Pre Close Period Statement

Wilmington Group Plc 15 December 2004 For immediate release 15th December 2004 WILMINGTON GROUP PLC PRE-CLOSE PERIOD STATEMENT Wilmington Group plc, the information and training group, today announces its pre-close period statement in respect of the six months to 31st December 2004. Trading performance for the six months to 31st December 2004 is expected to be ahead of the corresponding period ended 31st December 2003 and at the top end of our expectations. As in previous years, we expect that the Group's performance will be weighted to the second half of the financial year. Considerable progress has been made during the first six months. The Legal and Regulatory division has performed well during the period and is expected to show further growth in turnover and profits. In particular the continuing legal education business has improved on the excellent performance achieved in the prior year. In the Healthcare division Agence de Presse Medicale is expected to deliver the anticipated level of profits during its first full year of ownership by Wilmington. Elsewhere in this division investment is being made in a number of new initiatives which should bode well for future growth. As previously announced we have substantially rationalised the Design and Construction division to increase efficiency and reduce costs, this has included vacating properties in Sevenoaks and Chelmsford. These actions and the restructuring of the management of the Group are expected to result in annual cost savings of approximately £800,000 and will incur one-off costs of approximately £900,000. Outlook There is a growing requirement for high quality information and training amongst the professional business communities that we serve. As a result the Board expects the Group to make further progress this financial year and views its prospects as encouraging for the full year. It is currently anticipated that Wilmington will announce its interim results for the six months to 31st December 2004 during the week commencing 21st February 2005. For further information please contact: Wilmington Group Charles Brady (Chief Executive) 0207 422 6804 Basil Brookes (Finance Director) 0207 422 6800 Weber Shandwick Square Mile Nick Oborne, Kirsty Raper or Yvonne Alexander 0207 067 0700 Note to Editors Wilmington Group plc is one of the UK's leading providers of information and training for professional business markets. The Group provides training, arranges industry events and publishes magazines, directories, databases, and special reports focused primarily on its five principal sectors of Legal & Regulatory, Healthcare, Media and Entertainment, Drinks and Catering and Design and Construction. Capitalised at approximately £120 million, Wilmington floated on the London Stock Exchange in 1995. This information is provided by RNS The company news service from the London Stock Exchange