Herts Council company that supplies stationery and equipment to schools sees profits plummet

A HERTFORDSHIRE County Council company that supplies stationery and equipment to schools and other organisations has seen its profits fall.

Herts Fullstop offers a catalogue of 18,500 products that can be delivered nationwide.

The liveried delivery vans can often be spotted pulling in to Hertfordshire schools – and the company claims to be the ‘UK’s fastest growing education supplier’.

But according to its latest accounts, for the financial year 2021/22 – when schools were still experiencing some disruption because of the covid pandemic – the company recorded a small annual loss.

It recorded an annual turnover of £882,495 – which was higher than the £866,826 recorded in 2020/21.

But instead of the £25,212 profit recorded the year before, it recorded a loss of £1,645.

Earlier accounts – filed at Companies House – show that in 2017/18 the company had previously had a turnover in excess of £3million.

However despite that year’s turnover being more than three times higher, the company had recorded a profit of just £29,943.

A spokesperson for Hertfordshire County Council said that the £3m turnover in 2017/18 included a few one-off large orders.

And commenting on the latest available accounts he said that the level of business varied – depending on demand from the private sector.

“Herts Full Stop provides school supplies and equipment, enabling us to bulk buy materials and pass on the savings to individual schools,” he said.

“Most of this is done through the county council, but setting up Herts Full Stop as a limited company allows us to also sell to some private sector organisations.

“The level of business varies depending on private sector demand, and the turnover figures for 2017/18 include a few one-off large orders.

“We are, of course, operating in a challenging environment because schools and parents are under their own financial pressures and we do face competition from other providers.”

Meanwhile the county council’s executive member for resources and performance Cllr Bob Deering said Herts Full Stop meant schools in Hertfordshire could benefit from the lower costs associated with bulk buying.

And he said it was a company that provides ‘an unseen benefit’ to schools – aiming to give schools a better deal than, they could otherwise get.

However in a competitive market place he also acknowledged that schools are free to make their purchases elsewhere.

He said the impact of the Covid pandemic on schools – when the majority of pupils spent long period learning at home – would have impacted on the company’s most recent published accounts.

And he said the role of the company was wider than being seen as a source of profit for the council. However he said it would be reviewed annually.