus are balanced by complementary long-term performance conditions under the Bellway 
p.l.c. (2004) Performance Share Plan (the ‘PSP’), discussed below.

The bonus will be payable in cash, with executives having the opportunity to invest up to 25% of their net cash bonus in Bellway 
shares held in the Bellway Employee Share Trust (1992) (the ‘Trust’) under the terms of the Bellway p.l.c. (2008) Share Matching Plan 
(the ‘SMP’).

Details of the bonus payments are set out in the notes to the table of directors’ emoluments on page 44. 

loNG-teRm iNCeNtive plANS

The Company operates two LTIPs which are designed to focus executive directors on longer term value creation, provide a strong 
retentive element and alignment of interest with shareholders.

The PSP was introduced for the Company’s executive directors and the Group Company Secretary. Awards will vest to executives 
after three years, subject to the achievement of performance conditions based around TSR which measures the total return (share 
price growth and dividend) on a notional investment in Bellway shares, compared to the return on the same notional investment 
in shares in another company or index. TSR is recognised as generating an alignment of interest between executives and institutional 
shareholders by providing a reward mechanism for delivering superior stock market performance. TSR calculations are independently 
calculated for the Committee by the Company’s brokers. 

For the awards made in 2011/12 the TSR condition was in two equal parts. Half the award was based on performance relative to the 
Housebuilders Index and half by reference to the FTSE 250 Index. During the year the views of major shareholders have been sought 
on alternative or additional performance measures but in the absence of any consensus and in view of the strong alignment provided by 
TSR, the Committee has determined that the same TSR measures will be used for the 2012/13 awards. The Committee will keep this 
issue under review for future years.

42

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance
Report of the board on directors’ Remuneration (continued)

Regardless of TSR performance, no part of the TSR element of an award will vest unless the Committee is satisfied that there has 
been an improvement in underlying financial performance over the performance period, taking into account, inter alia, operating 
profit, operating margin, ROCE and Net Asset Value (‘NAV’). The Committee will scale back the level of vesting indicated by the TSR 
performance condition (potentially to zero) in circumstances where there has not been an improvement. 

The SMP operates in conjunction with the annual bonus. Under the SMP senior executives may invest up to 25% of their net cash annual 
bonus, in Bellway shares, which must be held for a minimum of three years in the Trust. Invested shares will not be subject to a risk 
of forfeiture and executives will enjoy full beneficial ownership (including voting rights and dividends).

In return for investing in shares under the SMP, an award of matching shares of up to 2:1 is granted. The level of matching is on a gross 
basis to the net of tax bonus invested in shares.

Matching shares will vest subject to the executive remaining employed, retention of the invested shares and also subject to performance 
conditions. No awards have been made to date. For any awards which may be made, the performance conditions will be determined by 
the Committee at the time of grant. 

Clawback
To improve the risk profile of the policy and in line with best practice, the Company has introduced a clawback mechanism for bonus 
and LTIP awards to allow the Company, in exceptional circumstances, to clawback some or all of the payments made under the variable 
components of an individual’s remuneration.

peNSioN pRoviSioN

Mr Watson receives a cash payment in lieu of pension contributions amounting to 30% of basic salary. 

Mr Ayres is a member of the Company’s Group Self Invested Personal Pension Plan (‘GSIPP’) and from 1 August 2011 the Company 
made a contribution of 16% of his basic salary to the GSIPP on his behalf. Mr Adey is also a member of the GSIPP and from his 
appointment to the Board on 1 February 2012 the Company made a contribution of 10% of his basic salary to the GSIPP on his behalf. 
The Committee has reviewed the level of pension provision and from 1 August 2012 the Company pension contribution on behalf 
of both Mr Ayres and Mr Adey has been increased to 20% of salary, which is a broadly mid market level of pension provision 
(as a percentage of salary). Any amount payable in excess of HMRC approved pension contribution limits will be paid as a cash amount.

ShAReholdiNG GuideliNeS

There is a policy for a minimum shareholding requirement for the executive directors, equivalent to 100% of basic salary. As at 31 
July 2012, and at the date of this report, Mr Watson held shares with an equivalent value well in excess of 100% of his basic salary. 
In response to the appointment of new executive directors to the Board, the Committee has established the following mechanism 
to ensure that new executive directors acquire the requisite shareholding. Within a period of three months of appointment an 
executive director must acquire a minimum of 1,000 ordinary shares in the Company and must retain at least 50% of any shares 
awarded under the PSP or SMP, after allowance for paying tax, until the requisite number of shares has been accumulated. 
If personal circumstances make this difficult, the Committee would exercise discretion. 

SeRviCe CoNtRACtS ANd letteRS of AppoiNtmeNt

The executive directors have service contracts with a 12 month notice period from the Company and a six month notice period from 
the executive. 

For Mr Watson, on termination by the Company, an amount equivalent to one year’s salary, benefits and the average amount of the 
last two years’ annual bonus payments, would be payable. Within six months of a change of control, if Mr Watson serves notice to 
terminate the contract, the liquidated damages payment would be triggered. The inclusion of average annual bonus in the calculation 
of compensation payable for early termination has ensured that there was variability in the potential level of compensation. In particular, 
after a period of poor performance, it could be expected that little or no bonus would be payable, reducing potential payout in these 
circumstances. Mr Watson has long service with the Company and the Committee has not considered it appropriate to re-negotiate 
his contract in relation to this provision. 

In accordance with best practice, the service contracts of Mr Ayres and Mr Adey do not provide for the inclusion of average bonus as 
part of the compensation arrangements in the event of early termination and contain no liquidated damages provision. Consequently, 
following Mr Watson stepping down as Chief Executive on 31 January 2013, all executive directors will have service contracts fully 
compliant with latest best practice provisions. 

If an executive director is not re-elected as a director of the Company by shareholders at an AGM then the Company may terminate 
the Executive’s employment by giving him 12 months’ notice or payment in lieu of notice.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

43

The details of the executive directors’ service contracts are as follows:

Executive director

First appointed as a director

Current contract commencement date

J K Watson

E F Ayres

K D Adey

1 August 1995

1 August 2011

1 February 2012

16 March 2001, amended 7 October 2009

1 August 2011

1 February 2012

All non-executive directors have letters of appointment with the Company of no more than three years with a three-month notice 
period by either side.

Non-executive director

First appointed as a director

Current letter of appointment 
commencement date

Current letter of  

appointment expiry date

H C Dawe

P M Johnson

M R Toms

J A Cuthbert

9 August 1977

1 November 2003

1 February 2009

1 November 2009

1 November 2010

1 November 2009

1 February 2012

1 November 2009

31 October 2013

31 October 2012

31 January 2015

31 October 2012

On the expiry of their existing letters of appointment, and following rigorous review, it is the intention of the Company, to issue new 
letters of appointment to Mr Johnson for a period of 15 months to expire on 31 January 2014 and to Mr Cuthbert for a term of three 
years to expire on 31 October 2015. 

Mr Dawe will retire from the Board on 31 January 2013 (he will receive no payment for loss of office). On the same date Mr Watson will 
move from the role of Chief Executive and will, with effect from 1 February 2013, become non-executive Chairman. Mr Watson will be 
issued with a letter of appointment as a non-executive for a period of three years, expiring on 31 January 2016.

Mr Watson will receive no payment for loss of office as Chief Executive. In his capacity as non-executive Chairman he will receive 
an annual fee of £180,000 and will not receive a pension contribution nor payment in lieu of pension nor participate in annual bonus 
or long-term incentive arrangements. Existing entitlements under the LTIP will be maintained, together with provision for health and 
life assurance.

diReCtoRS’ iNteReStS

The directors’ interests (including family interests and holdings in which the directors are interested only as trustees) in the ordinary share 
capital of the Company are set out below:

Beneficial interests

H C Dawe

J K Watson

E F Ayres

K D Adey

A M Leitch (retired 31 January 2012)

P M Johnson

M R Toms

J A Cuthbert 

Fully paid ordinary 12.5 pence shares

31 July 2012

143,634

403,384

10,105

1,000

N/A

4,300

1,500

6,000

1 August 2011 or date  
of appointment if later

143,634

400,527

3,073

–

132,473

4,300

1,500

6,000

The directors’ interests (including family interests) in the preference share capital of the Company are set out below:

Beneficial interests

H C Dawe

A M Leitch (retired 31 January 2012)

There has been no change in any of the above interests between 31 July 2012 and the date of this report.

Fully paid cumulative redeemable  
£1 preference shares

31 July 2012

1 August 2011

759,164

N/A

709,164

150,000

44

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance
Report of the board on directors’ Remuneration (continued)

The auditor is required to report on the information contained in the following part of this report.

Non-executive Chairman

H C Dawe

Executive directors

J K Watson

E F Ayres

K D Adey(2) 

A M Leitch(3)

P J Stoker(3)

Non-executive directors

P M Johnson

M R Toms 

J A Cuthbert 

Totals

Salary  
and fees  

Annual 
bonus(1) 

Payment in  
lieu of pension  

Payment to  
Company 
pension scheme  

£

241,000

£

–

£

–

544,000

648,448

163,200

£

–

–

250,000

298,000

100,000

119,200

–

–

40,000

10,000

180,404

210,984

53,100

–

56,650

51,500

51,500

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

Taxable 
benefits 

£

 Total

2012 

£

2011 

£

2,834

243,834

236,951

26,120

1,381,768

1,239,532

26,868

12,799

14,699

–

–

–

–

614,868

241,999

–

–

459,187

814,411

–

816,597

56,650

51,500

51,500

55,000

50,000

50,000

1,475,054

1,276,632

216,300

50,000

83,320

3,101,306

3,262,491

Notes:
1. 

 The annual bonus is payable in November 2012 for performance during the year ended 31 July 2012. The performance conditions for the 2011/12 bonus were operating 
profit (pre-exceptional items) (90%) and personal non-financial performance (30%), with non-financial performance being assessed by reference to land bank management, 
health and safety and customer care. The actual bonus payments against each of these metrics were determined on the following basis:
- 

 operating profit was £114.6 million, with no exceptional items, an increase of 52% over the previous year and at the higher end of the target range. Operating profit 
of £114.6 million generated a payment of 89.2% of salary out of a maximum possible 90% of salary.
 in respect of the non-financial elements, the Committee took account of performance against each metric. The Group had achieved a further improvement in its 
customer care score from 91% to 93.8%, and reduced its rate of over three-day lost time accidents per 100,000 employees to 761.18 from 767.90 and had achieved 
its land bank target for the following financial year.  This outstanding performance generated a maximum payment of 30% in respect of the non-financial metrics.

- 

2.  Mr Adey was appointed on 1 February 2012. The bonus paid is by reference to his period of service as a director, and was based on his salary as a director.
3. 

 Mr Stoker retired from the Board on 31 July 2011 and Mr Leitch retired from the Board on 31 January 2012. They did not receive any payments for loss of office on their 
retirement from the Board. Mr Leitch earned a pro rata bonus for the period that he worked in the 2011/12 financial year.

 
 
 
 
Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

45

diReCtoRS’ iNteReStS iN the pSp

The executive directors have a potential future beneficial interest in certain shares held in the Trust pursuant to the allocation of shares 
under the PSP. Further information on the PSP is set out on pages 40 to 42. The number of shares allocated in the Trust in respect of 
each director, along with the market price of the shares at the date of award, is shown below:

Fully paid ordinary 12.5 pence shares

Potential future beneficial interests

Award date

Awards held at  
1 August 2011

Awarded during  

the year

Awards lapsed  
during the year

Awards vested 
during the year(5)

Awards held at  
31 July 2012

J K Watson

Totals

E F Ayres

Totals

04.11.2008(1)

29.10.2009(2)

21.10.2010(3)

24.10.2011(4)

24.10.2011(4)

A M Leitch (retired 31.1.2012)(9)

04.11.2008(1)

29.10.2009(2)

21.10.2010(3)

Totals

89,487

72,028

96,060

–

257,575

–

–

58,167

46,818

62,439

167,424

–

–

–

77,659

77,659

35,689

35,689

–

–

–

–

358

89,129

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

72,028

96,060

77,659

358

89,129

245,747

–

–

233

–

36,421

36,654

–

–

57,934

–

–

57,934

35,689

35,689

–

46,818

26,018

72,836

Notes:
1.  Market value on award 575.50p (04.11.2008), performance period 1 August 2008 – 31 July 2011.
2.  Market value on award 715.00p (29.10.2009), performance period 1 August 2009 – 31 July 2012.
3.  Market value on award 549.50p (21.10.2010), performance period 1 August 2010 – 31 July 2013.
4.  Market value on award 700.50p (24.10.2011), performance period 1 August 2011 – 31 July 2014.
5. 

 Market value on 20 January 2012, which was the day the shares in respect of Mr Watson and Mr Leitch vested, was 740.445p. The awards vested at 99.6% of the 
full entitlement. Aggregate gross gains made by the above directors on vesting of these awards under the PSP in the year were £1,088,918 (2011 – £368,002). 

6.  The performance conditions for each award are summarised below:

(a) 

(b) 

(c) 

 For the awards made on 4 November 2008, 29 October 2009 and 21 October 2010, the awards were based on a TSR condition comparing Bellway’s TSR 
against an index of the TSR of other housebuilders (‘the Housebuilders Index’). If Bellway’s TSR matches that of the Housebuilders Index, 25% of the award vests. 
Full vesting would be achieved for 7.5% per annum outperformance of the Housebuilders Index. The companies comprising the Housebuilders Index are Barratt 
Developments PLC, The Berkeley Group plc, Bovis Homes Group PLC, Persimmon plc, Redrow plc and Taylor Wimpey plc. 
 For the award made on 24 October 2011 the TSR performance condition was in two parts. Half was measured by reference to the Housebuilders Index as 
above, and the other half was measured by reference to the companies in the FTSE 250 Index (excluding investment trusts and financial services). Awards start 
to vest at 25% if Bellway’s TSR matches the median of the companies in the group, increasing on a straight-line basis so that full vesting would be achieved if 
Bellway’s TSR reaches the upper quartile. 
 For the awards made on 4 November 2008 and 29 October 2009, regardless of TSR performance, no part of the TSR element of an award will vest unless the 
Committee is satisfied that the Company’s TSR over the performance period is reflective of underlying financial performance. For the awards made on 21 October 
2010 and 24 October 2011, no part of the TSR element of an award will vest unless the Committee is satisfied that there has been an improvement in underlying 
financial performance, taking into account, inter alia, operating profit, operating margin, ROCE and NAV.

9. 

7.  The market price of the ordinary shares at 31 July 2012 was 802.50p and the range during the year was 540.50p to 859.50p.
8. 

 The only changes in the above potential future beneficial interests between 31 July 2012 and the date of this report are in relation to the awards made on 29 October 
2009 where the performance conditions have not been met and the entire awards will lapse.
 Following Mr Leitch’s retirement from the Board on 31 January 2012, the full three year holding period of each of these awards is to apply up until the normal vesting 
dates. In respect of the award granted on 29 October 2009, Mr Leitch may exercise the full allocation of shares awarded subject to, and calculated by reference to, the 
relevant performance conditions and subject to the relevant financial underpin. In respect of the award granted on 21 October 2010, Mr Leitch may exercise up to 
41.67% of the allocation of shares awarded (scaled back to reflect the shorter period of service than the award was intended to cover) subject to, and calculated by 
reference to, the relevant performance conditions and subject to the relevant financial underpin. 

 
 
 
46

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance
Report of the board on directors’ Remuneration (continued)

diReCtoRS’ ShARe optioNS

Details of all directors’ interests in the various share option schemes are shown below:

Scheme

1 August 2011 or  

date of appointment

Granted during 
the year

Exercised during 
the year

31 July 2012

Exercise price(p)

Exercisable from

Expiry date

J K Watson

2003 SRSOS(e)

2003 SRSOS(e)

Totals

E F Ayres

1996 ESOS(b)

1996 ESOS(b)

2005 ESOS(c)

DBP(4)

DBP(4)

2003 SRSOS(e)

Totals

K D Adey

2003 SRSOS(e)

Totals

2,857

–

2,857

10,000

16,500

3,500

2,000

5,032

2,350

39,382

3,463

3,463

–

1,618

1,618

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

2,857

–

2,857

–

–

–

2,000

5,032

–

7,032

–

–

–

336.00

1 Feb 2012

31 July 2012

1,618

1,618

10,000

16,500

3,500

–

–

2,350

32,350

3,463

3,463

556.00

1 Feb 2015

31 July 2015

716.00 17 Nov 2007 17 Nov 2014

844.00 31 Oct 2008 31 Oct 2015

844.00 31 Oct 2008 31 Oct 2015

£1 in total

7 Feb 2010

7 Feb 2017

£1 in total 23 Nov 2010 23 Nov 2017

661.60

1 Feb 2015

31 July 2015

439.60

1 Feb 2016

31 July 2016

Notes:
1.  All of the above options were granted for nil consideration unless noted. 
2.  Aggregate gross gains made by the directors on the exercise of the above options in the year were £70,659.87 (2011 – nil).
3.  References to (b), (c) and (e) correspond with the summary of outstanding share options in note 19 on page 71.
4. 

5. 

 References to DBP (Deferred Bonus Plan) shares correspond with awards made under the annual bonus scheme as explained in Share-based payments in note 25(b) 
on page 76.
 The 1996 ESOS award exercisable from 17 November 2007 is subject to the achievement of either of the following objective performance conditions: (a) the growth 
in earnings per share of the Company in any three consecutive years will not be less than the growth in the Retail Price index plus 6% over the same period; or (b) the 
growth in earnings per share of the Company in any three consecutive years exceeding the mean average growth in earnings per share in the same period of companies 
whose shares were formerly quoted in the ‘Building and Construction’ sector but whose shares are now quoted in the ‘Household Goods’ sector of the FTSE Actuaries Shares 
Indices. The 1996 ESOS and 2005 ESOS awards exercisable from 31 October 2008, are subject to a PBT performance target at the operating division of Bellway Homes 
Limited where Mr Ayres was a director at the time of the grant and during the three year performance period. Full vesting occurs where actual PBT reaches the forecast PBT, 
within a 10% range, in each of the three financial years of the performance period, with one-third vesting if the target is met in only one year and two-thirds vesting if the 
target is met in two of the three years. If the target was not reached in any of the three years then the total award would lapse. The performance conditions have been met 
in full.

6.  The market price of the ordinary shares at 31 July 2012 was 802.50p and the range during the year was 540.50p to 859.50p.
7.  There have been no changes in the above holdings between 31 July 2012 and the date of this report.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

47

peRfoRmANCe GRAph

The graph below shows the TSR performance over the past five years of the Company, the FTSE 250 Index and the bespoke 
Housebuilders Index (as defined in note 6(a) on page 45). The FTSE 250 Index has been selected as the most appropriate ‘broad equity 
market index’ as the Company has been a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index over this period, and the bespoke Housebuilders Index has 
been selected as this index is used for the Company’s long-term incentive plans.

TSR over the last five financial years
Source: Datastream

120

100

80

60

40

20

0
2007

2008

2009

Bellway

House Builder Index

FTSE 250 Index

2010

2011

2012

This graph looks at the value at 31 July 2012, of £100 invested in Bellway p.l.c. on 31 July 2007 compared with the value of £100 invested 
in the FTSE 250 Index and in the bespoke Housebuilders Index over the same period.

This report will be put to an advisory vote of the Company’s shareholders at the AGM on 11 January 2013.

On behalf of the Board

Mike Toms

Chairman of the Board Committee on Executive Directors’ Remuneration 
15 October 2012

48

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Governance

Statement of directors’ Responsibilities in 
respect of the Annual Report and Accounts

The directors are responsible for preparing the Annual Report and Accounts and the Group and parent company financial statements 
in accordance with applicable law and regulations. Company law requires the directors to prepare group and parent company financial 
statements for each financial year. Under that law they are required to prepare the Group financial statements in accordance with IFRSs 
as adopted by the EU and applicable law and have elected to prepare the parent company financial statements on the same basis.

Under company law the directors must not approve the financial statements unless they are satisfied that they give a true and fair view 
of the state of affairs of the Group and parent company and of their profit or loss for that period. In preparing each of the Group and 
parent company financial statements, the directors are required to:

 „ select suitable accounting policies and then apply them consistently;
 „ make judgements and estimates that are reasonable and prudent;
 „ state whether they have been prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the EU; and
 „  prepare the financial statements on the going concern basis unless it is inappropriate to presume that the Group and the parent 

company will continue in business.

The directors are responsible for keeping adequate accounting records that are sufficient to show and explain the parent company’s 
transactions and disclose with reasonable accuracy at any time the financial position of the parent company and enable them to ensure 
that its financial statements comply with the Companies Act 2006. They have general responsibility for taking such steps as are reasonably 
open to them to safeguard the assets of the Group and to prevent and detect fraud and other irregularities.

Under applicable law and regulations, the directors are also responsible for preparing a Directors’ Report, Directors’ Remuneration 
Report and Corporate Governance Statement that complies with that law and those regulations.

The directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the corporate and financial information included on the Group’s website. 
Legislation in the UK governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

ReSpoNSibility StAtemeNt of the diReCtoRS iN ReSpeCt of the ANNuAl RepoRt 
ANd ACCouNtS
We confirm that to the best of our knowledge:

 „  the financial statements, prepared in accordance with the applicable set of accounting standards, give a true and fair view of the assets, 
liabilities, financial position and profit or loss of the Company and the undertakings included in the consolidation taken as a whole; and

 „  the Directors’ Report includes a fair review of the development and performance of the business and the position of the issuer and 
the undertakings included in the consolidation taken as a whole, together with a description of the principal risks and uncertainties 
that they face.

Keith Adey

Finance Director 
15 October 2012

Governance

independent Auditor’s Report to the members 
of bellway p.l.c.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

49

We have audited the financial statements of Bellway p.l.c. for the year ended 31 July 2012 set out on pages 50 to 79.

The financial reporting framework that has been applied in their preparation is applicable law and International Financial Reporting 
Standards (‘IFRSs’) as adopted by the EU and, as regards the parent company financial statements, as applied in accordance with the 
provisions of the Companies Act 2006.

This report is made solely to the Company’s members, as a body, in accordance with Chapter 3 of Part 16 of the Companies Act 2006. 
Our audit work has been undertaken so that we might state to the Company’s members those matters we are required to state to 
them in an auditor’s report and for no other purpose. To the fullest extent permitted by law, we do not accept or assume responsibility 
to anyone other than the Company and the Company’s members, as a body, for our audit work, for this report, or for the opinions we 
have formed.

ReSpeCtive ReSpoNSibilitieS of diReCtoRS ANd AuditoR

As explained more fully in the Directors’ Responsibilities Statement set out on page 48, the directors are responsible for the preparation 
of the financial statements and for being satisfied that they give a true and fair view. Our responsibility is to audit, and express an opinion 
on, the financial statements in accordance with applicable law and International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland). Those standards 
require us to comply with the Auditing Practices Board’s (‘APB’s’) Ethical Standards for Auditors.

SCope of the Audit of the fiNANCiAl StAtemeNtS

A description of the scope of an audit of financial statements is provided on the APB’s website at www.frc.org.uk/apb/scope/private.cfm. 

opiNioN oN fiNANCiAl StAtemeNtS

In our opinion:
 „  the financial statements give a true and fair view of the state of the Group’s and of the parent company’s affairs as at 31 July 2012 and 

of the Group’s profit for the year then ended;

 „ the Group financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the EU; 
 „  the parent company financial statements have been properly prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the EU and as applied 

in accordance with the provisions of the Companies Act 2006; and

 „  the financial statements have been prepared in accordance with the requirements of the Companies Act 2006 and, as regards the 

Group financial statements, Article 4 of the IAS Regulation.

opiNioN oN otheR mAtteRS pReSCRibed by the CompANieS ACt 2006

In our opinion:
 „  the part of the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration to be audited has been properly prepared in accordance with the 

Companies Act 2006; and

 „  the information given in the Directors’ Report for the financial year for which the financial statements are prepared is consistent with 

the financial statements.

mAtteRS oN whiCh we ARe RequiRed to RepoRt by exCeptioN

We have nothing to report in respect of the following:
Under the Companies Act 2006 we are required to report to you if, in our opinion:
 „  adequate accounting records have not been kept by the parent company, or returns adequate for our audit have not been received 

from branches not visited by us; or

 „  the parent company financial statements and the part of the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration to be audited are not 

in agreement with the accounting records and returns; or

 „ certain disclosures of directors’ remuneration specified by law are not made; or
 „ we have not received all the information and explanations we require for our audit.
Under the Listing Rules we are required to review:
 „ the directors’ statement, set out on page 36, in relation to going concern;
 „  the part of the Corporate Governance Statement relating to the Company’s compliance with the nine provisions of the 

UK Corporate Governance Code specified for our review; and

 „ certain elements of the report to shareholders by the Board on directors’ remuneration. 

M R Thompson (Senior Statutory Auditor)
for and on behalf of KPMG Audit Plc, Statutory Auditor
Chartered Accountants 
Quayside House, 110 Quayside, Newcastle upon Tyne NE1 3DX
15 October 2012

50

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts

Group Income Statement

for the year ended 31 July 2012

Revenue

Cost of sales

Gross profit

Administrative expenses

Operating profit

Finance income

Finance expenses

Profit before taxation 

Income tax expense

Profit for the year *

* All attributable to equity holders of the parent.

There were no exceptional items in the current or prior period (note 5).

Earnings per ordinary share – Basic

Earnings per ordinary share – Diluted

Statements of Comprehensive Income

for the year ended 31 July 2012

Notes

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

1

5

4

2

2

6

8

8

1,004,227

886,095

(842,124)

(766,717)

162,103

(47,472)

114,631

1,676

(11,023)

105,284

(26,026)

79,258

119,378

(44,168)

75,210

1,774

(9,822)

67,162

(17,018)

50,144

65.5p

65.2p

41.5p

41.4p

Profit/(loss) for the period

Other comprehensive (expense)/income

Notes

Group

2012  
£000

Group

2011  
£000

79,258

50,144

Company

2012  
£000

(1,918)

Company

2011  
£000

(1,905)

Actuarial (losses)/gains on defined benefit pension plans

Income tax on other comprehensive expense/(income)

25

6

(3,845)

676

761

(587)

Other comprehensive (expense)/income for the period, 
net of income tax

(3,169)

174

–

–

–

–

–

–

Total comprehensive income/(expense) for the period *

76,089

50,318

(1,918)

(1,905)

* All attributable to equity holders of the parent.

Accounts

Statements of Changes in Equity

at 31 July 2012

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

51

Group

Issued  
capital 

£000

Notes

Share  
premium 

Other  
reserves 

Retained 
earnings  

Total  

£000

£000

£000

£000

Non-
controlling 
interest  
£000

Total  
equity  

£000

Balance at 1 August 2010

15,103

160,563

1,492

857,706 1,034,864

(66) 1,034,798

Total comprehensive income 
for the period

Profit for the period

Other comprehensive income *

Total comprehensive income 
for the period

Transactions with shareholders 
recorded directly in equity:

Dividends on equity shares

Shares issued

Credit in relation to share options 
and tax thereon

Purchase of own shares

Total contributions by and distributions 
to shareholders

7

19

25

20

–

–

–

–

2

–

–

2

–

–

–

–

79

–

–

79

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

50,144

50,144

174

174

50,318

50,318

(12,543)

(12,543)

–

81

1,213

(559)

1,213

(559)

(11,889)

(11,808)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

50,144

174

50,318

(12,543)

81

1,213

(559)

(11,808)

Balance at 31 July 2011

15,105

160,642

1,492

896,135

1,073,374

(66) 1,073,308

Total comprehensive income 
for the period

Profit for the period

Other comprehensive expense *

Total comprehensive income 
for the period

Transactions with shareholders 
recorded directly in equity:

Dividends on equity shares

Shares issued

Credit in relation to share options 
and tax thereon

Purchase of own shares

Total contributions by and distributions 
to shareholders

7

19

25

20

–

–

–

–

75

–

–

–

–

–

–

2,113

–

–

75

2,113

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

79,258

79,258

(3,169)

(3,169)

76,089

76,089

(17,890)

(17,890)

–

2,188

719

719

(1,279)

(1,279)

(18,450)

(16,262)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

79,258

(3,169)

76,089

(17,890)

2,188

719

(1,279)

(16,262)

Balance at 31 July 2012

15,180

162,755

1,492

953,774 1,133,201

(66) 1,133,135

* Additional breakdown is provided in the statements of comprehensive income.

  
  
  
 
 
 
 
52

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
Statements of Changes in Equity (continued)
at 31 July 2012

Company

Issued  
capital  

£000

Notes

Balance at 1 August 2010

15,103

160,563

Total comprehensive expense  
for the period

Loss for the period

Other comprehensive income *

Total comprehensive expense 
for the period

Transactions with shareholders 
recorded directly in equity:

Dividends on equity shares

Shares issued

Credit in relation to share options

Purchase of own shares

Total contributions by and distributions 
to shareholders

–

–

–

–

2

–

–

2

–

–

–

–

79

–

–

79

7

19

25

20

Share  
premium  

Other  
reserves  

£000

Share-based 
payment 
reserve  
£000

Retained 
earnings  

£000

Total  
equity  

£000

11,957

549,577

739,345

–

–

–

–

–

957

–

(1,905)

(1,905)

–

–

(1,905)

(1,905)

(12,543)

(12,543)

–

–

81

957

(559)

(559)

957

(13,102)

(12,064)

£000

2,145

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

Balance at 31 July 2011

15,105

160,642

2,145

12,914

534,570

725,376

Total comprehensive expense 
for the period

Loss for the period

Other comprehensive income *

Total comprehensive expense 
for the period

Transactions with shareholders 
recorded directly in equity:

Dividends on equity shares

Shares issued

Credit in relation to share options

Purchase of own shares

Total contributions by and distributions 
to shareholders

–

–

–

–

75

–

–

75

–

–

–

–

2,113

–

–

2,113

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

1,046

(1,918)

(1,918)

–

–

(1,918)

(1,918)

(17,890)

(17,890)

–

–

2,188

1,046

–

(1,279)

(1,279)

1,046

(19,169)

(15,935)

7

19

25

20

Balance at 31 July 2012

15,180

162,755

2,145

13,960

513,483

707,523

* Additional breakdown is provided in the statements of comprehensive income.

 
 
 
 
 
Accounts

Balance Sheets

at 31 July 2012

ASSETS

Non-current assets

Property, plant and equipment

Investment property

Investments in subsidiaries and jointly controlled entities

Other financial assets

Deferred tax assets

Current assets

Inventories

Trade and other receivables

Cash and cash equivalents

Total assets

LIABILITIES

Non-current liabilities

Interest bearing loans and borrowings

Retirement benefit obligations

Trade and other payables

Deferred tax liabilities

Current liabilities

Interest bearing loans and borrowings

Corporation tax payable

Trade and other payables

Total liabilities

Net assets

EQUITY

Issued capital

Share premium

Other reserves

Share-based payment reserve

Retained earnings

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

53

Notes

Group

2012  
£000

Group

2011  
£000

Company

2012  
£000

Company

2011  
£000

9

10

11

14

12

13

15

22

16

25

17

12

16

17

11,407

9,748

–

35,080

3,241

59,476

9,023

8,880

–

–

–

–

 – 

30,163

29,117

33,491

3,683

55,077

–

–

–

–

30,163

29,117

1,399,843

1,270,292

71,133

21,413

62,176

83,412

–

649,499

48,745

1,492,389

1,415,880

698,244

1,551,865

1,470,957

728,407

–

668,392

48,741

717,133

746,250

20,000

11,501

37,867

85,000

8,401

31,218

–

 66 

20,000

20,000

–

–

–

–

–

–

69,368

124,685

20,000

20,000

62,000

14,820

272,542

349,362

418,730

 15,000 

 11,836 

246,128

272,964

397,649

–

–

884

884

20,884

1,133,135

1,073,308

707,523

19

15,180

15,105

15,180

162,755

160,642

162,755

1,492

–

1,492

–

953,774

896,135

2,145

13,960

513,483

707,523

 – 

 – 

874

874

20,874

725,376

15,105

160,642

2,145

12,914

534,570

725,376

–

Total equity attributable to equity holders of the parent

1,133,201

1,073,374

Non-controlling interest

Total equity

(66)

(66)

–

1,133,135

1,073,308

707,523

725,376

Approved by the Board of Directors on 15 October 2012 and signed on its behalf by  

Registered number 1372603

Howard Dawe 
Director   

Keith Adey 
Director

 
 
54

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts

Cash Flow Statements

for the year ended 31 July 2012

Notes

9, 10

4

2

2

25

6

Cash flows from operating activities

Profit/(loss) for the year

Depreciation charge

Profit on sale of property, plant and equipment

Profit on sale of investment properties

Finance income

Finance expenses

Share-based payment charge

Income tax expense

Increase in inventories

(Increase)/decrease in trade and other receivables

Increase in trade and other payables

Cash from operations

Interest paid

Income tax paid

Net cash (outflow)/inflow from operating activities

Cash flows from investing activities

Acquisition of property, plant and equipment

Acquisition of investment properties

Proceeds from sale of property, plant and equipment

Proceeds from sale of investment properties

Interest received

Net cash outflow from investing activities

Cash flows from financing activities

Decrease in bank borrowings

Proceeds from the issue of share capital on exercise of share options 

Purchase of own shares by employee share option plans

Dividends paid

Net cash outflow from financing activities

Group

2012  
£000

Group

2011  
£000

Company

2012  
£000

Company

2011  
£000

79,258

1,836

(213)

(35)

50,144

1,695

(262)

(27)

(1,676)

(1,774)

11,023

1,046

26,026

9,822

957

17,018

(129,263)

(121,579)

(1,918)

(1,905)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

1,900

1,900

–

–

–

–

–

–

14,781

30

14,806

(19,175)

29,879

18,893

10

(33,302)

18,885

(5,553)

(8,444)

(1,900)

(1,903)

–

–

(47,299)

16,985

12,903

(2,588)

(1,230)

351

185

1,322

(1,960)

–

81

(559)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

2,188

(1,279)

(12,540)

(17,890)

(13,018)

(16,981)

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

81

(559)

(12,540)

(13,018)

(115)

48,856

48,741

(10,617)

28,798

6,183

(7,001)

(22,317)

(23,135)

(4,551)

(1,106)

296

233

1,245

(3,883)

(18,000)

2,188

(1,279)

(17,890)

(34,981)

Net (decrease)/increase in cash and cash equivalents

(61,999)

(62,277)

Cash and cash equivalents at beginning of year

Cash and cash equivalents at end of year

22

83,412

21,413

145,689

83,412

4

48,741

48,745

Accounts

Accounting Policies

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

55

BASIS OF PREPARAtIOn

Bellway p.l.c. (the ‘Company’) is a company incorporated in England and Wales.

Both the Company financial statements and the Group financial statements have been prepared and approved by the directors in 
accordance with International Financial Reporting Standards as adopted by the EU (‘Adopted IFRSs’) and have been prepared on the 
historical cost basis except for other financial assets, which are stated at their fair value. On publishing the Company financial statements 
here together with the Group financial statements, which were approved for issue on 15 October 2012, the Company is taking 
advantage of the exemption in section 408 of the Companies Act 2006 not to present its individual income statement and related notes 
that form a part of these financial statements.

The preparation of financial statements in conformity with Adopted IFRSs requires management to make judgements, estimates and 
assumptions that affect the application of policies and reported amounts of assets and liabilities, income and expenses. 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 Group’s business activities, together with the factors likely to affect its future development, performance and position are set out in 
the Chief Executive’s Operating Review on pages 7 to 12. The financial position of the Group, its cash flows, liquidity position and 
borrowing facilities are described in the Group Finance Director’s Review on pages 22 to 25. Note 18 to the financial statements sets out 
the Group’s policies and processes for managing its capital, financial risk, and its exposures to credit risk and liquidity risk.

The Group’s activities are financed principally by a combination of ordinary shares, preference shares, bank borrowings and cash in hand. 
At 31 July 2012, net bank borrowings were £40.6 million having expended £62.0 million during the year. The Group has operated within 
all of its banking covenants throughout the year. In addition, the Group had bank facilities of £300.0 million, expiring in tranches up to 
November 2016, with £238.0 million available for drawdown under such facilities at 31 July 2012.

The directors consider that the Group is well placed to manage business and financial risks in the current economic environment and 
have a reasonable expectation that the Group has adequate resources to continue in operational existence for the foreseeable future. 
Accordingly they continue to adopt the going concern basis in preparing the Annual Report and Accounts.

Judgements made by the directors, in the application of these accounting policies and Adopted IFRSs, that have a significant effect 
on the financial statements and estimates with a significant risk of material adjustment in the next year, are discussed below.

The accounting policies set out below have, unless otherwise stated, been applied consistently to all periods presented in these 
consolidated financial statements.

EFFECt OF nEw StAnDARDS AnD IntERPREtAtIOnS EFFECtIvE FOR thE FIRSt tImE

The Group has adopted IFRS 7 ‘Financial Instruments: Disclosure’ (Amendment) in the Group’s financial statements for the year ended 
31 July 2012. This amendment provides clarification on the standard and requires additional disclosures in relation to financial 
instruments. The disclosures in these financial statements reflect this amendment.

The other standards and interpretations that are applicable for the first time in the Group’s financial statements for the year ended 
31 July 2012 have no effect on these financial statements.

BASIS OF COnSOlIDAtIOn

The consolidated financial statements incorporate the financial statements of the Company and entities controlled by the Company 
made up to 31 July. Control exists when the Group has the power, directly or indirectly, to govern the financial and operating policies of 
an entity so as to obtain benefits from its activities. In assessing control, potential voting rights that are currently exercisable or convertible 
are taken into account. The financial statements of these entities are included in the consolidated financial statements from the date that 
control commences until the date that control ceases.

Jointly controlled entities are those entities over whose activities the Group has joint control, established by contractual agreement. 
The consolidated financial statements include the Group’s proportionate share of the significant entities’ assets, liabilities, income and expenses 
with items of a similar nature on a line by line basis, from the date that joint control commences until the date that joint control ceases.

PROPERty, PlAnt AnD EquIPmEnt

Items are stated at cost less accumulated depreciation and impairment losses. Depreciation on property, plant and equipment is charged 
to the income statement on a straight-line basis over their estimated useful lives over the following number of years:

Plant, fixtures and fittings – 3 to 10 years.
Freehold buildings – 40 years.

Freehold land is not depreciated.

56

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
Accounting Policies (continued)

InvEStmEnt PROPERty

Investment property is initially recognised at cost. Subsequent to recognition, investment property is measured using the cost model 
and is carried at cost less any accumulated depreciation and accumulated impairment losses.

Depreciation is charged, where material, so as to write off the cost less residual value of the investment properties over their estimated 
useful lives. The residual values and useful lives of investment properties are reviewed at each financial year end. 

The useful life of investment properties has been assessed as: 10 – 100 years.

Land is not depreciated.

InvEStmEntS In SuBSIDIARIES

Interests in subsidiary undertakings are valued at cost less impairment.

InvEntORIES

Inventories are stated at the lower of cost and net realisable value. Cost, in relation to work in progress and showhomes, comprises 
direct materials and, where applicable, direct labour costs and those overheads, not including any general administrative overheads, 
that have been incurred in bringing the inventories to their present location and condition. Net realisable value represents the 
estimated selling price less all estimated costs of completion and overheads.

Land held for development, including land in the course of development until legal completion of the sale of the asset, is initially recorded 
at cost. Regular reviews are carried out to identify any impairment in the value of the land by comparing the total estimated selling prices 
less estimated selling expenses against the book cost of the land plus estimated costs to complete. Provision is made for any irrecoverable 
amounts. Where, through deferred payment terms, the fair value of land purchased differs from the amount that will subsequently be paid 
in settling the liability, the difference is charged as a finance expense in the income statement over the period to settlement.

Options purchased in respect of land are capitalised initially at cost. Regular reviews are carried out for impairment in the value of these 
options, and provisions made accordingly to reflect loss of value. The impairment reviews consider the period elapsed since the date 
of purchase of the option given that the option contract has not been exercised at the review date. Further, the impairment reviews 
consider the remaining life of the option, taking account of any concerns over whether the remaining time available will allow a successful 
exercise of the option. The carrying cost of the option at the date of exercise is included within the cost of land purchased as a result of 
the option exercise.

Investments in land without the benefit of planning consent, either through the purchase of land or non-refundable deposits paid on land 
purchase contracts subject to planning consent, are included initially at cost. Regular reviews are carried out for impairment in the values 
of these investments and provision made to reflect any irrecoverable element. The impairment reviews consider the existing use value 
of the land and assess the likelihood of achieving planning consent and the value thereof.

tRADE AnD OthER RECEIvABlES

Trade receivables are stated at their fair value at the date of initial recognition and subsequently at amortised cost less allowances for 
impairment.

OthER FInAnCIAl ASSEtS

Other financial assets are classified as being available-for-sale and are stated at fair value, with any resultant gain or loss being recognised 
directly in equity within retained earnings, except for impairment losses and changes in future cash flows, which are recognised directly in 
the income statement. When these investments are de-recognised, the cumulative gain or loss previously recognised directly in equity is 
recognised in the income statement. Where these investments are interest bearing, interest calculated using the effective interest method 
is recognised in the income statement.

A description of the valuation technique is given in note 14 on page 66.

CASh AnD CASh EquIvAlEntS

Cash and cash equivalents are defined as cash balances in hand and in the bank (including short-term cash deposits). The Group utilises 
bank overdraft facilities, which are repayable on demand, as part of its cash management policy. As a consequence, bank overdrafts are 
included as a component of net cash and cash equivalents within the cash flow statement. Offset arrangements across Group businesses 
are applied to arrive at the cash and overdraft figures in the balance sheet.

IntERESt BEARInG lOAnS AnD BORROwInGS

Interest bearing loans and borrowings are stated at their fair value at the date of initial recognition and subsequently at amortised cost.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

57

tRADE AnD OthER PAyABlES

Trade payables on normal terms are not interest bearing and are stated at their nominal value. Trade payables on deferred terms, most 
notably in relation to land purchases, are recorded initially at their fair value. The discount to nominal value is amortised over the period to 
settlement and charged to finance expenses.

ShARE CAPItAl 

I.  Preference share capital 
Preference share capital is redeemable on 6 April 2014 or at the option of the Company (subject to relevant conditions set out in note 
16) and is classified as a liability.

II.  Dividends 
Dividends on redeemable preference shares are recognised as a liability and accrued using the effective interest rate method. 
They are recognised in the income statement within finance expenses.

Other dividends are recognised as a liability in the period in which they are approved by the shareholders. Interim dividends are 
recognised when paid.

ClASSIFICAtIOn OF EquIty InStRumEntS AnD FInAnCIAl lIABIlItIES ISSuED By thE GROuP

Equity instruments issued by the Group are treated as equity only to the extent that they meet the following two conditions: 

(a)  they include no contractual obligations upon the Company (or Group as the case may be) to deliver cash or other financial assets 
or to exchange financial assets or financial liabilities with another party under conditions that are potentially unfavourable to the 
Company (or Group); and 

(b) where the instrument will or may be settled in the Company’s own equity instruments, it is either a non-derivative that includes 
no obligation to deliver a variable number of the Company’s own equity instruments or is a derivative that will be settled by the 
Company’s exchanging a fixed amount of cash or other financial assets for a fixed number of its own equity instruments.

To the extent that this definition is not met, the proceeds of issue are classified as a financial liability. Where the instrument so classified 
takes the legal form of the Company’s own shares, the amounts presented in these financial statements for called up share capital and 
share premium account exclude amounts in relation to those shares.

GRAntS

Grants are included within work in progress in the balance sheet to the extent that they contribute to construction costs and within 
deferred income to the extent that they contribute to site income. Grants are credited to the income statement over the life of the 
developments to which they relate.

REvEnuE RECOGnItIOn

Revenue from private housing sales and land is recognised when transactions have legally completed.

Incentives
Sales incentives, including NewBuy, are substantially cash in nature but include part-exchange costs which mainly relate to amounts written 
down, where the part-exchange allowance given to the purchaser of the new home is greater than the valuation of the part-exchange 
property. Incentives are accounted for by reducing the housebuild revenue by the cost to the Group of providing the incentive.

Sales incentives also include shared equity schemes which are accounted for as other financial assets. Revenue is recognised at the initial 
fair value of the other financial assets as described above.

Rental income
Rental income is recognised in the income statement on a straight-line basis over the term of the lease.

PARt-ExChAnGE PROPERtIES

The purchase and subsequent sale of part-exchange properties is an activity undertaken in order to achieve the sale of a new property. 
As such, the activity is regarded as a mechanism for selling. Impairments and gains or losses on the sale of part-exchange properties are 
classified as a cost of sale.

COntInGEnt lIABIlItIES

Where the Company enters into financial guarantee contracts to guarantee the indebtedness of other companies within the Group, 
the Company considers these to be insurance arrangements, and accounts for them as such. In this respect, the Company treats the 
guarantee contract as a contingent liability until such time as it becomes probable that the Company will be required to make a payment 
under the guarantee.

58

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
Accounting Policies (continued)

tAxAtIOn

The charge for taxation is based on the result for the year and takes into account current and deferred taxation. The charge is recognised 
in the income statement except to the extent that it relates to items recognised in equity in which case it is recognised in equity.

Deferred taxation is provided for all temporary differences between the carrying amounts of assets and liabilities in the financial 
statements and the corresponding tax bases. 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.

A deferred tax asset is recognised only to the extent that it is probable that future taxable profits will be available against which the asset 
can be utilised. Deferred tax assets are reviewed at each balance sheet date and reduced to the extent that it is no longer probable that 
the related tax benefit will be realised.

EmPlOyEE BEnEFItS – REtIREmEnt BEnEFIt COStS

For the defined benefit scheme, the liability is calculated as the present value of the defined benefit obligation at the balance sheet date. 
The fair values of scheme assets are then deducted. The calculation is performed by a qualified actuary using the projected unit credit 
method. All actuarial gains and losses are recognised immediately in the statements of comprehensive income (‘SOCI’). Further details of 
the scheme and the valuation methods applied may be found in note 25 on pages 73 to 76.

Defined contribution pension costs are charged to the income statement in the period for which contributions are payable.

EmPlOyEE BEnEFItS – ShARE-BASED PAymEntS

In accordance with IFRS 2 ‘Share-based Payments’ the fair value of equity settled share options granted is recognised as an employee 
expense with a corresponding increase in equity. The fair value is measured as at the date the options are granted and the charge is only 
amended if vesting does not take place due to non-market conditions not being met. Various option pricing models are used according to 
the terms of the option scheme under which the options were granted. The fair value is spread over the period during which the 
employees become unconditionally entitled to the options. The amount recognised as an expense is adjusted to reflect the actual number 
of options that vest. At the balance sheet date, if it is expected that non-market conditions will not be satisfied, the cumulative expense 
recognised in relation to the relevant options is reversed.

IFRS 2 has been applied to options granted after 7 November 2002 which had not vested at 1 January 2005.

With respect to share-based payments, a deferred tax asset is recognised on the relevant tax base. The tax base is then compared to the 
cumulative share-based payment expense recognised in the income statement. Deferred tax arising on the excess of the tax base over 
the cumulative share-based payment expense recognised in the income statement has been recognised directly in equity outside the 
SOCI as share-based payments are considered to be transactions with shareholders.

A deferred tax asset relating to awards issued before 7 November 2002, which follow the exemption of IFRS 1 and have not been 
accounted for under IFRS 2, has been recognised on transition. Subsequent reversal of the deferred tax asset and any excess tax benefits 
are recognised directly in equity.

Where the Company grants options over its own shares to the employees of its subsidiaries it recognises, in its individual financial 
statements, an increase in the cost of investment in its subsidiaries equivalent to the equity settled share-based payment charge 
recognised in its consolidated financial statements, with the corresponding credit being recognised in equity.

Own ShARES hElD By ESOP tRuSt

Transactions of the Company-sponsored ESOP trust are included in both the Group financial statements and the Company’s own 
financial statements. The purchase of shares in the Company by the trust are charged directly to equity.

OPERAtInG lEASES

Operating lease rentals are charged to the income statement on a straight-line basis over the period of the lease.

FInAnCE InCOmE AnD ExPEnSES

Finance income includes interest receivable on bank deposits. Other financial assets relate to the deferred element of revenues receivable 
from the sale of homes under shared equity schemes. The discounting of these other financial assets produces a notional interest 
receivable amount and this is credited to cost of sales.

Finance expenses includes interest on bank borrowings and dividends on redeemable preference shares. The discounting of the deferred 
payments for land purchases produces a notional interest payable amount and this is also charged to finance expenses.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

59

ExCEPtIOnAl ItEmS

Exceptional items are those which, in the opinion of the Board, are material by size or nature, non-recurring, and of such significance that 
they require separate disclosure on the face of the income statement.

ACCOuntInG EStImAtES AnD JuDGEmEntS

Management considers the key estimates and judgements made in the financial statements to be related to: 

valuation of work in progress and land held for development 
Inventories are carried at the lower of cost and net realisable value, less payments on account. Net realisable value represents the 
estimated selling price (in the ordinary course of business) less all estimated costs of completion and overheads. Valuations of site work 
in progress are carried out at regular intervals and estimates of the cost to complete a site and estimates of anticipated revenues are 
required to enable a development profit to be determined. Management are required to employ considerable judgement in estimating 
the profitability of a site and in assessing any impairment provisions which may be required.

For both the years ended 31 July 2012 and 31 July 2011, a full review of inventories has been performed and write downs have been 
made where cost exceeds net realisable value. Estimated selling prices have been reviewed on a site by site basis and have been 
amended based on local management and the Board’s assessment of current market conditions. For the years ended 31 July 2012 
and 31 July 2011 no exceptional charge has resulted from the review.

Whilst management remain cautious, selling prices and volumes have stabilised, however the market remains fragile. Should there 
be further significant movements in selling prices, either further reductions or a stepped recovery, exceptional charges or credits 
may be necessary.

Pension 
The Group has utilised a rate of return on assets and a discount rate having been advised by its actuary. To the extent that such assumed 
rates are different from what actually transpires, the pension liability of the Group would change.

Income taxes
A certain degree of estimation and judgement is required in establishing the tax figures prior to formal resolution with HMRC. 
In accordance with the contingent asset rules, detailed in IAS 37, the Group’s policy is to be prudent in assessing the level of 
benefit which may accrue.

Other financial assets
The fair value of future anticipated cash receipts takes into account the directors’ view of future house price movements, the expected 
timing of receipts and the likelihood that a purchaser defaults on a repayment. The directors revisit the future anticipated cash receipts 
from the assets at the end of each reporting period as detailed in note 14 on page 66.

StAnDARDS AnD IntERPREtAtIOnS In ISSuE But nOt yEt EFFECtIvE

At the date of authorisation of these financial statements, the following relevant amendments, which have not been applied in these 
financial statements, were in issue and endorsed by the EU but not yet effective:

 „  IAS 1 ‘Presentation of Financial Statements’ (Amendment). The amendment requires the separate disclosure of the tax effect of each 

item of other comprehensive income. This is effective for the period beginning on 1 August 2012.

 „  IAS 19 ‘Employee Benefits’ (Amendment). The amendment requires additional disclosures, the disaggregation of plan costs and 

the removal of the corridor approach for the recognition of actuarial gains and losses. This is effective for the period beginning on 
1 August 2013.

The Board anticipates that these amendments will be adopted in the Group’s financial statements in the year they become effective 
and that the adoption of these amendments will not have a significant effect on the Group’s financial statements.

Of the other IFRSs that are available for early adoption, none are expected to have a material effect on the financial statements.

60

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts

notes to the Accounts

1  SegmentAl AnAlySiS

The Board regularly reviews the Group’s performance and balance sheet position for its entire operations, which are entirely based in its 
country of domicile, the UK, and receives financial information for the UK as a whole. As a consequence the Group has one reportable 
segment which is UK housebuilding.

As there continues to be only one reportable segment whose revenue, profits, expenses, assets, liabilities and cash flows are measured 
and reported on a basis consistent with the Group financial statements, no additional numerical disclosures are necessary.

Additional information on average selling prices and the unit sales split between north, south, private and social has been included in the 
Group Finance Director’s Review on pages 22 to 25. The Board does not, however, consider these categories to be separate reportable 
segments as they review the entire operations as a whole, which are based in the UK, when assessing performance and making decisions 
about the allocation of resources. 

2  FinAnce income And expenSeS 

Interest receivable on bank deposits

Other interest income

Finance income

Interest payable on bank loans and overdrafts

Interest on deferred term land payables

Interest element of movement in pension scheme deficit

Other interest expense

Preference dividends 

Finance expenses

3  employee inFoRmAtion 

Group employment costs, including directors, comprised:

Wages and salaries

Social security

Pension costs (note 25)

Share-based payments (note 25)

2012  
£000

715 

961 

1,676 

5,388

3,022

455

258

1,900 

11,023

2011  
£000

1,381 

393 

1,774

4,154

3,062

426

280

1,900 

9,822

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

66,577

7,105

2,120

1,046

76,848

61,906

6,231

1,919

957

71,013

The average number of persons employed by the Group during the year was 1,555 (2011 – 1,496) comprising 534 (2011 – 516) 
administrative and 1,021 (2011 – 980) production and others employed in housebuilding and associated trading activities.

The executive directors and the Group Company Secretary are the only employees of the Company and the emoluments of the 
executive directors are disclosed in the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration on pages 39 to 47.

Key management personnel remuneration, including directors, comprised:

Salaries and fees

Taxable benefits

Annual bonus – cash

Pension costs

Share-based payments

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

2,405

144

2,037

126

507

5,219

2,756

171

1,951

77

378

5,333

Key management personnel, as disclosed under IAS 24 ‘Related Party Disclosures’, comprises the directors and other senior operational 
management.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

61

4  opeRAting pRoFit

Operating profit is stated after charging/(crediting):

  Staff costs (note 3)

  Profit on sale of property, plant and equipment

  Depreciation of property, plant and equipment

  Depreciation of investment property

  Hire of plant and machinery

  Operating lease charges for land and buildings

Auditor’s remuneration:

  Audit of these financial statements

Amounts receivable by the auditor and its associates in respect of: 

  Audit of financial statements of subsidiaries pursuant to legislation

  Other services relating to taxation

  Pension scheme audits 

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

76,848

(213)

1,796

40

8,660

1,233

71,013

(262)

1,692

3

8,069

1,203

30

29

196

43

4

191

45

4

Amounts paid to the Company’s auditor and its associates in respect of services to the Company, other than the audit of the Company’s 
financial statements, have not been disclosed as the information is required instead to be disclosed on a consolidated basis.

5  exceptionAl itemS 

Exceptional items are those which, in the opinion of the Board, are material by size or nature, non-recurring, and of such significance that 
they require separate disclosure on the face of the income statement.

A full review of inventories was performed at 31 July 2012 and the carrying value of land was compared to the net realisable value. Net 
realisable value represents the estimated selling price (in the ordinary course of business) less all estimated costs of completion and 
attributable overheads. Estimated selling prices were reviewed on a site by site basis and selling prices were amended based on local 
management and the Board’s assessment of current market conditions. No exceptional land write downs or land write backs were 
required as a result of this review.

There were no exceptional items in the year ended 31 July 2011.

6  income tAx expenSe 

Current tax expense:

UK corporation tax

Adjustments in respect of prior years

Deferred tax expense/(credit):

Origination and reversal of temporary differences

Reduction in tax rate

Adjustments in respect of prior years

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

26,707

(1,406)

25,301

519

45

161

725

19,164

(1,726)

17,438

(285)

(135)

–

(420)

Total income tax expense in income statement

26,026

17,018

62

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
notes to the Accounts (continued)

6  income tAx expenSe (continued)

Reconciliation of effective tax rate: 

Profit before tax

Tax calculated at UK corporation tax rate 

Non-deductible expenses

Reduction in tax rate

Adjustments in respect of prior years  –  current tax

–  deferred tax

Effective tax rate and tax expense for the year 

2012  
%

2012  
£000

2011  
%

2011  
£000

105,284

26,637

589

45

25.3

0.6

–

(1.3)

(1,406)

0.1

24.7

161

26,026

67,162

18,335

544

(135)

(1,726)

–

17,018

27.3

0.8

(0.2)

(2.6)

–

25.3

The deferred tax assets and liabilities held by the Group at the start of the year that are expected to be realised after 31 March 2013 
have been revalued at a tax rate of 23%, being the corporation tax rate that was substantively enacted at the balance sheet date, with 
effect from 1 April 2013. The Chancellor has also proposed to further reduce the main rate of corporation tax to 22% by 1 April 2014, 
but this change was not substantively enacted at the balance sheet date and therefore is not included in the figures above.

The effective income tax charge is 24.7% of profit before tax (2011 – 25.3%) and compares favourably to the Group’s standard tax rate 
for the year of 25.3% (2011 – 27.3%). The lower effective tax rate in the current year is principally due to finalisation of prior year 
corporation tax returns. 

Deferred tax recognised directly in equity:

(Charge)/credit relating to equity-settled transactions

  Credit/(charge) relating to actuarial movement on the defined benefit pension scheme

7  dividendS on equity ShAReS 

Amounts recognised as distributions to equity holders in the year:

Final dividend for the year ended 31 July 2011 of 8.8p per share (2010 – 6.7p)

Interim dividend for the year ended 31 July 2012 of 6.0p per share (2011 – 3.7p)

Dividends forfeited

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

(327)

676

256

(587)

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

10,613

7,283

(6)

8,096

4,471

(24)

17,890

12,543

Proposed final dividend for the year ended 31 July 2012 of 14.0p per share (2011 – 8.8p)

17,003

10,635

The 2012 proposed final dividend is subject to approval by shareholders at the Annual General Meeting on 11 January 2013 and, in 
accordance with IAS 10 ‘Events after the Reporting Period’, has not been included as a liability in these financial statements. At the record 
date for the final dividend for the year ended 31 July 2011 shares were held by the Trust (note 20) on which dividends had been waived.

 
 
Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

63

8  eARningS peR oRdinARy ShARe 

Basic earnings per ordinary share is calculated by dividing earnings by the weighted average number of ordinary shares in issue during 
the year (excluding the weighted average number of ordinary shares held by the employee share ownership plans which are treated 
as cancelled).

Diluted earnings per ordinary share uses the same earnings figure as the basic calculation except that the weighted average number of 
shares has been adjusted to reflect the dilutive effect of outstanding share options allocated under employee share schemes where the 
market value exceeds the option price. It is assumed that all dilutive potential ordinary shares are converted at the beginning of the 
accounting period. Diluted earnings per ordinary share is calculated by dividing earnings by the diluted weighted average number of 
ordinary shares.

Reconciliations of the earnings and weighted average number of shares used in the calculations are outlined below:

Earnings

2012  
£000

Weighted  
average  
number of 
ordinary  
shares

2012  

Number

For basic earnings per ordinary share

79,258 121,036,846

Dilutive effect of options and awards

465,010

For diluted earnings per ordinary share

79,258 121,501,856

9  pRopeRty, plAnt And equipment

Group

Cost 

At 1 August 2010

Additions

Disposals

At 1 August 2011

Additions

Disposals

Transfer to inventories

At 31 July 2012

Depreciation

At 1 August 2010

Charge for year

On disposals

At 1 August 2011

Charge for year

On disposals

Transfer to inventories

At 31 July 2012

Net book value

At 31 July 2012

At 31 July 2011

At 31 July 2010

Earnings  
per share 

Earnings

2012  

p

 65.5 

 (0.3)

65.2

Weighted  
average 
number of  
ordinary  
shares
2011  

Number

2011  
£000

50,144  120,705,397 

462,722 

50,144 

121,168,119 

Land and
property

£000

Plant,
fixtures and
fittings
£000

6,245

–

(1)

6,244

1,401

–

(445)

14,626

2,588

(2,153)

15,061

3,150

(1,706)

–

Earnings  
per share

2011  
p

41.5

 (0.1)

41.4

Total

£000

20,871

2,588

(2,154)

21,305

4,551

(1,706)

(445)

7,200

16,505

23,705

1,097

140

–

1,237

145

–

(157)

11,558

1,552

(2,065)

11,045

1,651

(1,623)

–

12,655

1,692

(2,065)

12,282

1,796

(1,623)

(157)

1,225

11,073

12,298

5,975

5,007

5,148

5,432

4,016

3,068

11,407

9,023

8,216

 
 
 
64

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
notes to the Accounts (continued)

10  inveStment pRopeRty

Group

Cost 

At 1 August 2010

Additions

Disposals

At 1 August 2011

Additions

Disposals

At 31 July 2012

Depreciation

At 1 August 2010

Charge for year

At 1 August 2011

Charge for year

At 31 July 2012

Net book value

At 31 July 2012

At 31 July 2011

At 31 July 2010

Total
£000

7,716

1,230

(63)

8,883

1,106

(198)

9,791

–

3

3

40

43

9,748

8,880

7,716

Investment properties, which primarily represent properties where Bellway has retained an interest in a sold property, are valued under 
the cost model and are held at cost less accumulated depreciation and accumulated impairment losses. A formal internal valuation of 
investment properties was carried out at the end of the financial year. The fair value of the investment properties was assessed at 
£10.615 million (2011 – £9.608 million).

The investment properties are primarily a proportion of the cost of residential units constructed by the Group, the units being sold under 
a shared ownership scheme. 

11   inveStmentS in SuBSidiARieS And pRopoRtionAtely conSolidAted  

jointly contRolled entitieS 

The Group and Company have the following investments in subsidiaries and proportionately consolidated jointly controlled entities: 

Subsidiaries

Company

Cost 

At 1 August 2011

Additions

At 31 July 2012

Shares in subsidiary  
undertakings
£000

29,117

1,046

30,163

principal subsidiary undertakings
A summary of the principal subsidiary undertakings is given in note 27 on page 79.

jointly controlled entities

Name

Barking Riverside Limited

Country of incorporation

England and Wales

Percentage of shares owned
directly by Bellway p.l.c.

51%

The Group and Company also own 25% – 50% of the ordinary share capital of several smaller proportionately consolidated jointly 
controlled entities. All of these entities are incorporated and registered in England and Wales. 

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

65

11   inveStmentS in SuBSidiARieS And pRopoRtionAtely conSolidAted 

jointly contRolled entitieS (continued)

Aggregated amounts relating to share of proportionately consolidated jointly controlled entities not adjusted for transactions with 
group companies

Non-current assets

Current assets

Non-current liabilities

Current liabilities

Net liabilities

Income

Expenses

2012
£000

225

36,064

(7,264)

(39,707)

(10,682)

1,064

(1,681)

2011
£000

265

36,123

(6,283)

(40,170)

(10,065)

5,140

(5,240)

Guarantees relating to the overdrafts of jointly controlled entities have been given by the Company (note 23).

12  deFeRRed tAxAtion

The following are the deferred tax assets/(liabilities) recognised by the Group and the movements thereon during the current and 
prior year:

Group

At 1 August 2010

Income statement (charge)/credit

Charge to statement of comprehensive income

Credit to equity

At 31 July 2011

Income statement (charge)/credit

Credit to statement of comprehensive income

Charge to equity

At 31 July 2012

Capital 
allowances

£000

523

(108)

–

–

415

(208)

–

–

Retirement 
benefit 
obligations 
£000

2,358

329

(587)

–

2,100

(131)

676

–

207

2,645

Share-based  
payments

£000

813

99

–

256

1,168

(483)

–

(327)

358

The following is an analysis of the deferred tax balances for financial reporting purposes:

Capital allowances

Retirement benefit obligations

Share-based payments

Other temporary differences

Deferred tax assets

Other temporary differences

Deferred tax liabilities

Other 
 temporary 
differences  

£000

(166)

100

–

–

(66)

97

–

–

31

2012  
£000

207

2,645

358

31

3,241

–

–

Total  

£000

3,528

420

(587)

256

3,617

(725)

676

(327)

3,241

2011  
£000

415

2,100

1,168

–

3,683

(66)

(66)

Net deferred tax asset at 31 July

3,241

3,617

There are no deferred tax balances in respect of the Company.

 
 
66

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
notes to the Accounts (continued)

13  inventoRieS

Group

Land

Work in progress 

Showhomes

Part-exchange properties

2012  
£000

852,987 

479,481 

45,498 

21,877 

2011  
£000

761,690 

439,747 

45,601 

23,254 

1,399,843 

1,270,292

Inventories of £817.8 million were expensed in the year (2011 – £742.9 million). 

In the ordinary course of business inventories have been written down by a net £14.7 million (2011 – £5.0 million) in the year.

There has been no exceptional write down of inventories in the period (2011 – £nil) as outlined in note 5. 

Land with a carrying value of £56.4 million (2011 – £20.5 million) was used as security for land payables (note 17).

The directors consider all inventories to be essentially current in nature although the Group’s operational cycle is such that a proportion 
of inventories will not be realised within twelve months. It is not possible to determine with accuracy when specific inventory will be 
realised as this is subject to a number of issues including consumer demand and planning permission delays.

The Company has no inventory.

14  otheR FinAnciAl ASSetS

Group

At 1 August

Additions

Redemptions

Imputed interest

At 31 July

2012  
£000

33,491

2,559

(857)

(113)

2011  
£000

32,664

6,305

(904)

(4,574)

 35,080 

 33,491 

Other financial assets carried at fair value are categorised as level 3 within the hierarchical classification of IFRS 7 Revised (as defined within 
the standard).

Other financial assets comprise loans, largely with non fixed repayment dates and variable repayment amounts, provided as part of sales 
transactions that are secured by way of a second legal charge on the related property. The assets are recorded at fair value, being the 
estimated amount receivable by the Group, discounted to present day values.

The fair value of future anticipated cash receipts takes into account the directors’ view of future house price movements, the expected timing 
of receipts and the likelihood that a purchaser defaults on a repayment. The directors revisit the future anticipated cash receipts from the 
assets at the end of each reporting period.

The difference between the anticipated future receipt and the initial fair value is charged over the estimated deferred term to cost of sales, 
with the financial asset increasing to its full expected cash settlement value on the anticipated receipt date. The imputed interest charged to 
cost of sales for the year ended 31 July 2012 was £0.113 million (2011 – £4.574 million).

Credit risk, which the directors currently consider to be largely mitigated through holding a second legal charge over the assets, is accounted 
for in determining present values. The directors review the financial assets for impairment at the end of each reporting period. There were no 
indicators of impairment at 31 July 2012 (2011 – nil). None of the other financial assets are past their due dates (2011 – nil).

At initial recognition, the fair value of the assets is calculated using a discount rate, appropriate to the class of assets, which reflects market 
conditions at the date of entering into the transaction. The directors consider at the end of each reporting period whether the initial market 
discount rate still reflects up to date market conditions. If a revision is required, the fair value of the asset is re-measured at the present value 
of the revised future cash flows using this revised discount rate; the difference between this value and the carrying value of the asset is 
recorded against the carrying value of the asset and recognised directly in the statements of comprehensive income.

The directors considered that there was no material difference between the initial market discount rate and the market discount rate at 
31 July 2012 or 31 July 2011 and accordingly have not recognised any movements directly within the statements of comprehensive income 
to date.

The Company has no other financial assets.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

67

15 tRAde And otheR ReceivABleS

current receivables

Trade receivables

Other receivables

Amounts owed by Group undertakings

Prepayments and accrued income

Group

2012  
£000

20,975

48,293

–

1,865

71,133

Group

2011  
£000

26,316

33,596

Company

2012  
£000

Company

2011  
£000

–

4

 – 

3

–

649,495

668,389

2,264

62,176

 – 

 – 

649,499

668,392

The Group assesses the ageing of trade receivables in terms of whether amounts are receivable in less than one year or more than one 
year. None of the trade receivables are past their due dates (2011 – nil).

Other receivables due within one year include £19.177 million (2011 – £8.938 million) in relation to VAT recoverable.

16  inteReSt BeARing loAnS And BoRRowingS

non-current liabilities

Bank loans

Preference shares (see note below)

current liabilities

Bank loans

preference shares

Group

2012  
£000

–

20,000

20,000

Group

2011  
£000

65,000

20,000

85,000

Company

2012  
£000

–

20,000

20,000

Group

2012  
£000

Group

2011  
£000

Company

2012  
£000

62,000

15,000

–

Company

2011  
£000

–

20,000

20,000

Company

2011  
£000

–

Group

2012  
£000

Group

2011  
£000

Company

2012  
£000

Company

2011  
£000

Authorised, allotted, called up and fully paid

20,000,000 at 1 August 2011 and 31 July 2012

20,000

20,000

20,000

20,000

With regard to the 9.5% cumulative redeemable preference shares 2014 of £1 each the following rights are attached:

(a)   The holders are entitled to a preferential fixed cumulative dividend at an annual rate of 9.5% payable half yearly on 6 April and  

6 October.

(b)   The shares are redeemable by the Company at any time at a sum calculated by reference to the yield on 12% Exchequer Stock 
2013/2017 provided such sum is neither less than the nominal value nor more than twice the nominal value of the shares. Any 
shares still in issue shall be redeemed at par on 6 April 2014.

(c)   In the event of a winding up of the Company, the preference shareholders are entitled to a preferential payment in addition to any 
arrears of dividend, equivalent to the nominal value of the preference shares, or in the event of a voluntary winding up, an amount 
per share calculated by reference to the yield on 12% Exchequer Stock 2013/2017, provided such sum is neither less than the 
nominal value nor more than twice the nominal value of the shares.

(d)   The preference shareholders have no ordinary voting rights except in circumstances where the fixed dividend on the preference 
shares is six months in arrears or where the business of a General Meeting includes the consideration of certain resolutions as 
defined in the Articles of Association relating to winding up, changes in the rights of preference shareholders or failure by the 
Company to redeem the preference shares by 6 April 2014.

68

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
notes to the Accounts (continued)

17 tRAde And otheR pAyABleS 

non-current liabilities

Land payables

Other payables

Accrued expenses and deferred income

Group

2012  
£000

31,475

5,322

1,070

37,867

Group

2011  
£000

Company

2012  
£000

Company

2011  
£000

25,746

4,782

690

31,218

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

–

Land payables of £21.367 million (2011 – £1.677 million) are secured on the land to which they relate. 

The carrying value of the land used for security is £19.786 million (2011 – £1.453 million).

current liabilities

Trade payables

Land payables

Social security and other taxes

Other payables

Accrued expenses and deferred income

Payments on account

Group

2012  
£000

Group

2011  
£000

Company

2012  
£000

Company

2011  
£000

76,291

89,116

2,634

23,879

47,691

32,931

272,542

79,956

57,461

2,565

27,449

43,695

35,002

246,128

–

–

–

138

746

–

884

–

–

–

273

601

–

874

Land payables of £38.055 million (2011 – £19.651 million) are secured on the land to which they relate. 

The carrying value of the land used for security is £36.605 million (2011 – £19.009 million).

18  FinAnciAl RiSk mAnAgement 
The Group’s financial instruments comprise cash, bank loans and overdrafts and various items such as trade receivables, other financial 
assets and trade payables that arise directly from its operations. The main objective of the Group’s policy towards financial instruments is 
to maximise returns on the Group’s cash balances, manage the Group’s working capital requirements and finance the Group’s ongoing 
operations. 

The Company’s only financial instruments are cash and preference shares.

Capital management
The Board’s policy is to maintain a strong capital base to underpin the future development of the business in order to deliver value to 
shareholders. The Group finances its operations through retained earnings, bank borrowings and the management of working capital. 
From time to time, the trustees of the Bellway Employee Share Trust (1992) (the ‘Trust’) also purchase shares for the future satisfaction 
of employee share options.

Management of financial risk
The main risks associated with the Group’s financial instruments have been identified as credit risk, liquidity risk and interest rate risk. 
The Board is responsible for managing these risks and the policies adopted, which have remained largely unchanged during the year, 
are set out below.

Credit risk
The Group’s exposure to credit risk is limited by the fact that the Group generally receives cash at the point of legal completion of its 
sales. 

There is no specific concentration of credit risk in respect of home sales as the exposure is spread over a number of customers. 
In respect of trade receivables and other financial assets, the amounts presented in the balance sheet are stated after adjusting for any 
doubtful receivables, based on the judgement of the Group’s management through using both previous experience and knowledge 
of the current position (note 15). In managing risk the Group assesses the credit risk of its counterparties before entering into 
a transaction. No credit limits were exceeded during the reporting period or subsequently and the Group does not anticipate any 
losses from non-performance by these counterparties. In relation to land payables, certain payables are secured on the respective 
land asset held (note 17). No other security is held against any other financial assets of the Group. 

The Board considers the Group’s exposure to credit risk to be acceptable and normal for an entity of its size given the industry in which 
it operates. 

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

69

18  FinAnciAl RiSk mAnAgement (continued)

Liquidity risk
The Group finances its operations through a mixture of equity (comprising share capital, reserves and retained earnings) and debt 
(comprising bank overdraft facilities and borrowings). The Group manages its liquidity risk by monitoring existing facilities and cash flows 
against forecast requirements based on a two year rolling cash forecast. 

The Group’s banking arrangements outlined below are considered to be adequate in terms of flexibility and liquidity for its medium-term 
cash flow needs therefore mitigating the Group’s liquidity risk. 

Interest rate risk
Interest rate risk reflects the Group’s exposure to fluctuations in interest rates in the market. The risk arises because the Group’s 
overdraft and floating rate bank loans bear interest based on either LIBOR or the Bank of England base rate. 

For the year ended 31 July 2012 it is estimated that an increase of 1% in interest rates applying for the full year would decrease the 
Group’s profit before tax by £0.199 million (2011 – £0.057 million). 

Housing market risk
The Group is affected by movements in UK house prices. These in turn are affected by factors such as credit availability, employment 
levels, interest rates, consumer confidence and supply of land with planning. 

Whilst it is not possible for the Group to fully mitigate housing market risk on a national macroeconomic basis the Group does 
continually monitor its geographical spread within the UK, seeking to balance investment in areas offering the best immediate returns 
with a long-term spread of its operations throughout the UK to minimise the effect of local microeconomic fluctuations.

Land purchased on deferred terms
The Group sometimes acquires land on deferred payment terms. In accordance with IAS 39 ‘Financial Instruments: Recognition and 
Measurement’, the deferred creditor is recorded at fair value being the price paid for the land discounted to present day. The difference 
between the nominal value and the initial fair value is amortised over the deferred term to finance expenses, increasing the land creditor 
to its full cash settlement value on the payment date. 

The maturity profile of the total contracted cash payments in respect of amounts due on land creditors at the balance sheet date 
is as follows: 

Balance at  
31 July  

£000

Total 
contracted  
cash payment 
£000

Within one 
year or on 
demand 
£000

1-2 years 

2-5 years 

More than 
5 years 

£000

£000

£000

At 31 July 2012

At 31 July 2011

120,591

126,783

90,088

20,538

14,862

1,295

83,207

86,547

58,165

21,336

5,809

1,237

The maturity profile of the total contracted payments in respect of financial liabilities (excluding amounts due on land creditors shown 
separately above) is as follows:

Bank loans – floating rates

Preference shares

Trade and other payables

At 31 July 2012

Bank loans – floating rates

Preference shares

Trade and other payables

At 31 July 2011

Balance at  
31 July  

£000

Total 
contracted  
cash payment 
£000

Within one 
year or on 
demand 
£000

62,000

62,230

62,230

£000

–

1-2 years 

2-5 years 

More than 
5 years 

£000

£000

20,000

23,800

1,900

21,900

108,126

108,126

102,804

–

190,126

194,156

166,934

21,900

80,000

82,441

15,990

25,780

40,671

20,000

25,700

1,900

1,900

21,900

114,752

114,752

109,970

–

–

214,752

222,893

127,860

27,680

62,571

–

–

–

–

–

–

5,322

5,322

–

–

4,782

4,782

The interest rates on the preference shares apply to the whole term of the relevant instruments.

The imputed interest rate on land payables reflects market interest rates available to the Group on floating rate bank loans at the time of 
acquiring the land.

At the year end, the Group had £238.0 million (2011 – £210.0 million) of undrawn bank facilities available.

The Company’s only financial liabilities are preference shares as disclosed in the maturity profile above.

 
 
  
 
  
 
 
 
  
 
  
 
70

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
notes to the Accounts (continued)

18  FinAnciAl RiSk mAnAgement (continued)

Cash and cash equivalents
This comprises cash held by the Group and short-term bank deposits with a maturity date of less than one month.

The amounts of cash and cash equivalents for the years ended 31 July 2012 and 31 July 2011 for both the Group and the Company 
are shown in note 22. 

At 31 July 2012 the average interest rate earned on the temporary closing cash balance was 0.72% (2011 – 1.08%).

The carrying amount of these assets approximates their fair value.

Fair values
Financial assets
The carrying values of financial assets are not materially different to their fair values.

Financial liabilities
A comparison of the book values and fair values of the Group’s fixed rate preference shares and floating rate bank loans at 31 July 
is as follows:

Preference shares – fixed rate

Bank loans – floating rate

Book 
value 
2012
£000

20,000

62,000

Fair 
value 
2012
£000 

21,600

60,417

Book 
value 
2011
£000

20,000

80,000

Fair 
value 
2011
£000

21,500

76,503

The fair value of the fixed rate preference shares is based on quoted mid-market prices at 31 July.

In aggregate, the fair values of the Group’s other financial assets and liabilities are not materially different from their book value.

Financial assets and liabilities by category

Available for sale financial assets

Loans and receivables

Cash and cash equivalents

Financial liabilities at amortised cost

19  iSSued cApitAl

Group and Company

Allotted, called up and fully paid ordinary shares

At 1 August 2011

Issued on exercise of options

 At 31 July 2012

Group

2012  
£000

35,080

69,268

21,413

Group

2011  
£000

Company

2012  
£000

Company

2011  
£000

33,491

59,912

83,412

–

4

–

3

48,745

48,741

(325,537)

(309,795)

(20,138)

(20,273)

(199,776)

(132,980)

28,611

28,471

2012

Number  

000

2012 

£000

2011
Number  

000

2011 

£000

120,848

15,105

120,832

15,103

603

75

16

2

121,451

15,180

120,848

15,105

  
  
Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

71

19  iSSued cApitAl (continued)

Share options
At 31 July 2012 all outstanding options to purchase ordinary shares in Bellway p.l.c., in accordance with the terms of the applicable 
schemes, were as follows:

Grant date

Number 
of shares

Exercise  
price (p)

Dates from which 
exercisable

Expiry 
date

(a) Bellway p.l.c. (1995) Employee Share Option Scheme

13 May 2003

10 May 2004

17 November 2004

16,900

2,500

87,050

106,450

524.00

712.50

716.00

13 May 2006

10 May 2007

17 November 2007

(b) Bellway p.l.c. (1996) Employee Share Option Scheme

13 May 2003

24 October 2003

10 May 2004

17 November 2004

31 October 2005

16 May 2006

3,850

1,500

3,500

70,250

524.00

621.50

712.50

716.00

13 May 2006

24 October 2006

10 May 2007

17 November 2007

226,550

844.00

31 October 2008

750

1,122.00

16 May 2009

306,400

(c) Bellway p.l.c. (2005) Employee Share Option Scheme

31 October 2005

7 February 2007

78,950

844.00

31 October 2008

8,700

1,470.00

7 February 2010

87,650

to

to

to

to

to

to

to

to

to

to

to

12 May 2013

9 May 2014

16 November 2014

12 May 2013

23 October 2013

9 May 2014

16 November 2014

30 October 2015

15 May 2016

30 October 2015

6 February 2017

(d) Bellway p.l.c. (2007) Employee Share Option Scheme

7 February 2007

18,300

1,470.00

7 February 2010

to

6 February 2017

(e) Bellway p.l.c. (2003) Savings Related Share Option Scheme

18,300

14 November 2006

13 November 2007

13 November 2008

11 November 2009

11 November 2009

12 November 2010

12 November 2010

14 November 2011

14 November 2011

1,092.00

1 February 2012

847.20

336.00

661.60

661.60

439.60

439.60

556.00

556.00

1 February 2013

1 February 2014

1 February 2013

1 February 2015

1 February 2014

1 February 2016

1 February 2015

1 February 2017

to

to

to

to

to

to

to

to

to

2,932

2,851

239,374

32,168

12,925

125,127

61,836

316,888

46,650

840,751

31 July 2012

31 July 2013

31 July 2014

31 July 2013

31 July 2015

31 July 2014

31 July 2016

31 July 2015

31 July 2017

 Total

1,359,551

Details of directors’ share options are contained within the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration on pages 39 to 47.

72

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
notes to the Accounts (continued)

20  ReseRves

Own shares held
The Group and Company holds shares within the Bellway Employee Share Trust (1992) (the ‘Trust’) for participants of certain share-
based payment schemes as outlined in note 25. During the period the Trust made a market purchase of 175,803 (2011 – 100,000) 
shares at an average price of 728p (2011 – 559p) and transferred 241,887 (2011 – 95,473) shares to employees. The number of shares 
held within the Trust, and on which dividends have been waived, at 31 July 2012 was 38,443 (2011 – 104,527). These shares are held 
within the financial statements at a cost of £0.269 million (2011 – £0.584 million). The market value of these shares at 31 July 2012 was 
£0.309 million (2011 – £0.690 million).

Income statement
As permitted by section 408 of the Companies Act 2006, the Company’s income statement has not been included in these financial 
statements. The Company’s loss for the financial year was £1.918 million (2011 – £1.905 million).

21  ReconciliAtion of net cAsh flow to net (debt)/cAsh

Group

Decrease in net cash and cash equivalents

Decrease in bank borrowings

Increase/decrease in net debt/cash from cash flows

Net (debt)/cash at 1 August

Net debt at 31 July

Company

Increase/(decrease) in net cash and cash equivalents

Net cash at 1 August

Net cash at 31 July

22 AnAlysis of net (debt)/cAsh

Group

Cash and cash equivalents

Bank loans 

Preference shares redeemable after more than one year

Net debt

Company

Cash and cash equivalents

Preference shares redeemable after more than one year

Net cash

23  contingent liAbilities

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

(61,999)

(62,277)

18,000

(43,999)

(16,588)

(60,587)

2012  
£000

4

28,741

28,745

–

(62,277)

45,689

(16,588)

2011  
£000

(115)

28,856

28,741

At 1 August

2011  
£000

Cash
flows  
£000

At 31 July

2012  
£000

83,412

(61,999)

21,413

(80,000)

(20,000)

18,000

(62,000)

–

(20,000)

(16,588)

(43,999)

(60,587)

At 1 August

2011  
£000

48,741

(20,000)

28,741

Cash
flows  
£000

4

–

4

At 31 July

2012  
£000

48,745

(20,000)

28,745

The Company is liable, jointly and severally with other members of the Group, under guarantees given to the Group’s bankers in respect 
of overdrawn balances on certain Group bank accounts and in respect of other overdrafts, loans and guarantees given by the banks to 
or on behalf of other Group undertakings. At 31 July 2012 there were bank overdrafts of £nil (2011 – £nil) and loans of £62.0 million 
(2011 – £80.0 million). The Company has given performance and other trade guarantees on behalf of subsidiary undertakings. 
The Company has guaranteed the overdrafts of jointly controlled entities up to a maximum of £7.5 million (2011 – £7.5 million). 
It is the director’s expectation that the possibility of cash outflow on these liabilities is considered minimal and no provision is required.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

73

24  commitments

Group
capital commitments

Contracted not provided

Authorised not contracted

2012  
£000

98

2011  
£000

161

–

1,450

operating leases
At the balance sheet date, the Group had outstanding commitments for future minimum lease payments under non-cancellable 
operating leases, which expire as follows:

Expiring within one year

Expiring within the second to fifth years

Expiring in more than five years

2012  
£000

–

2,114

1,205

3,319

2011  
£000

88

3,448

783

4,319

Operating lease payments principally relate to rents payable by the Group for office premises. These leases are subject to periodic 
rent reviews.

Company
The commitments of the Company were £nil (2011 – £nil).

25  employee benefits

(a) Retirement benefit obligations
The Group sponsors the Bellway p.l.c. 1972 Pension Scheme (the ‘Scheme’) which has a funded defined benefit arrangement which 
is closed to new members and to future service accrual. The last full actuarial valuation of the Scheme was carried out by a qualified 
independent actuary as at 1 August 2011 and updated on an approximate basis to 31 July 2012.

The Group also sponsors the Bellway plc 2008 Group Self Invested Personal Pension Plan (‘GSIPP’) which is a defined contribution 
contract-based arrangement.

Contributions of £2.120 million (2011 – £1.919 million) were charged to the income statement for the GSIPP.

With regard to the Scheme, the regular contributions made by the employer over the financial year were £nil (2011 – £nil). 
The employer also paid special contributions amounting to £1.2 million (2011 – £nil). Expenses were paid in addition.

It is the policy of the Group to recognise all actuarial gains and losses in the year in which they occur outside the income statement 
and in the statement of comprehensive income.

Insured pensions and defined contributions have been excluded from the assets and liabilities.

Present values of defined benefit obligations, fair value of Scheme assets and deficit:

Present value defined benefit obligation

Fair value of Scheme assets

Deficit in Scheme

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

(47,317)

(44,246)

35,816

(11,501)

35,845

(8,401)

As all actuarial gains and assets are recognised, the deficits shown above are those recognised in the balance sheet.

74

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
notes to the Accounts (continued)

25  employee benefits (continued)

Best estimate of contributions to be paid to the Scheme for the year ended 31 July 2013
The best estimate of contributions to be paid to the Scheme for the year ending 31 July 2013 is £1.2 million (2012 – £nil).

Reconciliation of opening and closing balances of the present value of the defined benefit obligation:

Defined benefit obligation at start of year

Interest cost

Actuarial loss

Benefit paid, death in service insurance premiums and expenses

Defined benefit obligation at end of year

Reconciliation of opening and closing balances of the fair value of Scheme assets:

Fair value of assets at start of year

Expected return on assets

Actuarial (losses)/gains

Contributions by employer

Benefit paid, death in service insurance premiums and expenses

Fair value of assets at end of year

Total expense recognised in the income statement:

Interest on liabilities

Expected return on assets

Total expense

2012  
£000

44,246

2,312

2,259

(1,500)

47,317

2012  
£000

35,845

1,857

(1,586)

1,200

(1,500)

35,816

2012  
£000

2,312

(1,857)

455

2011  
£000

41,896

2,200

1,713

(1,563)

44,246

2011  
£000

33,160

1,774

2,474

–

(1,563)

35,845

2011  
£000

2,200

(1,774)

426

Total expense of £0.455 million (2011 – £0.426 million) is recognised within finance expenses.

Gains/(losses) recognised in the statement of comprehensive income:

Difference between expected and actual return on 
Scheme assets

Experience gains and losses arising on the Scheme 
liabilities

Effects of changes in the demographic and financial 
assumptions underlying the present value of the 
Scheme liabilities

Total (loss)/gain recognised in the 
statement of comprehensive income

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

(1,586)

2,474

(543)

(72)

(1,716)

(1,641)

(3,845)

761

2012  
%

(4)

1

4

8

2011  
%

7

0

4

 of Scheme assets

of the present value  
of Scheme liabilities

of the present value  
of Scheme liabilities

of the present value  
of Scheme liabilities

(2)

The cumulative amount of actuarial gains and losses recognised in the statement of comprehensive income since adoption of IAS 19 
‘Employee Benefits’ is a loss of £17.2 million. 

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

75

25  employee benefits (continued)

Assets
The fair value of Scheme assets is:

Equities

Bonds

Cash

Total

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

20,675

12,182

2,959

35,816

23,686

12,001

158

35,845

None of the fair values of the assets shown above include any of the Group’s own financial instruments or any property occupied by, 
or other assets used by, the Group.

Expected long-term rates of return
The expected long-term return on cash is related to bank base rates at the balance sheet date. The expected return on bonds is 
determined by reference to UK long dated gilt and bond yields at the balance sheet date. The expected rate of return on equities has 
been determined by setting an appropriate risk premium above gilt/bond yields having regard to market conditions at the balance 
sheet date.

The expected long-term rates of return are as follows:

Equities

Bonds

Cash

Overall for Scheme

Period 
commencing 
1 August 2011 
% per annum

Period  
commencing 
1 August 2010 
% per annum

5.40

5.00

3.90

5.26

5.70

5.10

4.20

5.48

Actual return on Scheme assets
The actual return on the Scheme assets over the year ended 31 July 2012 was 0.8% (31 July 2011 – 12.8%).

Assumptions

Inflation

Salary increases

Rate of discount

Allowance for pension in payment increases of RPI or 5% p.a. if less

Allowance for revaluation of deferred pensions of CPI or 5% p.a. if less

Allowance for commutation of pension for cash at retirement

2012  

% per annum

2011  

% per annum

2.85

3.35

4.20

2.85

2.15

50% of 
maximum

3.75

4.75

5.30

3.75

3.05

–

The mortality assumptions adopted at 31 July 2012 are based on the S1PA tables and allow for future improvement in mortality. 
The tables used imply the following life expectancies at age 65:

Male retiring at age 65 in 2012 
Female retiring at age 65 in 2012 
Male retiring at age 65 in 2032 
Female retiring at age 65 in 2032 

23.4 years 
25.5 years 
25.7 years 
27.9 years

76

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
notes to the Accounts (continued)

25  employee benefits (continued)

Following the formal valuation of the Scheme by the Trustees in the year the mortality assumption has been revised from the PA00 tables 
using long cohort improvements to the S1PA base table with an allowance for future improvement in mortality. The directors believe it is 
appropriate to use the same mortality assumption as used by the Trustees.

Amounts for the current and previous four years

Fair value of assets

Defined benefit obligation

Deficit in Scheme

Experience adjustment on Scheme liabilities

Experience adjustment on Scheme assets

Effects of changes in the demographic and  
financial assumptions underlying the present value  
of the Scheme liabilities

2012  
£000

35,816

(47,317)

(11,501)

(543)

(1,586)

2011  
£000

35,845

(44,246)

(8,401)

(72)

2,474

2010  
£000

33,160

(41,896)

(8,736)

813

2,878

2009  
£000

27,945

(39,870)

(11,925)

5,351

(3,997)

2008  
£000

34,763

(47,472)

(12,709)

(1,001)

(6,248)

(1,716)

(1,641)

(1,800)

(1,001)

(7,102)

(b) Share-based payments
The Group operates a long-term incentive plan (‘LTIP’), an annual bonus scheme, employee share option schemes (‘ESOS’) and Savings 
Related Share Option Schemes (‘SRSOS’), all of which are detailed below. IFRS 2 has been applied to options granted after 7 November 
2002, which had not vested at 1 January 2005.

Awards under the LTIP have been made to executive directors and the Group Company Secretary, with awards under the annual bonus 
scheme also made to senior employees. The awards take the form of ordinary shares in the Company.

Share options issued under the Bellway p.l.c. (1995) Employee Share Option Scheme (‘1995 ESOS’) have been granted to employees at 
all levels as well as to executive directors. The last tranche of share options was awarded to directors in October 2003. No further 
options may be granted under this scheme. Options issued under the Bellway p.l.c. (1996) Employee Share Option Scheme 
(‘1996 ESOS’) have been granted to employees at all levels as well as to executive directors. The last tranche of share options was 
awarded to employees in May 2006. No further options may be granted under this scheme. The Bellway p.l.c. (2005) Employee Share 
Option Scheme (‘2005 ESOS’) replaces the 1995 ESOS. Awards may be granted on a discretionary basis to employees at all levels as 
well as to executive directors and are subject to performance conditions. The Bellway p.l.c. (2007) Employee Share Option Scheme 
(‘2007 ESOS’) replaces the 1996 ESOS. It is an unapproved discretionary scheme which provides for the grant of options over ordinary 
shares to employees and executive directors. It is, however, the current intention that no executive directors of the Company should be 
granted options under these schemes. Awards will be available to vest after three years, subject to objective performance targets.

Options issued under the SRSOS are offered to all employees including the executive directors.

An outline of the performance conditions in relation to the LTIP is detailed under the long-term incentive scheme section on pages 41, 
42 and 45 within the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration.

Various small share option awards were made for years 2003 through to 2007 to employees, mainly at divisional management level, 
under the term of the Deferred Bonus Plan (‘DBP’). These shares are held in the Bellway Employee Share Trust (1992) normally for three 
years. The shares can then be transferred into the employee’s name. 

Share-based payments have been valued by an external third party using various models detailed overleaf, based on publicly available 
market data at the time of the grant, which the directors consider to be the most appropriate method of determining their fair value.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

77

25  employee benefits (continued)

The number and weighted average exercise price of share-based payments is as follows:

LTIP and DBP

Outstanding at the beginning of the year

Granted during the year

Exercised during the year

Lapsed during the year

Forfeited during the year

Outstanding at the end of the year

Exercisable at the end of the year

2012  
Number of 
options

657,851

141,257

(241,887)

(190,736)

(36,421)

2011  
Number of  
options

620,587

255,447

(95,473)

(91,490)

(31,220)

330,064

657,851

1,000

8,032

The options outstanding at 31 July 2012 have a weighted average contractual life of 1.7 years (2011 – 1.2 years). The weighted average 
share price at the date of exercise for share options exercised during the year was 748.6p (2011 – 658.7p).

1995, 1996, 2005 and 2007 ESOSs, and SRSOS

Outstanding at the beginning of the year

Granted during the year

Lapsed during the year

Forfeited during the year

Exercised during the year

Outstanding at the end of the year

Exercisable at the end of the year

2012  
Number of 
options

2011  
Number of  
options

1,697,117

1,682,152

387,351

227,465

(80,751)

(150,291)

(41,500)

(602,666)

(46,000)

(16,209)

1,359,551

1,697,117

521,732

613,124

The options outstanding at 31 July 2012 have an exercise price in the range of 336.0p to 1,470.0p (2011 – 336.0p to 1,470.0p) and have 
a weighted average contractual life of 2.8 years (2011 – 2.7 years). The weighted average share price at the date of exercise for share 
options exercised during the year was 775.3p (2011 – 675.6p).

Valuation methodology
For the LTIP options granted prior to 24 October 2011, a Monte Carlo simulation method was used which allows the Group’s 
performance, in terms of TSR, to be measured against its comparator companies. Individual share price volatilities were calculated for 
each of the comparator companies. A correlation assumption, appropriate to the building sector, was also used. For options granted on 
24 October 2011 half of the performance criteria is based on TSR against comparator companies with the other half based on TSR 
measured against the FTSE 250 Index (excluding investment trusts and financial service companies). A simplified Monte Carlo 
simulation method has been used to determine the Group’s TSR performance against the FTSE 250 Index (excluding investment trusts 
and financial service companies).

In the case of the DBP, a simplified Black Scholes method is applied with an exercise price and dividend yield of zero. This is because no 
performance conditions attach to the award and no dividends are credited to the individual. The result is that the fair value equates to the 
face value of the award.

The Black Scholes method is used for the SRSOS due to the relatively short exercise window of six months.

 
78

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Accounts
notes to the Accounts (continued)

25  employee benefits (continued)

The fair value of services received in return for share options granted is measured by reference to the fair value of the share options 
granted. The inputs into the models for the various grants in the current and previous year were as follows:

Scheme description

Grant date 

Risk free interest rate 

Exercise price

Share price at date of grant

Expected dividend yield

Expected life

Vesting date

Expected volatility

Fair value of option

November 
2011

3 Year 
SRSOS

2012

November 
2011

5 Year 
SRSOS

October 
2011

LTIP

November 
2010

3 Year 
SRSOS

2011

November 
2010

5 Year 
SRSOS

October 
2010

LTIP

14 Nov 11

14 Nov 11

24 Oct 11

12 Nov 10

12 Nov 10

21 Oct 10

0.8%

556.0p

713.5p

3.00%

1.3%

556.0p

713.5p

3.00%

0.0%

–  

700.5p

3.00%

1.4%

439.6p

538.5p

3.00%

2.1%

439.6p

538.5p

3.00%

3 years  

5 years  

3 years

2 months

2 months

3 years  

2 months

5 years  

2 months

0.0%

–  

549.5p

3.00%

3 years

1 Feb 15

1 Feb 17

24 Oct 14

1 Feb 14

1 Feb 16

21 Oct 13

35%

704p

45%

133p

40%

267p

55%

212p

45%

205p

55%

213p

The expected volatility for all models was determined by considering the volatility levels historically for the Group. Volatility levels for more 
recent years were considered to have more relevance than earlier years for the period reviewed.

The Group recognised total expenses of £1.046 million (2011 – £0.957 million) in relation to equity-settled share-based payment 
transactions.

26  RelAted pARty tRAnsActions

The Board and certain members of senior management are related parties within the definition of IAS 24 ‘Related Party Disclosures’. 
Summary information of the transactions with key management personnel is provided in note 3. Detailed disclosure of individual 
remuneration of Board members is included in the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration on pages 39 to 47. There is 
no difference between transactions with key management personnel of the Company and the Group.

Transactions between fellow subsidiaries, which are related parties, have been eliminated on consolidation and are not disclosed.

Group
During the year the Group entered into the following related party transactions with its jointly controlled entities:

Invoiced to jointly controlled entities in respect of accounting, management fees, interest on loans, 
land purchases and infrastructure works

Invoiced from jointly controlled entities in respect of fees, land purchases and infrastructure works

Amounts owed to jointly controlled entities in respect of land purchases and management fees at  
the year end

Amounts owed by jointly controlled entities in respect of accounting, management fees, interest, 
land purchases and infrastructure works at the year end

2012  
£000

2011  
£000

1,282

(3,376)

1,310

(2,988)

(726)

(646)

38,794

36,763

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

79

26  RelAted pARty tRAnsActions (continued)

Company
During the year the Company entered into the following related party transactions with its subsidiaries and jointly controlled entities:

Amounts received in the year from subsidiaries in respect of dividends and shares issued

Amounts paid in the year by subsidiaries on behalf of the Company in respect of dividends and 
finance expenses

Amounts owed by subsidiaries in respect of dividends and shares issued net of amounts paid on behalf 
of the Company at the year end

Investments in subsidiaries and jointly controlled entities at the year end

2012  
£000

93

2011  
£000

230

(19,790)

(15,014)

649,495

668,389

30,163

29,117

The Company has suffered no expense in respect of bad or doubtful debts of subsidiary undertakings in the year (2011 – £nil).

27 pRincipAl subsidiARy undeRtAkings

The directors set out below information relating to the major subsidiary undertakings (those that principally affect the profits and assets 
of the Group) of Bellway p.l.c. taking advantage of the exemption in section 410 of the Companies Act 2006 not to disclose all subsidiary 
undertakings. All of these companies are registered in England and Wales, are engaged in housebuilding and associated activities, have 
coterminous year ends with the Group, and 100% of their ordinary share capital is held by the Company (unless otherwise stated).

Bellway Homes Limited
Bellway Properties Limited
Bellway (Services) Limited
Litrose Investments Limited
Bellway Financial Services Limited
Bellway Housing Trust Limited
The Victoria Dock Company Limited (60% owned)*

* These shares are held indirectly.

80

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

other information

five year Record

Income statement

Revenue

Operating profit 

Exceptional items

Net finance expenses

Share of losses of associates

Profit/(loss) before taxation 

Income tax (expense)/credit

Profit/(loss) for the year (all attributable 
to equity holders of the parent)

Balance sheet

ASSETS

Non-current assets

Current assets

LIABILITIES

Non-current liabilities

Current liabilities

EQUITY

Total equity

Statistics

2008  
£m

2009  
£m

2010  
£m

2011  
£m

2012  
£m

1,149.5

185.1*

(130.9)

(19.1)

(0.3)

34.8

(7.8)

683.8

45.6*

(66.3)

(15.8)

–

(36.5)

9.1

768.3

51.3

–

(6.9)

–

44.4

(8.6)

886.1

75.2

–

(8.0)

–

67.2

(17.0)

 1,004.2 

114.6

–

(9.3)

–

105.3

(26.0)

27.0

(27.4)

35.8

50.2

79.3

29.3

1,667.7

43.8

52.3

1,306.2

1,340.2

55.1

1,415.9

59.4

1,492.4

(359.0)

(336.9)

(138.8)

(246.2)

(129.2)

(228.5)

(124.7)

(273.0)

(69.4)

(349.3)

1,001.1

965.0

1,034.8

1,073.3

1,133.1

Dividend per ordinary share

Basic earnings/(loss) per ordinary share

Number of homes sold

Average price of new homes

Operating margin

Net assets per ordinary share

24.1p

23.6p

6,556 

£169.9k

16.1%*

871p

9.0p

(23.9)p

4,380 

10.0p

29.7p

4,595 

12.5p

41.5p

 4,922 

20.0p

65.5p

 5,226 

£154.0k

£163.2k

£175.6k

£186.6k

6.7%*

839p

6.7%

856p

8.5%

888p

11.4%

933p

Land portfolio – plots with planning permission

22,500 

19,260 

17,602 

 18,086 

17,636 

Weighted average no. of ordinary shares 

114,615,661  114,949,883  120,619,800  120,705,397  121,036,846 

No. of ordinary shares in issue at end of year

114,950,915  115,006,480  120,831,922  120,848,131  121,450,797 

* stated before exceptional items.

Other Information

Shareholder Information

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

81

AnnuAl GeneRAl MeetInG (‘AGM’)

This section is important. If you are in any doubt as to what action to take you should consult an appropriate independent  
financial adviser.

If you have sold or transferred all of your shares in Bellway p.l.c. you should pass this document and all accompanying documents  
to the person through whom the sale or transfer was effected, for transmission to the purchaser or transferee.

SpecIAl BuSIneSS

Five resolutions will be proposed as special business at the forthcoming AGM. The effect of these resolutions is as follows:

Resolution 12 – Adoption of a new Savings Related Share Option Scheme
This resolution, which will be proposed as an ordinary resolution, seeks shareholders’ approval for the introduction of a new 
HM Revenue and Customs approved save-as-you-earn share option scheme to replace the existing plan, the Bellway p.l.c. (2003) 
Savings-Related Share Option Scheme, under which further options cannot be granted after 9 January 2013. A summary of the principal 
details of the new 2013 Savings Related Share Option Scheme (the ‘Scheme’) is set out on page 82. A copy of the draft rules of the 
Scheme will be available for inspection during normal business hours on any weekday (Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays excepted) 
at the registered office of the Company and at the offices of Dickinson Dees LLP, Gate House, 1 Farringdon Street, London EC4M 7LG 
from the date of publication of this notice up to and including the date of the AGM and also for fifteen minutes prior to the AGM until 
the close of the AGM. 

Resolution 13 – Authority to directors to issue shares
This is an ordinary resolution which authorises the directors to allot ordinary shares up to an aggregate nominal value of £5,061,300, 
which is equivalent to approximately one-third of the Company’s issued ordinary share capital as at 15 October 2012, and also gives the 
directors authority to allot, by way of rights issue only, ordinary shares up to an aggregate nominal value of £10,122,600 which is 
equivalent to approximately two-thirds of the Company’s issued ordinary share capital as at 15 October 2012, such authority, if granted, 
to expire at the conclusion of the next AGM of the Company. As at 15 October 2012 the Company held no shares as treasury shares. 
At present, the directors only intend to use this authority to satisfy the exercise of awards under the Company’s share schemes. The 
directors wish to obtain the necessary authority from shareholders so that allotments can be made (if required and if suitable market 
conditions arise) at short notice and without the need to convene a general meeting of the Company which would be both costly and 
time consuming.

Resolution 14 – Disapplication of pre-emption rights
This is a special resolution and is the customary annual request, in substitution for the authority granted to the directors by shareholders 
on 13 January 2012 which expires at the conclusion of the forthcoming AGM, that shareholders empower the directors to allot ordinary 
shares for cash without first offering them pro rata to existing shareholders as would otherwise be required by section 561 of the 
Companies Act 2006 (a) in connection with a rights issue or other pre-emptive offer and (b) (otherwise than in connection with a rights 
issue or other pre-emptive offer) up to an aggregate nominal value of £759,195, being approximately equal to 5% of the issued ordinary 
share capital of the Company as at 15 October 2012.

Resolution 15 – Company’s purchase of its own shares
The Company’s authority to purchase its own ordinary and preference shares, given at the last AGM, expires at the conclusion  
of the forthcoming AGM. This authority was not used during the year. The directors propose, as a special resolution, that it should  
be renewed for a further year to expire on the date of the next AGM.

The directors will review opportunities to use this authority in light of stock market conditions and trading opportunities during  
the year.

The directors will only make purchases (which will reduce the number of shares in issue) after paying due attention to the effect  
on the financing of the Group, its assets and earnings per share for the remaining shareholders. Any shares purchased under this authority 
may be cancelled (in which case the number of shares in issue will be reduced accordingly) or may be held in treasury.

Resolution 16 – Length of notice of meeting
Shareholder approval for general meetings of the Company other than AGMs to be held on 14 days’ notice, given at the last AGM, 
expires at the conclusion of the forthcoming AGM. There is no current intention to use this authority and the Company will only consider 
using this authority where it is considered that this would be for the benefit of shareholders as a whole. The directors propose, as a 
special resolution, that it should be renewed for a further year to expire on the date of the next AGM.

Recommendation
Your directors consider each of the resolutions set out in the Notice of AGM to be in the best interests of the Company and its 
shareholders as a whole. Accordingly, they unanimously recommend that you vote in favour of the resolutions as they intend to do 
in respect of their own beneficial shareholdings.

82

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Other Information
Shareholder Information (continued)

SuMMARy Of the pRIncIpAl detAIlS Of the BellwAy p.l.c. (2013) SAvInGS RelAted ShARe 
OptIOn ScheMe (the ‘ScheMe’)
1.  Eligibility

 All employees and full time directors of the Company and any participating subsidiaries who have been employed for a minimum 
period determined by the Board of directors of the Company shall be invited to participate in the Scheme. Invitations may be made 
within the six-month period following approval of the Scheme by HM Revenue and Customs and thereafter, normally,  
in each year during the period of 42 days following the announcement of the Company’s interim or final results. Invitations may not 
be made more than 10 years after the date of adoption of the Scheme by the Company.

 Invitees will be given not less than 14 days in which to decide whether to accept the invitation and, if they choose to accept the 
invitation, to decide how much per month they wish to save (which shall be not less than £5, nor more than £250, per month) under 
a savings arrangement which they will be required to take out at the same time as the option is granted to them.

2.  Grant of options

 Where invitations are accepted, options will be granted (by the Company) not later than 30 days after the date of the invitations (or 
not later than 42 days after that date, if the invitation is over-subscribed (see paragraph 3 below)). No consideration shall be payable 
for the grant of an option. Options may not be transferred.

3.   Oversubscription

The rules of the Scheme set out steps for scaling down applications in the event that an invitation is oversubscribed.

4.  Exercise price

 The price at which participants may acquire ordinary shares will be not less than 80% of their middle market price quoted on 
the Daily Official List of the London Stock Exchange plc at close of dealings on the day immediately preceding the invitation date.

5.   Limit on share capital

 No option may be granted to any participant which would cause the number of ordinary shares issued or remaining issuable 
by virtue of options or other rights granted in the preceding 10 years under the Scheme or any other employee share scheme 
established by the Company to exceed 10% of the issued share capital at that time.

6.  Exercise, lapse and exchange of options

 Options will normally be exercisable during the period of six months following the bonus date of the savings arrangement taken 
out by participants at the time options are granted.

 Options normally lapse on cessation of employment. However, exercise is permitted for a limited period following cessation  
of employment for specified “good leaver” reasons. Exercise is also permitted on an amalgamation or takeover of the Company. 

 The number of ordinary shares which participants can acquire on exercise of their options cannot exceed the amount in cash terms 
that they have saved under their contract, together with any bonus or interest payable.

7.  Adjustments

 With the prior approval of HM Revenue and Customs, the number of shares comprised in an option and/or its exercise price may 
be adjusted if any capitalisation issue, offer by way of rights or any sub-division, reduction, consolidation or other variation of the 
Company’s share capital takes place.

8.  Rights attaching to shares

 The ordinary shares which are to be transferred or allotted and issued to a participant pursuant to the exercise of options will rank 
pari passu with all other issued ordinary shares, except for any rights determined by reference to a date preceding the date on which 
the option is exercised.

9.   Amendments and general

 The Board of directors of the Company may at any time amend the rules of the Scheme provided that, in the case of amendments 
to the material advantage of participants relating to eligibility, limits on participation, the basis of determining a participant’s entitlement 
in the event of a variation of the Company’s share capital and certain other amendments, the prior approval of the Company in 
general meeting has been obtained. Such prior approval will not, however, be required for amendments made to obtain or maintain 
the approval of HM Revenue and Customs or to comply with the provisions of any existing or proposed legislation or to maintain 
favourable taxation treatment of any participating company or any participant. No amendments shall have effect without the prior 
approval of HM Revenue and Customs. Benefits provided are not pensionable.

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

83

tAkeOveRS dIRectIve

Where not provided in the Directors’ Report the following sets out the information required to be provided to shareholders in 
compliance with the Takeovers Directive.

Share capital
The Company’s total issued ordinary and preference share capital as at 31 July 2012 consisted of 121,450,797 ordinary shares  
of 12.5p each (representing 43% of the Company’s total issued share capital) and 20,000,000 9.5% Cumulative Redeemable Preference 
Shares 2014 of £1 each (representing 57% of the Company’s total issued share capital). Further details of the issued capital of the 
Company and brief details of the rights in relation to the preference shares can be found in note 16 to the accounts. The rights and 
obligations attaching to the ordinary and preference shares in the Company are set out in the Articles of Association (the ‘Articles’). 
Copies of the Articles can be obtained from Companies House or by writing to the Group Company Secretary at the Company’s 
registered office.

Restrictions on the transfer of shares 
The restrictions on the transfer of shares are set out in the Articles. In addition, in compliance with the FSA Listing Rules, Company 
approval is required for directors, certain employees and their connected persons to deal in the Company’s ordinary shares. No person 
has special rights of control over the Company’s share capital.

Rights in relation to the shares held in the employee benefit trust
The voting rights on shares held in the Trust in relation to the Company’s employee share schemes are exercisable by the trustees.

Restrictions on voting rights
Details of the deadlines for exercising voting rights are set out in the Company’s Articles. The directors are not aware of any agreements 
between shareholders that may result in restrictions on the transfer of securities or on voting rights.

Appointment and replacement of directors
The Company’s rules about the appointment and replacement of directors are set out in the Articles and are summarised in the 
Directors’ Report on page 33. In accordance with the UK Corporate Governance Code all the directors are seeking annual re-election 
by shareholders, apart from Howard Dawe, who retires from the Board on 31 January 2013.

Amendments to the Company’s Articles of Association
The Company may amend its Articles by passing a special resolution at a general meeting of its shareholders.

Powers of the Board
The business and affairs of the Company are managed by the directors, who may exercise all such powers of the Company as are not by 
law or by the Articles required to be exercised by the Company in general meetings. Subject to the provisions of the Articles, all powers 
of the directors are exercised at meetings of the directors which have been validly convened and at which a quorum is present.

Allotment of shares
During the year 602,666 new ordinary shares were issued to satisfy awards made under the Company’s employee share schemes. The 
directors have authority to allot shares within limits agreed by shareholders. Details of the renewal of this authority are set out on page 
81, and Resolutions 13 and 14 in the Notice of Meeting of the AGM to be held on 11 January 2013 on pages 86 and 87 seek to renew 
this authority.

Purchase of own shares 
The Company has not purchased any of its own shares during the year. The directors have authority to purchase the Company’s own 
shares within limits agreed by shareholders. Details of the renewal of this authority are set out on page 81, and Resolution 15 in the 
Notice of Meeting of the AGM to be held on 11 January 2013 on page 87 seeks to renew this authority.

Significant agreements – change of control provisions
The Company is party to a number of banking agreements which may be terminable in the event of a change of control of the Company.

Agreements for compensation for loss of office following a change of control
The service agreements between the Company and Mr Watson and the Group Company Secretary contain provisions that entitle the 
individual to terminate the agreement following a takeover offer and receive an amount equivalent to one year’s salary, benefits and the 
average amount of the last two years’ annual bonus payment. 

84

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Other Information
Shareholder Information (continued)

fInAncIAl cAlendAR

Announcement of results and ordinary dividends

  Half year

  Full year 

Ordinary share dividend payments

Interim 

  Final 

March

October

July

January

Preference share dividend payments at the rate of 9.5% per annum paid half yearly 

April and October

Annual report posted to shareholders 

Final ordinary dividend – ex-dividend date 

Final ordinary dividend – record date 

AGM 

Final ordinary dividend – payment date 

November

12 December 2012

14 December 2012

11 January 2013

16 January 2013

ORdInARy ShARehOldeRS By SIze Of hOldInG At 31 July 2012

Holdings

  Shares

0 – 2,000 

2,001 – 10,000 

10,001 – 50,000

50,001 and over 

Total 

Number

1,727

423

137

193

%

Holding

1,123,272

1,783,724

3,336,640

69.64

17.06

5.52

7.78

115,207,161

94.86

2,480

100.00

121,450,797

100.00

%

0.92

1.47

2.75

dIvIdend Re-InveStMent plAn (‘dRIp’)

Shareholders may agree to participate in the Company’s DRIP to receive dividends in the form of shares in Bellway p.l.c. instead of in cash. 
For further information please e-mail Capita Registrars Limited at shares@capitaregistrars.com or telephone 0871 664 0300 – calls cost 
10p per minute plus network extras. If calling from overseas please call +44 208 639 3399. Lines are open from 8.30 am to 5.30 pm on 
Monday to Friday (excluding Bank Holidays).

nOn-SteRlInG BAnk AccOunt

If you reside outside the UK, or have a non-sterling bank account, Capita Registrars can now convert your dividend into your local 
currency and send you the funds by currency draft, or they may be able to pay them straight into your overseas bank account. For further 
information on Capita’s International Payment Service e-mail Capita Registrars Limited at IPS@capitaregistrars.com or telephone +44 
208 639 3405. Lines are open from 9.00 am to 5.30 pm London time on Monday to Friday (excluding Bank Holidays).

ShARe deAlInG SeRvIce

The Company’s registrars, Capita Registrars Limited, provide a share dealing service to existing shareholders to buy or sell the Company’s 
shares. Online and telephone dealing facilities provide an easy to access and simple to use service.

For further information on this service, or to buy or sell shares, please contact: www.capitadeal.com for online dealing, or telephone 0871 
664 0364 for telephone dealing.

Please note that the directors of the Company are not seeking to encourage shareholders to either buy or sell their shares in the 
Company. Shareholders in any doubt as to what action to take are recommended to seek financial advice from an independent financial 
adviser, authorised under the terms of the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000.

 
Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

85

dIScOunt tO ShARehOldeRS

The following discount arrangement is currently available to shareholders.

Should you intend to purchase a new Bellway home, you will be entitled to a discount of £2,000 per £25,000, or pro rata on part 
thereof, of the purchase price provided that:

(a)   you have been the registered holder of at least 2,000 ordinary shares for a minimum period of 12 months prior to the reservation 

of your new home; and

(b) you inform our sales representative on-site when reserving your property that you are claiming shareholder discount.

The above discount arrangement is only available to shareholders on the Company’s Register of Members. Employees of investing 
companies or members of investing institutions would not therefore be eligible. Underlying beneficial shareholders would be entitled 
to benefit from the arrangements.

For further details please contact the Group Company Secretary, Bellway p.l.c., Seaton Burn House, Dudley Lane, Seaton Burn, 
Newcastle upon Tyne NE13 6BE, telephone 0191 217 0717 or e-mail investor.relations@bellway.co.uk.

BenefIcIAl OwneRS Of ShAReS wIth ‘InfORMAtIOn RIGhtS’

Beneficial owners of shares who have been nominated by the registered holder of those shares to receive information rights under 
section 146 of the Companies Act 2006 are required to direct all communications to the registered holder of their shares rather than 
to the Company’s registrar, Capita Registrars Limited, or to the Company directly.

cORpORAte ReSpOnSIBIlIty RepORtInG

Further reporting on the Company’s Corporate Responsibility activities is available to view in the Corporate Responsibility section 
of the Group’s website www.bellway.co.uk.

86

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Other Information

notice of Annual General Meeting

NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that the Annual General Meeting of the Company will be held at The Newcastle Marriott Hotel Gosforth 
Park, High Gosforth Park, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE3 5HN on Friday 11 January 2013 at 12.00 noon for the following purposes:

ORdInARy BuSIneSS

To consider and, if thought fit, pass the following resolutions which will be proposed as ordinary resolutions:

1. 

2. 

 THAT the Accounts for the financial year ended 31 July 2012 and the Directors’ Report and the Auditor’s Report on those 
Accounts and the auditable part of the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration be received and adopted.

 THAT a final dividend for the year ended 31 July 2012 of 14.0p per ordinary 12.5p share, as recommended by the directors, 
be declared.

3.  THAT Mr J K Watson be re-elected as a director of the Company.

4.  THAT Mr E F Ayres be re-elected as a director of the Company.

5.  THAT Mr K D Adey be re-elected as a director of the Company.

6.  THAT Mr P M Johnson be re-elected as a director of the Company.

7.  THAT Mr M R Toms be re-elected as a director of the Company.

8.  THAT Mr J A Cuthbert be re-elected as a director of the Company.

9. 

 THAT KPMG Audit Plc be re-appointed as the auditor of the Company to hold office from the conclusion of this meeting until 
the conclusion of the next general meeting at which Accounts are laid before the Company.

10.  THAT the directors are authorised to agree the remuneration of the auditor of the Company.

11.  THAT the Report of the Board on Directors’ Remuneration shown on pages 39 to 47 of the Annual Report and Accounts 

for the year ended 31 July 2012 be approved.

SpecIAl BuSIneSS

To consider and, if thought fit, pass the following resolutions which will be proposed as ordinary resolutions:

12.   THAT the Bellway p.l.c. (2013) Savings Related Share Option Scheme (the ‘Scheme’), the draft rules of which were produced to 

the meeting and for the purpose of identification initialled by the Chairman and a summary of which is set out under Shareholder 
Information on page 82 of the Annual Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 July 2012, be and is hereby approved and 
adopted (subject to such modifications, if any, as the directors consider necessary or appropriate to obtain the approval thereto of 
HM Revenue and Customs under the provisions of the Income Tax (Earnings and Pensions) Act 2003 and to comply with the 
requirements of the Listing Rules or the London Stock Exchange) and that the directors be and are hereby authorised to do all acts 
and things as they may consider appropriate or expedient to implement the Scheme.

13.   THAT the directors be generally and unconditionally authorised pursuant to and in accordance with section 551 of the Companies 

Act 2006 (the ‘Act’) to exercise all the powers of the Company to:

(a)  allot shares in the Company and to grant rights to subscribe for, or to convert any security into, shares in the Company (‘Rights’) 

up to a maximum nominal amount of £5,061,300; and

(b) allot equity securities (within the meaning of section 560 of the Act) up to a maximum nominal amount of £10,122,600 (such 
amount to be reduced by the nominal amount of any shares issued or in respect of which Rights are granted under (a) above) 
in connection with an offer by way of a rights issue to ordinary shareholders in proportion (as nearly as may be practicable) to their 
existing holdings and so that the directors may impose any limits or restrictions and make any arrangements which they consider 
necessary or appropriate to deal with fractional entitlements, record dates, legal, regulatory or practical problems in, or under the 
laws of, any territory or any other matter, provided that:

(i)  this authority shall expire at the conclusion of the next annual general meeting of the Company, but may be previously revoked 

or varied by an ordinary resolution of the Company; and

(ii)  this authority shall permit and enable the Company to make offers or agreements before the expiry of this authority which 

would or might require shares to be allotted or Rights to be granted after such expiry and the directors shall be entitled to allot 
shares and grant Rights pursuant to any such offers or agreements as if this authority had not expired; and

(iii) all unexercised authorities previously granted to the directors to allot shares and grant Rights be and are hereby revoked.

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

87

To consider and, if thought fit, pass the following resolutions which will be proposed as special resolutions:

14.  THAT,

(a)  subject to resolution 13 above being passed as an ordinary resolution, the directors be empowered pursuant to section 570 and 

section 573 of the Companies Act 2006 (‘the Act’) to allot equity securities (within the meaning of section 560 of the Act) for cash 
pursuant to the authority so conferred or by way of sale of treasury shares in each case as if section 561(1) of the Act did not apply 
to any such allotment, provided that this power shall be limited to:

(i)  the allotment of equity securities in connection with a pre-emptive offer (but in the case of the authority conferred under 

paragraph (b) of resolution 13 in connection with an offer by way of rights issue only); and

(ii)  the allotment to any person or persons (otherwise than pursuant to paragraph (i) above) of equity securities up to an aggregate 

nominal amount of £759,195;

(b) the power given by this resolution shall expire at the conclusion of the next annual general meeting of the Company except that the 
Company may, before such expiry, make an offer or agreement which would, or might, require equity securities to be allotted after 
such expiry and the directors may allot equity securities pursuant to such an offer or agreement as if the power conferred by this 
resolution had not expired; and

(c)  for the purposes of this resolution, ‘pre-emptive offer’ means a rights issue, open offer or other offer of equity securities open for 

acceptance for a fixed period, by the directors to ordinary shareholders of the Company on the Register on a fixed record date in 
proportion (as nearly as may be) to their then holdings of such equity securities (but subject to such exclusions or other 
arrangements as the directors may deem necessary or expedient to deal with legal or practical problems under the laws of, or the 
requirements of, any regulatory body or any stock exchange in, any overseas territory or fractional entitlements or any other matter 
whatsoever).

15.   THAT the Company be generally and unconditionally authorised for the purposes of section 701 of the Companies Act 2006 (‘the 
Act’) to purchase ordinary shares and preference shares in the capital of the Company by way of one or more market purchases 
(within the meaning of section 693 of the Act) on the London Stock Exchange upon, and subject to the following conditions:

(a)  the maximum number of ordinary shares hereby authorised to be purchased is 12,147,120, being approximately 10 per cent of the 

ordinary shares in issue;

(b) the maximum number of preference shares hereby authorised to be purchased is 20,000,000 9.5% Cumulative Redeemable 

Preference Shares 2014 of £1 each, being the total amount of preference shares in issue;

(c)  the maximum price at which ordinary shares may be purchased is an amount equal to 105 per cent of the average of the middle 

market quotations derived from the London Stock Exchange Official List for the five business days immediately preceding the date 
on which the ordinary shares are contracted to be purchased and the minimum price is 12.5p per share, in both cases exclusive 
of expenses;

(d) the maximum price at which preference shares may be purchased shall be an amount calculated in accordance with the provisions 

contained in the Articles of Association of the Company and the minimum price is £1 per share; and

(e) unless previously renewed, varied or revoked, the authority to purchase conferred by this resolution shall expire at the conclusion 
of the next annual general meeting of the Company or, if earlier, 15 months after the passing of this resolution provided that any 
contract for the purchase of any shares, as aforesaid, which was concluded before the expiry of the said authority may be executed 
wholly or partly after the said authority expires and the relevant shares purchased pursuant thereto.

16.   THAT a general meeting of the Company, other than an annual general meeting of the Company, may be called on not  

less than 14 clear days’ notice.

88

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Other Information
notice of Annual General Meeting (continued)

Notes:
(i) 

(ii) 

 A member entitled to attend and vote at the meeting convened by the above notice may appoint one or more proxies to attend and speak and vote instead of him/her, 
provided that each proxy is appointed to exercise the rights attached to a different share or shares held by that member. A proxy need not be a member  
of the Company.
 A form of proxy is enclosed separately. Completion and return of the form of proxy will not preclude shareholders from attending in person and voting at  
the meeting.

(iii)   CREST members will be able to cast their vote using CREST electronic proxy voting using the procedures described in the CREST Manual (available via www.euroclear.

com/CREST). In order to be valid, the Company’s registrars must receive CREST Proxy Instructions not less than 48 hours before the time of the meeting or any adjourned 
meeting.

(iv)   The above statement as to proxy rights contained in note (i) above does not apply to a person who receives this notice of general meeting as a person nominated to 
enjoy ‘information rights’ under section 146 of the Companies Act 2006. If you have been sent this notice of meeting because you are such a nominated person, the 
following statements apply: (a) you may have a right under an agreement between you and the member of the Company by whom you were nominated to be appointed 
or to have someone else appointed as a proxy for this general meeting; and (b) if you have no such right or do not wish to exercise it, you may have a right under such an 
agreement to give instructions to that member as to the exercise of voting rights. Nominated persons should contact the registered member by whom they were 
nominated in respect of these arrangements.
 To be entitled to attend and vote at the meeting (and for the purposes of determination by the Company of the number of votes cast), shareholders must be entered on 
the Company’s Register of Members at 5.30 pm on Wednesday 9 January 2013 (or, in the event of any adjournment, at 5.30 pm on the date which is two days prior to the 
adjourned meeting). Changes to the Register of Members after the relevant deadline shall be disregarded in determining the rights of any person to attend and vote at the 
meeting or adjourned meeting.

(v) 

(vi)   Pursuant to section 527 of the Companies Act 2006, where requested by either a member or members having a right to vote at the general meeting and holding at least 

5% of total voting rights of the Company or at least 100 members having a right to vote at the meeting and holding, on average, at least £100 per member of paid up share 
capital, the Company must publish on its website a statement setting out any matter that such members propose to raise at the meeting relating to either the audit of the 
Company’s accounts that are to be laid before the meeting or the circumstances connected with an auditor ceasing to hold office since the last meeting at which accounts 
were laid. Where the Company is required to publish such a statement on its website, it may not require the members making the request to pay any expenses incurred by 
the Company in complying with the request. It must forward the statement to the Company’s auditor and the statement may be dealt with as part of the business of the 
meeting.

(vii)   Any member attending the meeting has the right to ask questions. The Company must cause to be answered any such questions relating to the business being dealt with at 

the meeting but no such answer need be given if (a) to do so would interfere unduly with the preparation of the meeting or involve the disclosure of confidential 
information, (b) the answer has already been given on a website in the form of an answer to a question, or (c) it is undesirable in the interests of the Company or the good 
order of the meeting that the question be answered.

(viii)  Members have the right, under section 338 of the Companies Act 2006, to require the Company to give its members notice of a resolution which the shareholders wish 

to be moved at an annual general meeting of the Company. Additionally, members have the right under section 338A of the Companies Act 2006 to require the Company 
to include a matter (other than a proposed resolution) in the business to be dealt with at the annual general meeting. The Company is required to give such notice of a 
resolution or include such matter once it has received requests from members representing at least 5% of the total voting rights of all the members who have a right to 
vote at the annual general meeting or from at least 100 members with the same right to vote who hold shares in the Company on which there has been paid up an 
average sum per member of at least £100. This request must be received by the Company not later than six weeks before the annual general meeting or, if later, the time at 
which notice is given of the annual general meeting. In the case of a request relating to section 338A of the Companies Act 2006, the request must be accompanied by 
a statement setting out the grounds for the request.

(ix)   Except as provided above, members who wish to communicate with the Company in relation to the AGM should do so in writing either to the Group Company 

Secretary at the registered office address or to the Company’s registrar, Capita Registrars Limited, The Registry, 34 Beckenham Road, Beckenham, Kent BR3 4TU. No other 
methods of communication will be accepted. In particular you may not use any electronic address provided either in this notice of meeting or in any related documents to 
communicate with the Company for any purposes other than those expressly stated.

(x)  There will be available for inspection during the AGM and for at least 15 minutes before it begins, the directors’ appointment letters and service contracts.
(xi)  A copy of this notice and the other information required by section 311A of the Companies Act 2006 can be found at www.bellway.co.uk.
(xii)  As at the date of this notice there are 121,471,201 ordinary shares in issue and the total voting rights of the Company are therefore 121,471,201.

By order of the Board

Kevin Wrightson

Group Company Secretary

Registered Office 
Bellway p.l.c. 
Seaton Burn House 
Dudley Lane 
Seaton Burn 
Newcastle upon Tyne NE13 6BE

Registered in England and Wales 
No. 1372603

15 October 2012

Other information

Glossary

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

89

Affordable Housing
Social rented and intermediate housing provided to specified eligible households whose needs are not met by the market, at a cost low 
enough for them to afford, determined with regard to local incomes and local house prices.

Average selling price
Calculated by dividing the total price of homes sold by the number of homes sold.

Brownfield sites
Land which has been previously used for other purposes.

Cancellation rate
The rate at which customers withdraw from a house purchase after paying the reservation fee, but before contracts are exchanged, 
usually due to difficulties in obtaining mortgage finance. Reservation fees are refunded in line with the Consumer Code for Home 
Builders.

Code for Sustainable Homes
A national standard for sustainable design and construction of new homes. The Code measures the ‘whole home’ as a complete package, 
assessing its sustainability against nine categories: energy/CO2, water, materials, surface water run-off, waste, pollution, health and well-being, 
management and ecology. Level 3 applies to newly-constructed Affordable Housing subject to Homes and Communities Agency (‘HCA’) 
grant policy and all homes built on HCA land from 1 April 2008. Level 3 differs from Level 4 primarily in respect of the energy/CO2 
levels. Level 3 seeks a 25% reduction in CO2 emissions compared with the 2006 Building Regulations requirements whereas Level 4 
requires a 44% reduction.

Considerate Constructors Scheme
A national initiative by the construction industry, where companies and sites voluntarily register and agree to be monitored against, 
a Code of Considerate Practice, with a view to promoting best practice beyond statutory requirements.

Consumer Code for Home Builders
A voluntary code governing customer service and satisfaction, created by the NHBC in conjunction with MD Insurance  
Services Limited.

CSCS cards
The CSCS card denotes achievement of a Construction Skills Certificate, demonstrating occupational competence in the construction 
industry under the Construction Skills Certificate Scheme.

EcoHomes
An environmental rating scheme for UK homes.

HBF
Home Builders Federation. HBF is an industry body representing the home building industry in England and Wales. They represent 
member interests on a national and regional level to create the best possible climate in which they can deliver the homes the country 
needs. 

Home Zones
Residential streets in which the road space is shared between drivers of motor vehicles and other road users, with the wider needs of 
residents (including children) who walk and cycle, in mind. The aim is to change the way that streets are used and to improve the quality 
of life in residential streets by making them for people, not just for traffic. For more information see www.homezones.org.uk.

Land bank
A supply of plots for potential development.

Lifetime Homes
Are ordinary homes incorporating 16 Design Criteria which add to the comfort and convenience of the home and support the changing 
needs of individuals and families at different stages of life.

NHBC
National House-Building Council. NHBC is the leading warranty and insurance provider and standards setter for UK housebuilding for 
new and newly converted homes.

Pipeline
Land bank awaiting planning permission.

90

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Other Information
Glossary (continued)

Planning consent/permission
Usually granted by the local planning authority, this permission allows a plot of land to be built on, change its use or, for an existing building, 
be redeveloped or altered. Consent is either ‘outline’ when detailed plans are still to be approved, or ‘detailed’ when detailed plans have 
been approved.

Rainwater harvesting
Rainwater harvesting is a system by which rainwater is collected from roofs, stored in underground tanks and then used in toilets and for 
garden irrigation. Rainwater harvesting can reduce household water consumption by up to 50%.

Registered Providers
Government-funded organisations that provide affordable housing. These can be either non-profit making, such as housing associations, 
trusts and co-operatives, or profit making, such as housebuilders. Working alongside local authorities, they provide homes for people 
meeting the affordable homes criteria. As well as developing land and building homes, Registered Providers also perform a landlord 
function by maintaining properties and collecting rent.

Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents (‘RoSPA’)
RoSPA is a registered charity which promotes safety and the prevention of accidents at work, at leisure, on the road, in the home and 
through safety education.

Safemark Certificate
NHBC’s Health & Safety Competence Assessment Scheme.

Section 106 planning agreements
These are legally-binding agreements or planning obligations entered into between a landowner and a local planning authority, under 
section 106 of the Town and Country Planning Act 1990. These agreements are a way of delivering or addressing matters that are 
necessary to make a development acceptable in planning terms. They are increasingly used to support the provision of services and 
infrastructure, such as highways, recreational facilities, education, health and affordable housing.

Secured by Design
Is the official UK Police initiative supporting ‘designing out crime’ and focuses on crime prevention at the design, layout and construction 
stages of homes and commercial premises and promotes the use of security standards for a wide range of applications and products. For 
more information see www.securedbydesign.com.

Social housing
Housing that is let at low rents and on a secure basis to people in housing need. It is generally provided by councils and not-for-profit 
organisations such as housing associations.

Sustainability
Environmental sustainability has been defined as meeting the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations 
to meet their needs.

Sustainable Urban Drainage Systems (‘SUDS’)
Designed to reduce the environmental effects of surface water run-off, which has been a problem with conventional drainage systems, 
particularly in new developments. SUDS replicate natural systems with minimal environmental effect, draining away dirty and surface 
water through collection, storage and cleaning.

Transport node
A point at which residents are able to access a public transport facility with ease.

Thin joint technology
Thin joint technology uses autoclaved aerated concrete blocks with 2mm–3mm mortar joints. The blocks are produced to a high degree 
of accuracy, and the thin layer mortar sets more rapidly than normal mortar, reducing the length of time before the wall becomes stable. 
The advantages of this system of construction are high build quality, greater productivity, improved thermal performance, air-tightness and 
waste reduction.

Waste Management Plan
Plans setting out how all resources, products and by-products will be managed and waste controlled at all stages of a construction project. 
Site Waste Management Plans are a legal requirement for all sites with an estimated construction cost of over £300,000.

Other information

notes

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

91

92

Bellway p.l.c. Annual Report and Accounts 2012

Other Information
notes (continued)

SiNcE iTS FoRmATioN 
more than  
50 years ago, 

Bellway 
100,000 

HAS BuiLT ovER 

homes.

it is  
recognised 
throughout the industry 
for building  
quality 
homes.

Front cover:  
The Fort, Rochester, Kent

This page: 
The coppice, Takeley, Essex

Back cover: 
city Peninsula, London Borough 
of Greenwich

For more information on our business, go to 

www.bellway.co.uk

Yorkshire
2 Deighton Close
Wetherby
West Yorkshire LS22 7GZ
Tel: (01937) 583 533
Fax: (01937) 586 147
DX: 16815 Wetherby

Other Subsidiary

Bellway Housing Trust 
Limited
Seaton Burn House
Dudley Lane
Seaton Burn
Newcastle upon Tyne
NE13 6BE
Tel: (0191) 217 0717
Fax: (0191) 236 6230
DX: 711760 Seaton Burn

Bellway p.l.c.
Seaton Burn House, Dudley Lane, Seaton Burn, Newcastle upon Tyne, NE13 6BE
Tel: (0191) 217 0717; Fax: (0191) 236 6230; DX 711760 Seaton Burn; Website: www.bellway.co.uk

Bellway Homes Limited

East Midlands
No. 3 Romulus Court
Meridian East
Meridian Business Park
Braunstone Town
Leicester LE19 1YG
Tel: (0116) 282 0400
Fax: (0116) 282 0401

Essex
Bellway House
1 Rainsford Road
Chelmsford
Essex CM1 2PZ
Tel: (01245) 259 989
Fax: (01245) 259 996
DX: 121935 Chelmsford 6

North East
Bellway House, Kings Park
Kingsway North
Team Valley, Gateshead
Tyne and Wear 
NE11 0JH
Tel: (0191) 482 8800
Fax: (0191) 491 4537
DX: 745710 Gateshead 7

North London
Bellway House
Bury Street, Ruislip
Middlesex HA4 7SD
Tel: (01895) 671 100
Fax: (01895) 671 111

North West
Bellway House
2 Alderman Road
Liverpool L24 9LR
Tel: (0151) 486 2900
Fax: (0151) 336 9393

Northern Home Counties
Oak House
Woodlands Business Park
Breckland, Linford Wood
Milton Keynes MK14 6EY
Tel: (01908) 328 800
Fax: (01908) 328 801
DX: 729383 Milton Keynes 16

Scotland
Bothwell House
Hamilton Business Park
Caird Street
Hamilton ML3 0QA
Tel: (01698) 477 440
Fax: (01698) 477 441
DX: HA13 Hamilton

South East
Bellway House
London Road North
Merstham
Surrey RH1 3YU
Tel: (01737) 644 911
Fax: (01737) 646 319

Thames Gateway
Osprey House
Crayfields Business Park
New Mill Road
Orpington
Kent BR5 3QJ
Tel: (01689) 886 400
Fax: (01689) 886 410

Wales
Alexander House
Excelsior Road
Western Avenue
Cardiff CF14 3AT
Tel: (029) 2054 4700
Fax: (029) 2054 4701

Wessex
Bellway House
Embankment Way
Castleman Business Centre
Ringwood
Hampshire BH24 1EU
Tel: (01425) 477 666
Fax: (01425) 474 382  
DX:  45710 Ringwood

West Midlands
Bellway House
Relay Point
Relay Drive, Tamworth
Staffordshire B77 5PA
Tel: (01827) 255 755
Fax: (01827) 255 766
DX: 717023 Tamworth

Designed and produced by Radley Yeldar (www.ry.com) using the paperless proofing system Wizardry.

Bellway p.l.c. are committed to caring for the environment and looking for sustainable ways to minimise our impact on it. 
This report has been printed on Core Silk, a paper which is certified by the Forest Stewardship Council®.

The paper is made at a mill with EMAS and ISO 14001 environmental management system accreditation.

This report was printed using vegetable oil based inks by a CarbonNeutral® printer certified to ISO 14001
environmental management system and registered to EMAS theEco Management Audit Scheme.

FSC – Forest Stewardship Council. This ensures there is an audited chain of custody from the 
tree in the well-managed forest through to the finished document in the printing factory.

ISO 14001 – A pattern of control for an environmental management system against which 
an organisation can be credited by a third party.

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Bellway p.l.c.
Seaton Burn House,  
Dudley Lane,  
Seaton Burn,  
Newcastle upon Tyne  
NE13 6BE

Tel: (0191) 217 0717 
Fax: (0191) 236 6230 
DX: 711760 Seaton Burn

www.bellway.co.uk

annual  
report 
and accounts 

2012 

www.bellway.co.uk