Half Yearly Report

31 July 2015

Berendsen plc Interim Results

Announcement for the Six Months Ended 30 June 2015

* Before £7.9 million (£11.1 million) amortisation of customer contracts

** Growth at constant exchange rates and excluding acquisitions

Highlights

· Momentum on strategic objectives maintained; invested for growth

· Underlying Core Growth revenue up 2%

· Underlying adjusted operating profit in line with prior year after further plant consolidation in UK Workwear of £2.1 million (£1.2 million) and investment in sales resource of c.£1.5m

· Underlying adjusted operating margin before investments improved by 20bps

· Adjusted Group earnings per share of 25.0p (27.5p); impacted by strength of Sterling

· Free cash flow of £27.2m; expect to achieve c. 100% conversion for the full year

· Interim dividend up 5% to 10.0p reflecting confidence in good underlying momentum

Iain Ferguson, Chairman of Berendsen, commented:

"We are pleased to report good operational progress for the period in line with our expectations and continued momentum towards achieving our strategic objectives. Our reported results were adversely impacted by currency translation and, although this is likely to persist, the Board expects to achieve a further year of good underlying progress in 2015."

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Analyst Meeting

The company will present to analysts at 9.00am today. A live audiocast of the presentation and questions will be available on the company's website on www.berendsen.com. Questions will only be taken at the meeting.

Results for the six months ended 30 June 2015

We are pleased to report good operational progress in the period in line with our expectations, which reflect continued momentum towards achieving our strategic objectives. On an underlying basis revenue was up 2%, excluding currency translation and acquisitions. Reported revenue for the Group was 5% lower compared to the same period last year after the negative impact of currency translation. Our underlying adjusted operating profit was maintained notwithstanding the investments we made for future growth in additional sales resource, particularly in Facility, and further plant consolidation. Adjusted operating profit (before amortisation of customer contracts) for the Group was down 9% compared to last year due to the negative impact of currency translation. Adjusted earnings per share for the Group were 25.0p compared to 27.5p last year. The Board is recommending an interim dividend of 10.0p (2014: 9.5p), an increase of 5%, reflecting the good underlying progress we have made in the business.

We made a number of investments in the first half. In line with our strategy, we continued to transfer operational "best practice" across all our business lines, capturing significant productivity improvements from the investments we made in prior periods and, in particular, allowing further consolidation of our plant network in UK Workwear. This consolidation resulted in £2.1 million of costs relating to plant closures being charged against operating profit in the period. Furthermore, we made plant capacity upgrades and expanded in Czech Republic and Poland. Our free cash flow, at £27.2 million (£30.8 million), includes these investments and was lower than last year because of exchange. We expect to achieve our objective by converting around 100% of our profits to cash for the year as a whole.

During the first half, we continued the strategy work we commenced in 2014 which shows that there is still a great deal of opportunity for the Group to continue to grow and drive efficiencies in our existing markets and Business Lines. Continuous improvement is part of the Group's culture and there are areas where, through increased focus and some targeted investment, we can make further progress on the solid foundations we have built. We will hold a Capital Markets Day in the late autumn setting out an updated roadmap for the future development of the Group which will be aligned to the current strategy and our existing business expertise.

We made progress against all our strategic objectives in the period, building further on the initiatives we have put in place. This is an ongoing process and there is further opportunity to drive efficiencies and enhance performance.

James Drummond joined the Board of Berendsen on 1 July and will be appointed as CEO and assume full responsibilities from the start of August 2015. James has now completed his induction and the handover process has gone smoothly. As announced on 30 April 2015, Peter Ventress, CEO, will retire from the Board today. The Board would like to once again thank Peter for his excellent leadership during his time at Berendsen.

Group Overview

Revenue at £493.7 million in the period was down 5% compared to last year (£517.3 million) and adjusted operating profit (before amortisation of customer contracts) at £65.9 million was down 9% (£72.1 million). The negative impact of currency translation decreased revenue and adjusted operating profit by £39.0 million and £6.4 million, or 8% and 10%, respectively compared to last year. Excluding currency translation and the contribution from acquisitions, underlying revenue grew 2% and adjusted operating profit was similar to last year. If currencies remain at these exchange levels we would expect the impact in the second half of 2015 to be slightly higher compared to average exchange rates in 2014.

Our net finance expense was £9.5 million, a decrease from £10.4 million last year as a result of our lower average net debt. We expect the interest charge to be slightly higher in the second half as previously indicated. Adjusted profit before tax was £56.4 million, compared to £61.7 million in the prior period and adjusted earnings per share were 25.0 pence (27.5 pence). Our effective tax rate on adjusted profit before taxation was 24% compared to 23.5% for the full year 2014. We expect the tax rate for the full year 2015 to be maintained around 24%.

Amortisation of acquired customer contracts was £7.9 million (£11.1 million). Operating profit after amortisation was £58.0 million (£61.0 million) and profit before tax was £48.5 million (£50.6 million). Basic earnings per share were 21.5p compared with 23.1 p in the first half of 2014.

Our net capital expenditure was down slightly on last year at £88.1 million (£92.0 million) but above depreciation of £84.5 million (£89.8 million). Plant investments amounted to £17.1 million, compared with £14.5 million last year with further funding to upgrade our UK Workwear plants, additional capacity in our Flat Linen outside the UK to accommodate the significant contract gains, and further investments in technology in our Cleanroom plants. We have almost completed the expansion of our Facility plant in the Czech Republic and have invested in capacity upgrades in Poland, where we continue to see excellent growth. Investment in textiles was £71.8 million (£79.7 million) reflecting a good level of new contract activity and the benefits of the procurement programme and textile management initiatives in the Group. We expect net capital expenditure to be slightly ahead of depreciation for the year as a whole, in line with previous guidance.

Free cash flow was £27.2 million (£30.8 million), after a working capital outflow of £12.4 million (outflow of £14.5 million), which we expect to reverse in large part in the second half. We purchased shares for the Employee Benefit Trust of £14.2 million and we contributed £2.5 million to the UK pension fund in the period with the intention of contributing a similar amount in the second half of the year. At 30 June 2015 the net pension accounting surplus for the Group was £5.8 million (£1.0 million at the end of 2014). The impact of exchange rate movements decreased net borrowings by £3.5 million and after dividends paid of £35.0 million, net borrowings at 30 June 2015 were £398.8 million (31 December 2014: £374.4 million). The total facilities available to the Group are almost £800 million with our Revolving Credit Facility and our private placement notes extending from 2016 to 2025. We invested £2.1 million in a small bolt-on acquisition in Denmark.

The interim financial information for the six months ended 30th June 2015 has been reviewed by PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP.

Business Line Performance

Below we report the results for the six months ended 30th June 2015 in our Business Line segmentation.

* before amortisation of customer contracts

^ prior year restated to include Ireland Workwear as part of Workwear instead of Flat linen outside UK and the transfer of procurement activity from Workwear to Central

CORE GROWTH

Workwear

Revenue was down 6% in the period at actual exchange rates at £149.2 million (£158.1 million), but underlying constant currency growth was 2%. Adjusted operating profit was £26.4 million (£28.8 million), after the negative impact of exchange rates and the cost of site closures in the UK, which are discussed below. Excluding these and on an underlying basis, operating profit was up 5% and the underlying operating margin increased 60bps.

We continued to make good progress in delivering the benefits of "best practice" transfer. The use of systems and technology to improve the key elements of our standard business model in the areas of sales and service continue to be a key focus in 2015. Our international collection of workwear designs, which our salesforce present using tablet devices, has increased its proportion of sales by 12% compared to last year and an impressive 75% compared to 2013. We have also seen a significant increase in sales where the customer requirements are for more sophisticated logistic and garment solutions and where we have been able to demonstrate significant added value over the competition. The improvements in systems and technology are leading to ongoing efficiencies both in order processing and delivery lead times. Our contract retention rate is improving following the investments we made in our customer feedback reporting tools, introducing closed loop procedures to ensure that the feedback received is immediately addressed. Our focus on textile management continues, based on the best practices and workflow optimisation. Coordination of our key account management across the business line has improved with a strong pipeline of cross border opportunities and an encouraging number of agreements signed since the start of the year. We continued to see improvements in salesforce efficiency with an average increase of 5% in new contracts per field sales person and with a significant portion of new contract wins being new to the outsourcing model. As planned, in the first half of the year we made an investment in our salesforce, particularly in Germany, where our revenue growth was 8%, the highest level of growth for the business line. We have captured market share in Germany in what is a very fragmented market. We plan a modest increase in our salesforce in other markets during 2015.

In the UK, we continued to capture further productivity improvements, following the conversion of our third plant to CL2000 (our best practice operating model focused on customer specific work flow) at Fakenham in Norfolk. The productivity improvement resulting from the "best practice" initiatives has created capacity to allow further consolidation of our plant in Croydon. We announced the closure of the Croydon plant in June 2015 and have included the closure costs of £2.1 million in the underlying results. This follows the closure of the Ashton plant in the first half of 2014 (£0.8 million included in the prior year comparative) and the closure of Leeds in the second half of 2014 (£0.4 million), with volume from these plants now moved to our CL2000 plants in Rainhill and Wakefield. The majority of volumes from Croydon will be moved to our new Fakenham plant with distribution to the end customers in East London, Essex and Kent from a new distribution depot in Harlow. Planning for our next CL2000 plant conversion is underway for the first half of 2016 following the integration of the Croydon volumes. In Germany, ongoing productivity improvements delivered a double-digit increase in operating profit and a strong margin improvement on a like-for-like basis. From the start of 2015 our Workwear business in Ireland is being managed by the Workwear business line team and we see further opportunities to improve profitability through the transfer of "best practice" improvements as we have made in UK and Germany.

Economic activity in our "best practice" countries (Denmark, Sweden and Holland) continued to be slow in the first half of the year. However, we grew revenue in these businesses overall and we are pleased with the level of sales, particularly in Denmark and Sweden where customers who are new to our rental model accounted for over 75% of the new contracts. Therefore, we are increasing our investment in sales headcount in these countries to capture further new sales opportunities. These countries also benefited from a focus on operational improvements, which enabled us to increase productivity and deliver good margins.

Facility

Reported revenue was down 6% at £113.1 million (£120.1 million) and adjusted operating profit was down 9% at £27.7 million (£30.6 million). On an underlying constant currency basis excluding acquisitions, revenue grew 4% and adjusted operating profit was up 1%.

We are pleased with the development of this business and it is our fastest growing business line. We see strong opportunities for growth as a large proportion of the markets in which it operates are not yet outsourced and we are developing our service line offerings in both Mats and Washroom which will add value to many of our existing customers. During the first half of the year, we increased our sales headcount by over 10% to capture this market potential at a cost of approximately £1 million. In the short term, the inclusion of this new resource has reduced the average efficiency of the sales force and has impacted the margin but, in the medium term, this will increase the degree of sales penetration in markets which remain underdeveloped and improve margins due to the greater scale and density. Mats, which is over half of the revenue of the business line, has the greater scale and density necessary to deliver higher margins. In Mats we continue to improve the mix of business with a higher level of sales of premium categories in all markets and we continue to increase the number of mats at existing customer sites. In Washroom, sales were ahead of plan and ahead of last year with higher growth of our full service product packages. Overall we saw an expansion of our contract base with good growth in Sweden.

In our emerging Central European markets, we saw underlying double-digit revenue growth in aggregate, with Poland, our larger and more established business, delivering an increase of c.20%. The newer territories of the Baltics and Czech Republic also grew strongly. All businesses delivered improved operating margins, successfully converting the higher volumes to profit. We are close to completing the £2 million investment to extend our plant in our Czech business and have planned capacity upgrades in Poland to capture the further opportunities available to us.

Our Cleanroom business continued to deliver excellent organic growth with strong margins. There is a good pipeline of contracts and add-on services to existing customers. In Germany, we are winning a high level of new contracts and this, together with ongoing operational focus, is contributing to an improved margin and moving the country significantly closer to the average for this business activity. Our UK cleanroom acquisition is developing well and in line with our expectations.

UK Flat Linen

Revenue was slightly behind last year at £100.3 million (£101.5 million) and adjusted operating profit was £8.9 million (£10.8 million). The adjusted operating margin was 8.9% compared to 10.6% in the prior year.

The contract churn in UK hotel, which we have previously reported, impacted the business line results in the first half. There was good underlying volume development and several new contract wins particularly with budget hotel groups but the national contract we exited at the end of the first half of 2014 impacted on the comparison this year. The effect of this has now largely worked itself through as we enter the second half. The start-up of the new contract wins has resulted in higher textile depreciation. In January 2015, we launched our collection of differentiated products and services targeted at different points of the market. This has been well received in the market as it clarifies our pricing, product and differentiated service offering. In addition, we are trialling the use of ultra-high frequency chip technology (RFID) for improved tracking and identification of linen which will assist us and our customers in improving linen utilisation. These commercial initiatives and ongoing operational focus will help us to improve our profitability in the second half.

In Healthcare, we have been successful in generating add-on sales from existing contracts with our innovations in product and services to the hospitals. We have also had some success in winning new contracts that are already in the market but there has been limited new outsourcing activity. We believe that increased outsourcing will provide the NHS trusts with opportunities to make good savings. The consolidation of plants and subsequent volume transfer undertaken in 2014, as well ongoing efficiency improvements, will allow us to improve our profitability.

MANAGE FOR VALUE

Flat Linen Outside UK

Reported revenue in our Flat Linen businesses outside UK was 7% lower at £95.6 million (£102.5 million) and adjusted operating profit was maintained at £5.1 million (£5.1 million). On an underlying constant currency basis, revenue grew 5% and adjusted operating profit grew 14%. The adjusted operating margin increased to 5.3%, up 30bps.

The businesses within this segment demonstrated that they have opportunities within their markets, notwithstanding some pricing pressure as contracts come up for tender. Underlying revenues increased following the good new contract wins particularly in Scandinavian hotels where our business benefited from integrating the management of our Danish and Swedish operations and sharing of "best practice". Our customers also benefited from higher levels of service and, improved quality. Our contract successes in Scandinavian hotels shifted the market dynamics in our favour and following the downsizing of a competitor in Sweden, we took the opportunity to invest in additional plant capacity linked to further new hotel volumes with good incremental returns. The higher volumes and continuous focus on operational improvements helped to raise profitability and increase the margin overall to 5.3%, but with higher margins in Scandinavian Flat Linen.

Clinical Solutions and Decontamination

Revenue increased 1% to £35.5 million (£35.1 million), adjusted operating profit decreased to £2.1 million, compared to £2.3 million last year and adjusted operating margin decreased from 6.6% to 5.9%.

Sales of consumables and single use surgical drapes and gowns were up during the first half of the year but revenue from re-usable textiles were slightly reduced due to lower volumes with this impacting on profitability. We continued to improve the performance of our decontamination contracts and revenue was up 6% generating an overall profit in this business for the first time with new volume from the existing contracts and the start-up of a significant new contract. We are pleased with the progress being made in this business.

Outlook for the Group

We are pleased to report good operational progress for the period in line with our expectations and continued momentum towards achieving our strategic objectives. Our reported results were adversely impacted by currency translation and, although this is likely to persist, the Board expects to achieve a further year of good underlying progress in 2015.

Principal Risks and Uncertainties

Details of our principal risks and uncertainties were previously disclosed on pages 24 to 31 of the 2014 Annual Report and Accounts. In that disclosure we referred to our mitigation procedures which remain relevant to the risks outlined below.

Taking into account our strategic objectives outlined on pages 14 and 15 of the 2014 Annual Report and Accounts, some or all of the principal risks and uncertainties summarised below have the potential to impact our results or financial position during the remaining six months of the financial year:

Delivering sustainable organic growth

· Sales model fails to deliver the necessary new contract wins to drive targeted organic growth.

· Further economic downturn (low or negative GDP growth in Europe).

Maintaining a sound financial position/improving capital efficiency

· Movements in exchange rates adversely affect the translation of our group results into UK sterling.

· Return on Invested Capital (ROIC) is not sufficiently greater than the group's cost of capital.

Improving financial returns by leveraging operational efficiency

· Unforeseen loss of operational/IT capacity.

· Significant change in the political environment arising from government policies or expenditure levels.

Maintaining a motivated workforce driven by an experienced management team

· Inadequate talent management and inability to recruit and retain sufficiently qualified and experienced senior management.

Maintaining health and safety and other governance matters as a priority

· Breach of health and safety regulations.

· Non-compliance with laws and regulations

Reducing our impact on the environment

· Textile suppliers are found not to be adopting appropriate employment and human rights practices.

· Discovery of historic environmental issues at laundries.

CONSOLIDATED INTERIM INCOME STATEMENTFor the six months ended 30 June 2015

CONSOLIDATED INTERIM STATEMENT OF COMPREHENSIVE INCOMEFor the six months ended 30 June 2015

CONSOLIDATED INTERIM BALANCE SHEETAs at 30 June 2015

CONSOLIDATED INTERIM CASH FLOW STATEMENTFor the six months ended 30 June 2015

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN TOTAL EQUITYAs at 30 June 2015

CONSOLIDATED STATEMENT OF CHANGES IN TOTAL EQUITY continued

As at 30 June 2015

The group has an Employee Benefit Trust to administer share plans and to acquire company shares, using funds contributed by the group, to meet commitments to group employees. At 30 June 2015, the Trust held 1,715,142 (30 June 2014: 2,180,392; 31 December 2014: 1,870,186) shares.

NOTES TO THE INTERIM FINANCIAL INFORMATION

1 Basis of preparation

This condensed consolidated interim financial information does not comprise statutory accounts within the meaning of Section 434 of the Companies Act 2006. Statutory accounts for the year ended 31 December 2014 were approved by the Board of directors on 27 February 2014 and delivered to the Registrar of Companies. The auditors' report on those accounts was unqualified, did not contain an emphasis of matter paragraph and did not contain a statement under Section 498 of the Companies Act 2006.

This condensed consolidated interim financial information has been reviewed, not audited.

This condensed consolidated interim financial information for the six months ended 30 June 2015 has been prepared in accordance with the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority and with IAS 34, 'Interim financial reporting' as adopted by the European Union. The condensed consolidated interim financial information should be read in conjunction with the annual financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2014, which have been prepared in accordance with IFRSs as adopted by the European Union.

1.1 Going - concern basis

The group meets its day-to-day working capital requirements through its bank facilities. Although the current economic conditions continue to create uncertainty particularly over the level of demand for the group's products, the group's forecasts and projections, taking account of reasonably possible changes in trading performance, show that the group should be able to operate within the level of its current facilities. On 19 March 2015 the group refinanced its revolving credit facility. The new facility, which was maintained at €510 million, has a minimum term of 5 years. In addition on 19 February 2015 the group undertook a private placement in the US for DKK 655 million and €80 million repayable in 2025 at an average coupon of 2.1% in order to replace existing long-term borrowings, ahead of maturity, at interest rates which compare favourably to the current USPP borrowings. The total facilities available to the group are £795 million with the RCF and private placement notes extending from 2016 to 2025. Having reassessed the principal risks, the directors considered it appropriate to adopt the going concern basis of accounting in preparing the interim financial information.

2 Accounting policies

Except as described below, the accounting policies and key assumptions and sources of estimation uncertainty applied are consistent with those of the annual financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2014, as described in those annual financial statements.

Taxes on income in the interim periods are accrued using the tax rate that would be applicable to expected total annual profit or loss.

The following new standards, amendments to standards and interpretations are mandatory for the first time for the financial year beginning 1 January 2015, but have no material impact on the group:

· Annual improvements 2011-2013

A number of new standards and amendments to standards and interpretations are effective for annual periods beginning after 1 January 2015, and have not been applied in preparing this consolidated financial information. None of these are expected to have a significant effect on the consolidated financial statements of the group, except the following as set out below:

· IFRS 9, 'Financial instruments', addresses the classification, measurement and recognition of financial assets and financial liabilities. The standard is effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2018 .The group is assessing the impact of IFRS 9.

· IFRS 15 deals with revenue recognition and establishes principles for reporting useful information to users of financial statements about the nature, amount, timing and uncertainty of revenue and cash flows arising from an entity's contracts with customers. Revenue is recognised when a customer obtains control of a good or service and thus has the ability to direct the use and obtain the benefits from the good or service. The standard replaces IAS 18 'Revenue' and IAS 11 'Construction contracts' and related interpretations. The standard is effective for annual periods beginning on or after 1 January 2017. The group is assessing the impact of IFRS 15.

3 Segmental information

The business line results for the six months ended 30 June 2015 are as follows:

From 1 January 2015 the Workwear element of the group's Irish Manage for Value businesses is reported under the core Workwear Business Line. In addition, from 1 January 2015 the group's internally focused procurement activities have been reported within central operations. Central operations also include the cost of the group's marketing and communication functions. Consequently, in accordance with IFRS 8, the 2014 segmental analysis, as set out below, has been adjusted to reflect the position had these changes been in place throughout the six month period ended 30 June 2014 and for the year ended 31 December 2014.

Capital expenditure comprises additions to property, plant and equipment and intangible assets, including additions resulting from acquisitions through business combinations.

Sales between segments are carried out at arm's length. The company is domiciled in the UK.

3 Segmental information continued

Analysis of revenue by category:

Analysis of revenue by country:

The segment results for the six months ended 30 June 2014 were as follows:

3 Segmental information continued

The changes, by business line, to the disclosures previously made for the period ended 30 June 2014 may be summarised as follows:

The segment assets and liabilities at 30 June 2015 are as follows:

The segment assets and liabilities at 30 June 2014 were as follows:

The segment assets and liabilities at 31 December 2014 were as follows:

Business line operating assets consist primarily of goodwill, other intangible assets, property, plant and equipment, inventories and trade and other receivables. Business line operating liabilities consist primarily of trade and other payables and provisions.

Central assets and liabilities include operating assets and liabilities relating to corporate segments.

3 Segmental information continued

The changes, by business line, to the disclosures previously made for the period ended 30 June 2014 may be summarised as follows:

The changes, by business line, to the disclosures previously made for the year ended 31 December 2014 may be summarised as follows:

Analysis of non-current assets other than financial instruments, deferred tax assets and retirement benefit assets by country are:

4 Seasonality

The hotels and restaurants markets are subject to some seasonal fluctuation. Higher revenues and operating profits in the second and third quarters of the year are expected due to increased demand during the holiday season. Other than this, there is no significant seasonality or cyclicality affecting the interim result of the operations.

5 Taxation

The income tax expense is based on an effective annual tax rate estimated individually for each tax jurisdiction in which the group operates and applied to the pre-tax profit, excluding exceptional items, of the relevant entity. The effective tax rate on adjusted profit before tax is 24.0% (30 June 2014: 24.0%).

On 8 July 2015 reductions to the main UK rate of Corporation tax were announced, by 1% to 19% in April 2017 and by a further 1% to 18% in April 2020. The effect of this announcement is not reflected in these financial statements as the reductions have not yet been substantively enacted.

The overall effect of the reduction in the main rate of UK corporation tax from 20% to 18%, if applied to the deferred tax balances at 30 June 2015 would be to reduce the overall UK deferred tax liability by approximately £1.9 million.

6 Dividends

A final dividend relating to the year ended 31 December 2014 amounting to £35.0 million was paid in May 2015 (2014: £32.7 million), representing 20.5 pence per share (2014: 19.2 pence).

6 Dividends continued

In addition, the directors recommend an interim dividend in respect of the financial year ending 31 December 2015 of 10p per ordinary share. It is payable on 9 October 2015 to shareholders who are on the register at 11 September 2015. This interim dividend amounting to £17.1 million is not reflected in these financial statements as it does not represent a liability at 30 June 2015. It will be recognised in shareholders' equity in the year to 31 December 2015.

7 Earnings per share

Basic earnings per ordinary share are based on the group profit for the period and a weighted average of 170,845,178 (2014: 170,087,667) ordinary shares in issue during the period.

Diluted earnings per share are based on the group profit for the period and a weighted average of ordinary shares in issue during the period calculated as follows:

An adjusted earnings per ordinary share figure has been presented to eliminate the effects of exceptional items and amortisation of customer contracts and intellectual property rights and non-recurring tax items.

This presentation shows the trend in earnings per ordinary share that is attributable to the underlying trading activities of the total group.

The reconciliation between the basic and adjusted figures for the total group is as follows:

8 Property, plant and equipment

During the six months ended 30 June 2015, the group acquired assets with a cost of £90.1 million including new leases (30 June 2014: £95.9 million), not including property, plant and equipment acquired through business combinations.

Assets with a net book value of £1.4 million were disposed of by the group during the six months ended 30 June 2015 (30 June 2014: £2.6 million) resulting in a net profit on disposal of £1.4 million (30 June 2014: profit £0.9 million).

The group's capital commitments at 30 June 2015 were £18.9 million (30 June 2014: £21.9 million).

9 Provisions

Restructuring provisions comprise largely of employee termination payments. Provisions are not recognised for future operating losses.

A provision for £9.9 million was recognised for the two decontamination contracts which were considered to be onerous as at 31

December 2010. The provision was utilised principally in the first two years, and the contract provision was substantially released in December 2013 in line with the expectation that the two contracts would move to a breakeven position by the end of 2014. The utilisation of the remaining element of the provision balance is shown as part of administrative expenses within the income statement.

Other

Other represents a provision for the historic environmental clean-up costs at one of its plants in Holland (see also note 16) which the group believes are covered by an indemnity from a third party. The company is currently defending a legal claim to the warranties received for any environmental damage that might have existed when it purchased this site. The company expects to have this warranty confirmed in full and consequently has accounted for the receivable, at fair value, within other debtors.

10 Cash flows from operating activities

Reconciliation of operating profit to net cash inflow from operating activities:

In the cash flow statement, proceeds from sale of property (including assets held for sale), plant and equipment comprise:

11 Reconciliation of net cash flow to movement in net debt

12 Acquisitions

During the period the group acquired a small healthcare business in Denmark. During the period the group paid £0.3 million in respect of previous acquisitions made.

During the period the group paid deferred consideration on previous acquisitions. A reconciliation of total net cash paid for acquisitions is set out below:

13 Pension schemes

The amounts recognised in the balance sheet are determined as follows:

Analysis of the movement in the net balance sheet asset:

14 Financial risk management and financial instruments

14.1 Financial risk factors

The group's activities expose it to a variety of financial risks: market risk (including currency risk, fair value interest rate risk, cash flow interest rate risk and price risk), credit risk and liquidity risk.

The condensed interim financial statements do not include all financial risk management information and disclosures required in the annual financial statements they should be read in conjunction with the group's annual financial statements as at 31 December 2014. There have been no changes in the risk management department or in any risk management policies since the year end.

14.2 Liquidity Risk

Compared to year end, there was no material change in the contractual undiscounted cash out flows for financial liabilities.

14.3 Fair Value estimation

The table below analyses financial instruments carried at fair value, by valuation method. The different levels have been defined as follows:

· Quoted prices (unadjusted) in active markets for identical assets or liabilities (Level 1).

· Inputs other than quoted prices included within level 1 that are observable for the asset or liability, either directly (that is, as prices) or indirectly (that is, derived from prices) (Level 2).

· Inputs for the asset or liability that are not based on observable market data (that is, unobservable inputs) (Level 3).

14 Financial risk management and financial instruments continued

The following table presents the group's financial assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value at 30 June 2015:

The following table presents the group's financial assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value at 30 June 2014:

The following table presents the group's financial assets and liabilities that are measured at fair value at 31 December 2014:

14.4 Fair value measurement

In accordance with IFRS 13, disclosure is required for financial instruments that are measured in the group balance sheet at fair value. The fair value of trade and other receivables, cash and cash equivalents, borrowings and trade and other payables approximates to their carrying amounts.

Valuation techniques and assumptions applied in determining fair values of each class of asset or liability are consistent with those used as at 31 December 2014 and reflect the current economic environment.

The fair value measurements of the derivatives are classified as Level 2 in the fair value hierarchy as defined by IFRS13.

14 Fair risk management and financial instruments continued

The fair value by designated hedge type are as follows:

15 Related parties

The nature of related parties as disclosed in the consolidated financial statements for the group as at and for the year ended 31 December 2014 has not changed. Further, there have been no significant related party transactions in the six month period ended 30 June 2015.

16 Contingent liabilities

The group operates from a number of laundries across Europe. Some of the sites have operated as laundry sites for many years, and historic environmental liabilities may exist, although the group has indemnities from third parties in respect of a number of sites. The extent of these liabilities and the cover provided by the indemnities are reviewed where appropriate with the relevant third party. The company is currently defending a legal claim to the warranties received for any environmental damage that might have existed when it purchased laundry sites in Sweden. The company expects to have its warranties, which were contractually received in a clear and unequivocal manner, to be confirmed in full. The company does not expect to incur any significant loss in respect of these or any other sites.

17 Website policy

The directors are responsible for the maintenance and integrity of the company's website. Information published on the internet is accessible in many countries with different legal requirements. Legislation in the United Kingdom governing the preparation and dissemination of financial statements may differ from legislation in other jurisdictions.

Statement of directors' responsibilities

The directors confirm that this condensed set of consolidated interim financial information has been prepared in accordance with IAS 34 as adopted by the European Union and that the interim financial report includes a fair review of the information required by DTR 4.2.7 and 4.2.8 namely:

· an indication of important events that have occurred during the first six months and their impact on the condensed set of interim financial information, and a description of the principal risks and uncertainties for the remaining six months of the financial year; and

· material related-party transactions in the first six months and any material changes in the related party transactions described in the last annual report.

The directors of Berendsen plc are listed in the Berendsen plc Annual Report for the year ended 31 December 2014

On behalf of the Board

Peter Ventress

31 July 2015

Chief Executive Officer

Kevin Quinn

31 July 2015

Chief Financial Officer

Independent review report to Berendsen Plc

Report on the condensed consolidated interim financial information

Our conclusion

We have reviewed the condensed consolidated interim financial information, defined below, in the interim financial report of Berendsen Plc for the six months ended 30 June 2015. Based on our review, nothing has come to our attention that causes us to believe that the condensed consolidated interim financial information are not prepared, in all material respects, in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34 as adopted by the European Union and the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority.

This conclusion is to be read in the context of what we say in the remainder of this report.

What we have reviewed

The condensed consolidated interim financial information, which are prepared by Berendsen plc, comprise:

· the consolidated interim Balance Sheet as at 30 June 2015;

· the consolidated interim income statement and consolidated interim statement of comprehensive income for the period then ended;

· the consolidated interim cash flow statement for the period then ended;

· the consolidated statement of changes in total equity for the period then ended; and

· the explanatory notes to the interim financial information.

As disclosed in note 1, the financial reporting framework that has been applied in the preparation of the full annual financial statements of the group is applicable law and International Financial Reporting Standards (IFRSs) as adopted by the European Union.

The condensed consolidated interim financial information included in the interim financial report has been prepared in accordance with International Accounting Standard 34, 'Interim Financial Reporting', as adopted by the European Union and the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority.

What a review of condensed consolidated financial information involves

We conducted our review in accordance with International Standard on Review Engagements (UK and Ireland) 2410, 'Review of Interim Financial Information Performed by the Independent Auditor of the Entity' issued by the Auditing Practices Board for use in the United Kingdom. A review of interim financial information consists of making enquiries, primarily of persons responsible for financial and accounting matters, and applying analytical and other review procedures.

A review is substantially less in scope than an audit conducted in accordance with International Standards on Auditing (UK and Ireland) and, consequently, does not enable us to obtain assurance that we would become aware of all significant matters that might be identified in an audit. Accordingly, we do not express an audit opinion.

We have read the other information contained in the interim financial report and considered whether it contains any apparent misstatements or material inconsistencies with the information in the condensed consolidated interim financial information.

Responsibilities for the condensed consolidated interim financial information and the review

Our responsibilities and those of the directors

The interim financial report, including the condensed consolidated interim financial information, is the responsibility of, and has been approved by the directors. The directors are responsible for preparing the interim financial report in accordance with the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the United Kingdom's Financial Conduct Authority.

Our responsibility is to express to the company a conclusion on the condensed consolidated interim financial information in the interim financial report based on our review. This report, including the conclusion, has been prepared for and only for the company for the purpose of complying with the Disclosure and Transparency Rules of the Financial Conduct Authority and for no other purpose. We do not, in giving this conclusion, accept or assume responsibility for any other purpose or to any other person to whom this report is shown or into whose hands it may come save where expressly agreed by our prior consent in writing.

PricewaterhouseCoopers LLP

Chartered Accountants

31 July 2015

London