Churchill’s revenue and profit fall

Churchill Living’s revenue and profit fell in its financial year, with the business also highlighting that more than half of its planning consents for the year were only achieved after appeal.

During the year ending June 30 2024, the retirement housebuilder’s group revenue fell 14.3% against the equivalent period in 2023 to £149.4 million. Unit sales decreased from 431 in 2023 to 400; Churchill cited “lower consumer confidence”.

Pre-tax profit dropped to £3.9 million from the previous year’s £17.7 million. Operating profit reduced by 35.5% to £16.6 million, with operating profit margin 11.1% against 2023’s 14.8%.

In a chairman’s statement within the results, Spencer McCarthy, Churchill’s chairman and ceo, said that “despite a broken planning system which is in urgent need of reform,” the business had achieved successful planning consents for 499 units across 12 sites compared to 2023’s 771 units and 16 sites.

But more than half of these had to go to appeal “due to under resourced local planning authorities, a labyrinth of red tape and delays caused by negotiations on affordable housing, phosphates and nitrates bureaucracy”.

Churchill achieved seven planning appeal wins out of nine decisions – a 78% success rate which McCarthy noted …