Marlowe PLC on Thursday announced it will demerge its occupational health division, which will join the AIM market.

The unit, a provider of ‘technology enabled corporate health and wellbeing solutions’, will take on the name Optima Health and the plan is for it to begin trading on AIM later this month.

Marlowe, a provider of software and services for safety and regulatory compliance, said the demerger will be completed via a dividend in specie.

Marlowe shares rose 7.0% to 460.00 pence each in London on Thursday morning.

Shareholders are to receive one Optima Health share for every existing Marlowe share owned.

‘The demerger will allow the respective boards of Marlowe and Optima Health to explore strategies tailored to their distinct end markets, providing greater flexibility with which to maximise shareholder value.,’ Marlowe Interim Non-Executive Chair Michael Ashcroft said.

Optima Health, which is set for an AIM debut on September 26, ‘has no intention to raise new capital’, the soon to be demerged entity said.

Panmure Liberum will be its nominated adviser and corporate broker in relation to the admission.

Optima Health CEO Jonathan Thomas said: ‘Optima Health is the UK leader in the management of workplace and employee health. Optima Health offers a comprehensive range of flexible and progressive occupational health services supported by statutory driven workplace health requirements, and we are proud to help people and the organisations they work for be the best that they can be, working across a range of sectors, both public and private, from manufacturing, construction, professional and transport and logistics services to the UK’s blue light organisations, Civil Service and NHS.’

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