Directorate Change

THIS ANNOUNCEMENT CONTAINS INSIDE INFORMATION

For immediate release 31 May 2018

FirstGroup plc
Directorate change

FirstGroup plc ("FirstGroup") announces that Tim O'Toole is stepping down from the Board and his position as Chief Executive today with immediate effect. The Board has asked Wolfhart Hauser to become Executive Chairman to which he has agreed until such time as a successor is appointed. Matthew Gregory will be appointed Interim Chief Operating Officer with immediate effect, and will also continue his responsibilities as Chief Financial Officer. The process to select a new Chief Executive is underway.

Commenting, FirstGroup Chairman Wolfhart Hauser said:

"On behalf of the Board I would like to thank Tim for his distinguished leadership of the company since 2010. During that time the Group has reinvested in its businesses, restored free cash generation and substantially strengthened its balance sheet. The Group is now a more stable and resilient enterprise, with a growing ability to capitalise on its leading positions in diverse transport markets."

Tim O'Toole said:

"The time is right for me to step aside. Today’s results clear the way for the new approach sought by our Chairman and the Board. I should like to thank the 100,000 employees who work so hard to deliver for our customers every day. It has been a privilege to work with them."

Contacts at FirstGroup:

Faisal Tabbah, Head of Investor Relations

Stuart Butchers, Group Head of Media

Tel: [phone]

Contacts at Brunswick PR:

Jonathan Glass / Andrew Porter / Alison Kay, Tel: [phone]

FirstGroup plc (LSE: FGP.L) is a leading transport operator in the UK and North America. With £6.4 billion in revenue and around 100,000 employees, we transported 2.1 billion passengers last year. Each of our five divisions is a leader in its field: In North America, First Student is the largest provider of student transportation with a fleet of 42,000 yellow school buses, First Transit is one of the largest providers of outsourced transit management and contracting services, while Greyhound is the only nationwide operator of scheduled intercity coaches. In the UK, First Bus is one of Britain's largest bus operators, transporting 1.6 million passengers a day, and First Rail is one of the country's largest and most experienced rail operators, carrying more than 260 million passengers last year.

Our vision is to provide solutions for an increasingly congested world... keeping people moving and communities prospering.

Visit our website at www.firstgroupplc.com and follow us @firstgroupplc on Twitter.

Legal Entity Identifier (LEI): 549300DEJZCPWA4HKM93.

Classification as per DTR 6 Annex 1R: 2.2. The person responsible for arranging the release of this announcement on behalf of FirstGroup is Michael Hampson, Group General Counsel and Company Secretary.