The company saw net fee income fall 31% to £10.2m from £14.9m.

Exceptional costs totalled £0.7m, relating to redundancies and property rationalisation of £0.6m, against a previous £0.9m profit.

Loss after tax was £0.6m, compared with a previous £0.4m profit.

Cash at year-end totalled £2.3m, up from £1.6m.

Chairman Simon Howard said, 'In some ways 2009 was a year best forgotten; however we have come through its ravages in pretty good shape and entered 2010 with a strong balance sheet and debt-free.'

Talent Management division income fell 25% to £4.6m but cost cuts led to a profit unchanged at £0.75m.

Communications income fell 36% to £5.7m, with global campus marketing income down 53% as organisations limited their visibility in the graduate market.

No dividend was recommended.

The company said overall trading had been in line with expectations in the first two months of the current year.