The Accounts · daily brief
21 June 2026
Start Scotland on break-up basis, Eurostar logs tax credit
The takeaways
- Start Scotland filed its accounts on a break-up basis after turnover more than halved to £3.2m
- Eurostar saw profit before tax drop 43%, though the bottom line grew alongside a £22m tax credit
- Willmott Dixon's construction arm halved its operating profit while director pay rose by 28%
Hiring signals · who grew, who shrank
Hiring
- Great American Europe Limited 42 → 52 staff ▲ +24% staff cost +54%
- This Is It Stores Limited 39 → 48 staff ▲ +23% staff cost +26%
Cutting
- Fedcap Employment Scotland Limited 105 → 42 staff ▼ −60% staff cost −47%
- Embankment Holdings Limited 238 → 148 staff ▼ −38% staff cost −26%
Average headcount from the accounts filed yesterday — a look back at last year's payroll, not a live hiring tracker.
Filing of note
Start Scotland Limited
Start Scotland Limited is a Clydebank-registered employment placement agency.
Filed on a break-up (non-going-concern) basis.
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £3.2m | £7.2m | ▼ −55% |
| Gross profit | £314k | £613k | ▼ −49% |
| Admin expenses | £224k | £236k | ▼ −5% |
| Operating profit | £89,671 | £377k | ▼ −76% |
| Finance costs | £0 | £0 | |
| Profit before tax | £89,671 | £379k | ▼ −76% |
| Net profit | £67,253 | £285k | ▼ −76% |
Today's most unusual filing comes from this Clydebank employment agency, which has drawn up its accounts on a break-up basis. The filing follows a severe contraction in trade, with turnover more than halving from £7.2m to £3.2m. Operating profit remained positive at £89.7k, with the accounts formally noting the departure from the going-concern assumption.
Sensata Technologies Holding Plc [1]
This entity is a New York Stock Exchange-listed global industrial technology group that develops and manufactures sensors, electrical protection components, and controls for the automotive, aerospace, and heavy vehicle sectors.
Tax-driven drop
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £4.0bn | £3.9bn | ▲ +3% |
| Gross profit | £1.4bn | £1.1bn | ▲ +23% |
| Operating profit | £495.8m | £528m | ▼ −6% |
| Profit before tax | £148.7m | −£4.2m | ▲ +3640% |
| Net profit | £67.4m | £123.4m | ▼ −45% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £573m | £406.1m | ▲ +41% |
| Net assets | £2.9bn | £243.7m | ▲ +1095% |
| Dividends paid | −£70.4m | −£72.2m | ▲ +2% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 16,700 | — | |
| Staff cost | £765.4m | £813.1m | ▼ −6% |
The NYSE-listed industrial tech group saw a £267m jump in gross profit, though this did not carry through as operating profit dipped 6.1%. Below the line, a sharp swing in the tax position accompanied the net result. The prior year's £123.4m bottom line included a £127.6m tax credit, whereas this year's £81.2m tax charge saw net profit almost halve to £67.4m.
Eurostar International Limited [2]
The business operates the Eurostar high-speed passenger rail network connecting London to continental Europe via the Channel Tunnel, functioning as a wholly owned subsidiary of the SNCF-controlled Eurostar Group.
Tax credit recorded
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £1.4bn | £1.3bn | ▲ +3% |
| Operating profit | £101.2m | £112.3m | ▼ −10% |
| Finance costs | £51.3m | £41.4m | ▲ +24% |
| Profit before tax | £57.8m | £101.3m | ▼ −43% |
| Net profit | £79.8m | £74.2m | ▲ +8% |
The Channel Tunnel operator saw turnover tick upward, but higher finance costs and exceptional items accompanied a 43% drop in profit before tax to £57.8m. The bottom line was supported by a statutory adjustment. A £22m tax credit was recorded in the period, with net profit edging up slightly alongside the weaker underlying performance.
Willmott Dixon Holdings Limited [3]
The company acts as the privately owned parent entity for the Willmott Dixon group, a British contracting, residential development, and property support business operating through subsidiaries in construction, interior fit-out, and property investment.
Margins contracted
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £1.1bn | £1.2bn | ▼ −4% |
| Gross profit | £135.8m | £144.4m | ▼ −6% |
| Admin expenses | £109.2m | £101.2m | ▲ +8% |
| Operating profit | £26.7m | £43.3m | ▼ −38% |
| Profit before tax | £31.8m | £46.8m | ▼ −32% |
| Net profit | £23.2m | £35.3m | ▼ −34% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £127.3m | £121.4m | ▲ +5% |
| Net assets | £182.3m | £174.1m | ▲ +5% |
| Dividends paid | £15m | £20m | ▼ −25% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 1,919 | 1,921 | ▼ −0% |
| Staff cost | £183.2m | £173.8m | ▲ +5% |
| Director pay | £4.1m | £3.6m | ▲ +14% |
| Highest-paid director | £583k | £816k | ▼ −29% |
The parent company of the privately owned contracting group saw margins tighten as turnover dipped 3.7% and operating profit fell 38.3% to £26.7m. Alongside the margin contraction and a flat headcount, total staff costs crept up 5.5%. The period also saw an increase in board pay, with total directors' remuneration rising 13.7% to £4.1m.
Willmott Dixon Construction Limited [4]
Operating as the principal construction arm of the privately owned Willmott Dixon Holdings group, the company is a national building contractor delivering commercial, domestic, and public sector projects across the UK.
Pay outpaced profit
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £1.0bn | £1.0bn | ▲ +2% |
| Gross profit | £123.6m | £141.1m | ▼ −12% |
| Admin expenses | £97.5m | £88.1m | ▲ +11% |
| Operating profit | £26m | £53m | ▼ −51% |
| Finance costs | £754k | £754k | ▲ −0% |
| Profit before tax | £28.1m | £52.2m | ▼ −46% |
| Net profit | £20.7m | £39.6m | ▼ −48% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Cash | £47.5m | £10m | ▲ +375% |
| Net assets | £48.1m | £42.5m | ▲ +13% |
| Dividends paid | £15m | £30m | ▼ −50% |
| People & pay | |||
| Avg. headcount | 1,375 | 1,385 | ▼ −1% |
| Staff cost | £132m | £124.8m | ▲ +6% |
| Director pay | £2.3m | £1.8m | ▲ +29% |
| Highest-paid director | £526k | £441k | ▲ +19% |
The dynamic at the group's principal construction arm is even starker than at the parent level. Turnover held steady at £1.03bn, but operating profit halved to £26m as administrative expenses expanded. While operating profit fell, total directors' remuneration rose 28% to £2.3m—an inverse correlation that remains an interesting observation.
Lear Corporation (Uk) Limited [5]
Operating as a British manufacturing arm of the global automotive supplier Lear Corporation, the company produces seating and coachwork for motor vehicles.
Top-line retreat
| Line | FY25 | FY24 | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|
| Profit & loss | |||
| Turnover | £567.6m | £708.2m | ▼ −20% |
| Gross profit | £102.1m | £131.9m | ▼ −23% |
| Admin expenses | £81.8m | £98.8m | ▼ −17% |
| Operating profit | £20.4m | £33.2m | ▼ −38% |
| Finance costs | £289k | £422k | ▼ −32% |
| Profit before tax | £23m | £35.8m | ▼ −36% |
| Net profit | £19m | £26.4m | ▼ −28% |
| Cash & balance sheet | |||
| Dividends paid | £10m | £20m | ▼ −50% |
| People & pay | |||
| Staff cost | £81.5m | £75.6m | ▲ +8% |
A challenging year for the British manufacturing arm of the global automotive supplier. Turnover shrank by a fifth to £567.6m, with operating profit falling 38.4% to £20.4m. Staff costs rose 7.8% to £81.5m during the same period that revenue retreated, coinciding with a notable contraction in operating margins.
A reminder that when revenue shrinks, board pay does not always follow the same trajectory.
Sources
- Sensata Technologies Holding Plc
- Eurostar International Limited
- Willmott Dixon Holdings Limited
- Willmott Dixon Construction Limited
- Lear Corporation (Uk) Limited