Company Announcements

Spire Healthcare Group plc

("Spire Healthcare", "the Company" or "the Group")

AGM STATEMENT

14 May 2020

Ahead of its Annual General Meeting later today, Spire Healthcare Group plc (LSE: SPI), the major UK independent hospital group, provides the following update.

As previously announced, our landmark arrangements with the NHS in England, Wales and Scotland have made our facilities available to provide extra capacity and a range of urgent and critical medical treatments in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. We are pleased with the way Spire Healthcare and its dedicated teams have responded to the COVID-19 pandemic as we continue to make a positive difference to our patients' lives through outstanding personalised care.  

Under the NHS arrangements the Group is entitled to cash cost recovery for its services. The NHS England contract will continue until at least 28 June 2020, with a one month notice period to end the contract. In addition, our lenders have agreed to waive the next two covenant tests (on 30 June and 31 December 2020), which provides further flexibility to Spire Healthcare through, and in the period after, its partnership with the NHS.

The Board believes that the NHS arrangements and the agreements with our lenders provide confidence that Spire Healthcare has sufficient liquidity and financial stability, allowing the Company to focus on preparing for the return to regular operations when the arrangements with the NHS end.

The period of elective suspension caused by the COVID-19 pandemic has created the potential for an increase in future demand and further lengthening of waiting lists. However, given the continued significant uncertainty caused by the pandemic, the Board remains unable to provide market guidance for FY20 at this time.

Our relentless focus on clinical quality and patient safety has yielded further improvements, with Spire Hartswood recently upgraded by the Care Quality Commission to Good, taking the proportion of Spire facilities rated Good, Outstanding or the equivalent to 88% (from 85% as reported on 5 March 2020).

In light of our new relationship with the NHS, and in recognition of the many sacrifices that front-line clinical colleagues are making, Justin Ash, Jitesh Sodha and Garry Watts will take a 20% salary cut for three months and will donate these funds to NHS Charities Together.

Garry Watts, Chairman of Spire Healthcare, said:

"COVID-19 has caused a previously unimaginable impact on the world around us; affecting our patients, our colleagues and our business. I applaud the efforts of everyone at Spire Healthcare during these challenging times and their unwavering commitment to delivering outstanding care for patients."

Spire's sixth annual general meeting (AGM) will be held at 9.00am (BST) today at 3 Dorset Rise, London EC4Y 8EN. As previously advised, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the Government's advice on non-essential travel and mandatory social distancing, shareholder attendance at the AGM is not possible. The result of the poll voting on each of the resolutions to be put to the AGM will be reported via a Regulatory Information Service later today.

We expect to announce our results for the six months ending 30 June on 17 September 2020.

-Ends-

For further information please contact:

Spire Healthcare:

Cora McCallum, Investor Relations Director

+44 (0)7967 109 731

Instinctif:

Damian Reece

Guy Scarborough

+44 (0)7917 178 920

Registered office and head office:

Spire Healthcare Group plc

3 Dorset Rise

London

EC4Y 8EN

Registered number: 9084066