Conference and training provider sees surge in turnover and profit

Conference and training provider Salford Professional Development has seen revenues and profits surge.

Turnover in the 12 months to July 31 rose 31% to £4.87m, while pre-tax profits soared 44% to £978,000.

Chief executive Marc Davis says SPD remains on track to achieve its targets of £12.4m of revenues and profits of £3m by 2021.

SPD is a subsidiary of the University of Salford, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. The company runs training courses, conferences and briefings for individuals, organisations, public sector bodies and companies across the UK and overseas.

Its programmes are aligned to the university’s specialist areas, including business, health, media and digital.

Academics and experts from the Institute of Directors and other organisations provide the training, and all profits generated by SPD are ploughed back into the university.

Highlights of SPD’s year included strong growth for its executive education division.

It generated more than £1m in revenues, boosted by a surge in bookings for its five-day courses which lead to a Certificate in Executive Business Administration for senior and middle managers.

SPD also expanded the number of free events for public sector professionals, helping them to keep their skills and knowledge up-to-date despite budget cuts.

Income generated from overseas rose 39%, with bespoke training delivered to delegates from countries including China, Saudi Arabia, Nigeria, Australia, Spain, India and Kenya, on topics ranging from cyber security and digital technology to leadership and management.

Overall delegate numbers grew 31% to 16,200.

Another highlight of the year was the £500,000 refurbishment of SPD’s offices and training centre in Adelphi House at the university. The works included an upgrade for the reception area and other facilities to improve the customer experience.

Davis said: “We are delighted to report further strong growth for SPD in our fifth year in trading, which represented the first phase of our five-year strategic plan.

“The new financial year has begun well and we are planning to develop the business further during the coming months.”

SPD’s staff numbers grew from 49 to 58 during the year.