Vp’s Chairman Jeremy Pilkington, 71, announced plans four months ago to sell his 50.26% stake, held through his company Ackers P Investment Company.

Explaining the decision to abandon the sales process, the board said that while it received a good level of interest, it concluded that none of the proposals submitted met its original objectives.

Jeremy Pilkington, chairman of Vp, said: “The process was focused on identifying the right owner for the business and while we were pleased with the level of interest shown, the for sale process did not lead to the identification of a suitable new owner.

“I am pleased that Vp’s controlling shareholder Ackers P Investment Company Limited, a company connected to me, has confirmed its ongoing commitment to Vp following the conclusion of this process.”

Neil Stothard, Chief Executive of Vp, said: “Throughout the FSP it has been a case of business as usual within our trading divisions with distractions successfully kept to an absolute minimum.

“At our recent AGM on 21 July 2022, Jeremy commented that “trading within the business has been positive into the new financial year.”

“We have strategic growth plans in place for all of our businesses and we intend to execute those plans and continue to deliver on our long-term track record of creating shareholder value.”