Midlands housing association’s surplus nearly halves after pension costs
Platform has reported a 46 per cent fall in its annual surplus as it booked £18m in costs after exiting pension schemes.
Elizabeth Froude: “Our highest priorities for this year were about investing to support the quality of our homes, their energy standards and the services we deliver to our customers”
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The 49,000-home landlord recorded a post-tax surplus of £26.4m in the year to the end of March 2024, compared to £48.6m the year before.
Platform said it left four local government pension schemes and transferred staff over to its in-house defined contribution pension scheme. The closures resulted in £18m of operating costs, the group said in its audited annual figures.
The move is part of a “long-term pensions de-risking strategy”, the landlord said.
Platform’s bottom line was also affected by its operating costs rising by 14 per cent to £217m as it pointed to the impact of inflation.
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Turnover was up by 12 per cent to £337.1m. This was helped by revenue from social housing lettings increasing by 11 per cent to £274.2m, Platform reported.
The group’s margin on social housing lettings remained stable at 32 per cent, according to its accounts.
However the landlord’s spending on existing homes jumped £39.4m, up from £24.4m the year before.
The increase mirrors many other landlords as the sector concentrates on improving existing stock amid a heightened focus on housing standards and the move towards net zero.
Elizabeth Froude, chief executive of Platform, said: “Our highest priorities for this year were about investing to support the quality of our homes, their energy standards and the services we deliver to our customers.
“This has remained our focus throughout the year and the areas of increased expenditure reflect that.”
Platform – which operates across Worcestershire, Gloucestershire and the West Midlands – reported that its spending on new homes rose by a quarter to £313.2m.
The group’s completions edged up to 1,202. Of these handovers, 544 were for shared ownership, 408 were for affordable rent, 225 were for social rent, and 25 were for rent-to-buy.
As the group disclosed in May, in unaudited figures, its starts totalled 1,534 – which it said was its highest annual amount.
In the latest year end, Platform’s arrears edged up to 2.8 per cent, compared to 2.6 per cent at the same point last year.
The group’s EBITDA MRI cover figure fell to 129 per cent, down from 187 per cent the year before.
Gearing was 45.7 per cent, against 43.4 per cent the prior year.
Platform’s net debt as of March 2024 was £1.46bn, up from £1.28bn at the same point last financial year.
In April, the group saw its outlook with Fitch raised from ‘negative’ to ‘stable’ in line with a similar move in the UK sovereign outlook.
Around the same time, Platform raised £250m through a sustainable bond.
In March the landlord retained its G1/V1 rating with the Regulator of Social Housing.
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