business review of paultons park limited

Southampton SOLENT University
Southampton Business School

Assignment Briefing Sheet

Assignment Details
Course title Bachelor degrees with business subject option
Level Level 4 (1)
Unit title Acc301; Financial Planning & Reporting
Unit Leader Malcolm Little, Senior Lecturer.
Assignment title My business review of a potential employer
Restrictions 1,250 words; Calibri-11pt; Standard spacing & margins
Individual or Group Individual assignment based on group research
Assessment weighting 40% of total Unit marks
Hand out date During week commencing 21st January 2013
Hand in date Week commencing29th April 2013 €“ Late Penalty!!
Result date During June 2013

Learning outcomes
This assignment assesses the learning outcomes identified in the Unit descriptor:
Cognitive skills
C1: Interpret financial reports as a result of business activities and events
Practical and professional skills
P1: Prepare financial reports according to generally accepted accounting practice
Transferable and key skills
T1: Analyse numerical data to provide relevant information to aid decision-making

Assignment requirement
Although the assignment is required as a self-authored submission you are encouraged to form student sets of THREE individuals for purposes of research, analysis and ideas formulation on which you can critically refer.

You are required to write a business review about ONE of the firms listed on the Addendum’ to this briefing sheet. Whilst you have a free choice within your student set to select ONE firmabout which you will prepare the report (providing that firm has not already been adopted by another student set), you may also use other firms from the briefing sheet list for comparison purposes or topical emphasis. The spokesperson for each set must request permission to adopt their selected firm by email to the Unit Leader and also nominate the set’s members.

You need to relate to the reader, accurate financial and management information on the firm and also about the industry sector in which the firm is involved. The basis of your independent reviewshould take into accountfinancial ratios and all relevantpublic information over the past few years to the present day.

Assessment criteria (weightings indicated for each criterion)

a) A general description of the market sector and main competitors. {10% marks}

b) A briefing on non-financial features of your selected firm. {25% marks}

c) A comparative business analysis using horizontal change and financial ratio comparisonsover at least two consecutive accounting periods. {50% marks}

d) A conclusion with your considered viewpoint of the firm. {15% marks}

A high score can be gained by a full and exhaustive evaluation presented in no more than 1,250 words (excluding appendixes). Please note because this is assignment is intended as a business review, marks will be influenced by a competent writing style, correct use of English, good grammar and punctuation.

Direction for your research and critique
You may find your assignment task is aided by reference to the recommended Unit textbooks and the relevant subject sections in the Mountbatten library.There are several immediate sources of appropriate information such as the company statements of the firm selected or its website. You may also benefit by reading a recent authoritative report on the Hospitality Industry’ by OXFORD ECONOMICS.

You can source dedicated information on your chosen firm through the University library databases such as FAME, ABI-INFORM, MINTEL or via internet search engines. If you are in doubt about sources you should refer without delay to the Unit leader or expert LIS business librarians on 1st-Floor of Mountbatten Library.

Study assistance handouts
Of particular use areStudy Assistance handouts 1, 2 and 5, Report writing’, Essay writing’ and Citing references’ which can also be found on the portal:
portal-live.solent.ac.uk/services/studyassistance/skills_guidance_sheets%20.aspx

Library Academic Research Guidance Leaflets
Mountbatten Library sources are extensive and can be readily accessed for:
Unit reference textbooks and other academic support literature.
Digitised references from e-resources and public access websites.
The library also produces research guidance leaflets, which can be accessed at:

http://www.solent.ac.uk/library/leaflets/menu.asp?prefix=US

There are various published textbooks on report formation and writing, especially:
Saunders, M., P. Lewis & A. Thornhill. (2007). Research Methods for Business
Students, 4/e. Harlow: Pearson Education.

Academic Misconduct
Section 2L of the University’s Academic Handbook 2007/08, includes the following definitions of practices that will automatically be deemed to constitute academic misconduct:
1. Plagiarism: This is where a student incorporates another person’s work by unacknowledged quotation, paraphrase, imitation or other device in any work submitted for assessment in a way which suggests it is the student’s original work.
? When quoting someone else’s work put words you quote in inverted commas
NB: plagiarism includes poor referencing’ or no referencing’!!!
2.Collusion: This is collaboration without official approval between two or more students (or between a student[s] and another person[s]), in the presentation of work which is submitted as the work of a single student; or where a student(s) allows or permits their work to be incorporated in, or represented as, the work of another student. This includes:
? letting someone see your work prior to submission
? storing your work where someone can get unauthorised access to it
? lending it to someone as a hard copy or on disk
? submitting very similar work for an individually assessed assignment
3.Falsification: This is where the content of any assessed work has been invented or falsely presented by the student as their own work.
4.Replication: This is where a student submits the same or similar piece of work on more than one occasion for assessment to gain academic credit.

NB: Plagiarism and Collusion (of particular concern in recent years)
If you quote someone else’s work you must put the words you quote in inverted commas.
If you fail to cite references for ALL of your sources of information including ideas and diagrams (not just what you quote), you may find yourself facing an academic misconduct panel for plagiarism.
If another person gets access to your work (even accidentally), you could find yourself facing an academic misconduct panel for collusion.

The University imposes serious penalties if you do not comply with good academic practices, whether it is intentional or otherwise.

ACC301-FP&R: ADDENDUM TO COURSEWORK ASSIGNMENT

EVENTS & LEISURE MANAGEMENT SECTOR SELECTION LIST

BUSINESS NAME Sales (pa) Staff
(?) Business activities
A3d2 LIMITED £107M 1,809 Management of bars and restaurants
ABSOLUTE TASTE LIMITED £13M 257 On-site hospitality for F-1 motorsport
A D S GROUP LIMITED £14M 125 Promotion events for UK defence industry
ALPHA FLIGHT UK LIMITED £148M 1,395 In-flight meals and bonded stores supplies
BANKS SADLER GROUP LIMITED £38M 127 Events organisation and promotion
B I WORLDWIDE LIMITED £19M 100 Events management & marketing services
CASTLE VIEW INT’L HOLDING LTD £77M 2,610 Catering services to sport and leisure sector
CLARION EVENTS LIMITED £37M 176 Organisation of exhibitions and shows
COALTRANS CONFERENCES LTD £11M 20 Conference organisation for coal industry
COMPASS CONTRACT SERVICES UK £1,685M 52,239 Event catering and related services
CRAIG GROUP LIMITED £112M 1,004 Catering to offshore & oilfield service sector
ECLECTIC BARS LIMITED £16M 305 Bars and nightclubs, viz., Ponana’, Fez’.
ELIOR UK PLC £196M 6,775 Contract catering and vending machines
EUROFINANCE CONFERENCES LTD £9M 23 Conferences for the financial sector
F C BUSINESS INTELLIGENCE LTD £18M 125 Business information and conferences
FITNESS PROFESSIONALS LTD £11M 95 Provision of fitness training and equipment
FLY BY NITE CONFERENCES LTD £10M 106 Exhibition special transport and storage
GATECRASHER HOLDINGS LTD £11M 97 Nightclubs operator
GATE GOURMET LONDON LIMITED £155M 1,469 Airport & in-flight catering services
GEORGE P JOHNSON (UK) LIMITED £24M 76 International conferences and trade fairs
HARRISON CATERING SERVICES £54M 2,437 Catering and related services
HAYLEY CONFERENCE CENTRE LTD £42M 842 Conference facilities and arrangements
HAYMARKET EXHIBITIONS LTD £13 50 Trade fairs and public exhibitions
HEMMING GROUP LIMITED £18M 127 Trade fair organiser & magazine publishing
INFORMA PLC £1,227M 8,241 Business publishing and events organisers
INITIAL CATERING SERVICES LTD £68M 4,034 Contract catering activities
I T E GROUP PLC £155M 934 Organisers of international trade fairs
MACK-BROOKS EXHIBITIONS LTD £26M 93 Exhibition planners and organisers
M C I UK LIMITED £11M 69 Conference and exhibition organisers
MEAN FIDDLER HOLDINGS LTD £7M 194 Production & promotion of live music (HMV)
MEDIUM (UK) LIMITED £18M 32 Conference presentation equipment
OCEAN MEDIA GROUP LIMITED £8M 61 Publishing and conference promotions
PAULTONS PARK LIMITED £19M 305 Leisure park entertainment operations
QUADRANT CATERING LIMITED £59M 1,429 Catering and vending to Gov’t departments
REED EXHIBITIONS LIMITED £74M 349 Event promotion and organisation
R P M LONDON (HOLDINGS) LTD £25M 286 Brand promotions for clients worldwide
SO SIMPLE LIMITED £22M 191 Services and contracting for expos and fairs
SOUTHWATER EVENT GROUP LTD £12M 414 Space services for exhibitions
SPORTSWORLD GROUP LIMITED £7M 43 Corporate hospitality arrangements (TUI)
TARSUS GROUP PLC £44M 248 Integrated conference and media services
TWICKENHAM EXPERIENCE LTD £28M 13 Catering and promotions for RFU events
UNIVERSAL WORLD EVENTS LTD £24M 122 Logistics and transportation for events
UNIVERSALPROCON LIMITED £22M 62 Event management for pharmaceuticals
Wdfg UK LIMITED £732M 3,057 Retail services at Alpha Airports
WORLD TRADE GROUP LTD £16M 218 Conference and event organisers