National Express: who owns it, who runs it and what the accounts show
National Express Limited's person with significant control on the Companies House register is National Express Holdings Limited. In the year to December 2024 National Express Limited reported turnover of £300m.
- In the year to December 2024, National Express had turnover of £300m, up 0.4% on the year before.
- It made a pre-tax loss of £8m.
- National Express Limited sells the tickets and runs the network, but the coaches are run for it by other operators, including its own coach subsidiaries: their cost, £150.3m in 2024, is in its costs rather than its staff numbers, so its 973 average employees are its managers, office and operational staff, not all the drivers on the network (National Express Limited accounts to 31 December 2024, pp. 4, 36 and 37).
- It employed an average of 973 people, with staff costs of £39m.
- National Express Limited is controlled by National Express Holdings Limited, according to the Companies House register.
- These figures are from National Express Limited's accounts for the year to December 2024, filed at Companies House on 2 June 2025.
- Registered name
- NATIONAL EXPRESS LIMITED
- Company number
- 00232767
- Status
- Active
- Incorporated
- 18 August 1928
- Registered office area
- Birmingham
- Industry code on the register
- 49319: Land transport and transport via pipelines
- Accounts
- Single company accounts, this company only
- Accounts type
- Full accounts
- Latest accounts
- Year to December 2024, filed 2 June 2025
What does National Express do?
National Express runs the UK's largest scheduled coach network, linking towns, cities and airports across Britain. It makes money from coach tickets sold online and at stations, with the coaches run for it by other operators, including its own coach subsidiaries. It is based in Birmingham and is part of Mobico Group. These figures are for NATIONAL EXPRESS LIMITED (company 00232767), the UK coach business.
In brief: scheduled coaches · UK-wide network · Birmingham · part of Mobico Group
Source: Spark Intel editorial, checked 11 November 2026. Official website: nationalexpress.com.
Who owns National Express?
The Companies House register records National Express Holdings Limited as the person with significant control of National Express Limited, company number 00232767. National Express Holdings Limited is itself company number 02156473.
That places National Express Limited inside a larger group. The accounts on this page are the company's own, not the wider group's.
The full ownership record is on the Companies House register. Control is given in the bands the register uses, not as exact shareholdings.
Who runs National Express?
The Companies House register lists 3 current officers for National Express Limited.
All 3 current officers
| Officer | Appointed |
|---|---|
| Mark Andrew Rawling | 6 October 2025 |
| Gillian Saunderson | 1 February 2026 |
| Rafael Fernandez De La Peña | 18 June 2026 |
Every current officer, with appointment dates, is on the Companies House register.
What did National Express file?
National Express Limited reported turnover of £300m in the year to December 2024. That was up 0.4% on £299m the year before.
It reported 973 employees. The year before it reported 985.
It filed a pre-tax loss of £8m for the year, against a pre-tax loss of £122m the year before.
Staff costs came to £39m. That is an average of £40,000 a head. It ended the year with £7m at the bank and net liabilities of £202m.
| Measure | Dec 2024 | Dec 2023 |
|---|---|---|
| Turnover | £300m | £299m |
| Pre-tax profit | -£8m (filed) | -£122m (filed) |
| Employees | 973 | 985 |
| Staff costs | £39m | £37m |
| Average staff cost per head | £40,000 | £38,000 |
| Bank and cash | £7m | £69k |
| Net assets | -£202m | -£154m |
| Interest paid | £12m | |
| Directors' pay | £0.9m |
What these figures cover: National Express Limited sells the tickets and runs the network, but the coaches are run for it by other operators, including its own coach subsidiaries: their cost, £150.3m in 2024, is in its costs rather than its staff numbers, so its 973 average employees are its managers, office and operational staff, not all the drivers on the network (National Express Limited accounts to 31 December 2024, pp. 4, 36 and 37).
Read the accounts to December 2024 (PDF, Companies House) · every accounts filing
What do these figures mean? Turnover vs profit · Profit per £100 · Cash vs profit · Net assets
Are there any charges against National Express?
National Express Limited has registered 13 charges at Companies House, of which 3 are still outstanding. A charge is security a lender takes over a company's assets; one is satisfied when the lending behind it is repaid or released.
All 3 outstanding charges
| Charge holder | Created |
|---|---|
| Victoria Coach Station Limited | 30 March 2011 |
| Victoria Coach Station Limited | 30 March 2011 |
| Covent Garden Market Authority | 30 January 2010 |
Each charge, with its holder and dates, is on the Companies House register.
National Express files as National Express Limited, whose person with significant control is National Express Holdings Limited, with turnover of £300m in its latest filed year.
Questions about National Express
What does National Express do?
National Express runs the UK's largest scheduled coach network, linking towns, cities and airports across Britain. It makes money from coach tickets sold online and at stations, with the coaches run for it by other operators, including its own coach subsidiaries. It is based in Birmingham and is part of Mobico Group. These figures are for NATIONAL EXPRESS LIMITED (company 00232767), the UK coach business.
Who owns National Express?
The Companies House register records National Express Holdings Limited as the person with significant control of National Express Limited.
How much does National Express make?
National Express Limited reported turnover of £300m in the year to December 2024. It filed a pre-tax loss of £8m.
How many people work at National Express?
National Express Limited reported 973 employees in the year to December 2024.
Who runs National Express?
The Companies House register lists 3 current officers for National Express Limited. The full list, with appointment dates, is on the Companies House register.
- Figures come from National Express Limited's filings at Companies House, company number 00232767, for the period shown at the top of the page.
- These are single company accounts: they cover this company alone, not any wider group.
- Pre-tax profit is the figure the company filed, for both years.
- A figure the filing does not disclose is shown as n/d. A zero in the filing is treated as not disclosed, never as nil.
- Rounding: below £0.1m in thousands, from £0.1m to £2m to one decimal place, from £2m to the nearest million.
- Ownership is shown in the control bands the register of people with significant control uses, not as exact shareholdings.
- Officers' names and appointment dates come from the Companies House register. Job titles come from the company's own website. The description of what the company does comes from its website, or is marked Spark Intel editorial where it is written from stable, checked facts, with the date either way.
Spark Intel, “National Express: who owns it, who runs it and what the accounts show”, updated 11 November 2026. https://www.spark-intel.co.uk/companies/national-express/. Figures from Companies House filings for NATIONAL EXPRESS LIMITED (00232767).
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