Regulatory announcements

Nigel Newton becomes Bloomsbury’s Executive Chairman in five-year leadership succession plan securing his long-term future commitment

Today Bloomsbury announces a five-year leadership succession plan providing long-term continuity and stability for Bloomsbury’s shareholders, authors and colleagues.  

Nigel Newton, Bloomsbury’s Founder and Chief Executive, becomes Executive Chairman today. This change is the first step in a five-year plan which will see the appointment of a new Chief Executive in two years’ time.

John Bason moves from Chairman to Deputy Chairman and will continue to provide strong independent leadership to the Board in this role as well as becoming Senior Independent Director with enhanced responsibilities. The Chief Executive appointment process will be led by John Bason as Chair of the Nomination Committee and will consider internal and external candidates.

Following the appointment of a new Chief Executive, Nigel will remain as Executive Chairman for the first three years of their tenure to provide continuity and to support key strategic relationships to ensure a smooth and successful transition. At the conclusion of the five-year succession plan in 2031, Nigel will become Non-Executive Chairman.

Alongside John Bason’s role, a majority of the Board will comprise Independent Non-Executive Directors, to provide robust governance and effective oversight. This carefully planned evolution of leadership responsibilities reflects the Board’s commitment to disciplined succession planning.

Nigel founded Bloomsbury Publishing 40 years ago and has led the business from inception to today, having grown from IPO in 1994 to be a listed company in the FTSE 250. This succession plan ensures the Company will continue to benefit from Nigel’s unmatched experience, entrepreneurial vision and deep industry knowledge.

John Bason said, “The transition announced today represents the Board of Bloomsbury proactively addressing succession planning. Nigel's continued leadership over the medium term will ensure continuity of Bloomsbury as a leading independent publisher.”

 

For further information, please contact:

Bloomsbury Publishing Plc
Tamsin Garrity, Group Investor Relations Director	tamsin.garrity@bloomsbury.com
Hudson Sandler
Dan de Belder / Emily Brooker	bloomsbury@hudsonsandler.com

 

Disclaimer
The information in this announcement has not been audited or otherwise independently verified and no representation or warranty, express or implied, is made as to, and no reliance should be placed on, the fairness, accuracy, completeness or correctness of the information or opinions contained herein. None of the Company or any of its affiliates, advisors or representatives shall have any liability whatsoever (in negligence or otherwise) for any loss whatsoever arising from any use of this announcement, or its contents, or otherwise arising in connection with this announcement.

This announcement does not constitute or form part of any offer or invitation to sell, or any solicitation of any offer to purchase any shares in the Company, nor shall it or any part of it or the fact of its distribution form the basis of, or be relied on in connection with, any contract or commitment or investment decisions relating thereto, nor does it constitute a recommendation regarding the shares of the Company.

Certain statements, statistics and projections in this announcement are or may be forward looking. By their nature, forward‑looking statements involve a number of risks, uncertainties or assumptions that may or may not occur and actual results or events may differ materially from those expressed or implied by the forward-looking statements. Accordingly, no assurance can be given that any particular expectation will be met and reliance should not be placed on any forward-looking statement. Accordingly, forward-looking statements contained in this announcement regarding past trends or activities should not be taken as representation that such trends or activities will continue in the future. You should not place undue reliance on forward-looking statements, which are based on the knowledge and information available only at the date of this announcement’s preparation.

The Company does not undertake any obligation to update or keep current the information contained in this announcement, including any forward‑looking statements, or to correct any inaccuracies which may become apparent and any opinions expressed in it are subject to change without notice.

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