Final Results

ABERFORTH SMALLER COMPANIES TRUST plc

PRELIMINARY RESULTS

For the Year to 31 December 2007


FEATURES

Net Asset Value Total Return                  -10.4%

Benchmark Index Total Return                   -8.3%

Increase in Dividends per Ordinary Share      +13.4%


The objective of Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust plc (ASCoT) is  to
achieve  a  net  asset value total return (with dividends  reinvested)
greater than  on the Hoare Govett Smaller Companies Index (Excluding
Investment  Companies) over  the  long  term.  ASCoT  is  managed  by
Aberforth Partners LLP.


CHAIRMAN'S STATEMENT TO SHAREHOLDERS

REVIEW OF 2007 PERFORMANCE

The year to 31 December 2007 was difficult for small company share prices. As
a result of this, Aberforth Smaller Companies Trust plc (ASCoT) produced a
negative total return of 10.4%, compared with a negative total return of 8.3%
for the Hoare Govett Smaller Companies Index (Excluding Investment Companies),
your Company's investment benchmark.  ASCoT has therefore under-performed its
benchmark for the year.  Larger companies, as represented by the FTSE All-
Share Index, registered a positive total return of 5.3%.  In each of the last
three Annual Reports, your Board and Managers have been cautious about
extrapolating previous years' excellent returns.  This caution has been proven
correct.


GEARING

ASCoT's policy has always been to remain as near to fully invested as
possible.  While our caution did not and will not alter that policy, this
caution has, at least, prevented us from any material gearing of ASCoT in the
recent past.  ASCoT's gearing position is reviewed regularly by your Board and
Managers and a borrowing facility remains available to ASCoT.


DIVIDENDS

Following a review of ASCoT's dividend payment policy, your Board concluded
that the payment of a second interim dividend, in lieu of a final dividend,
enables the dividend to be paid to Shareholders earlier than in previous
years.  Therefore, your Board is pleased to declare a second interim dividend
of 10.5p per share, which produces total dividends for the year of 15.2p per
share representing an increase of 13.4% on the total for the previous year.

This is a larger increase than your Board would have declared in the
absence of the positive outcome to the VAT legal challenge (described in
more detail later in my Statement) and therefore defers, for an excellent
reason, the rebalancing of the relative weight of the first and second
interim dividends alluded to in my Interim Statement.

The second interim dividend of 10.5p per share will be paid on 21 February
2008 to Shareholders on the register at the close of business on 1
February 2008.  The last date for submission of Forms of Election for
those Shareholders wishing to participate in ASCoT's Dividend Reinvestment
Plan (DRiP) is 31 January 2008.  Details of the DRiP are available from
Aberforth Partners LLP on request or from their website,
www.aberforth.co.uk.

The underlying growth in dividends from ASCoT's portfolio has been good.
However, the year's earnings have been enhanced by approximately 1.89p per
share as a result of the VAT situation mentioned above and more fully
explained below.  This comprised 1.44p per share in respect of past years'
expected repayment of VAT and 0.45p per share in respect of 2007 (a
combination of VAT paid in 2007 being recoverable and some management fees
not incurring VAT in the year).  Future years' earnings will be higher
than would otherwise have been the case as VAT is no longer charged on
ASCoT's management fee.


VALUE ADDED TAX (VAT)

In 2004, the Association of Investment Companies (AIC), together with
JPMorgan Claverhouse Investment Trust plc (Claverhouse), brought a case
against HM Revenue and Customs (HMRC) to challenge the imposition of VAT
on management fees paid by investment trust companies.  The case was
referred to the European Court of Justice and its judgment was delivered
in June 2007 supporting the Claverhouse and AIC position.  HMRC announced
its decision to withdraw its appeal in November 2007.  Your Board
congratulates the AIC and Claverhouse on this outcome.  We are pleased
that agreement has already been reached with your Managers that will
secure recovery of all the VAT paid by ASCoT since 2001 subject to the
appropriate refund of VAT by HMRC to Aberforth Partners LLP.  In this
regard, ASCoT's net assets include £4.7m (4.75p per share), being the
estimated repayment of all VAT paid on investment management fees since 1
January 2001 including VAT previously offset by your Managers.  Certain
VAT paid in relation to earlier periods may also be recoverable pending
the outcome of further legal appeals although the relevant amounts have
not been recognised at this stage.


CONTINUATION VOTE

ASCoT has no fixed duration.  However, in accordance with its Articles of
Association, an ordinary resolution will be proposed at the forthcoming
Annual General Meeting (and at every third subsequent Annual General
Meeting) that ASCoT continues.  If this resolution is not passed, your
Board will prepare and submit proposals to reconstruct ASCoT
appropriately.  If these proposals are not approved, Shareholders will
have the opportunity of passing an ordinary resolution requiring ASCoT to
be wound up.  Such Continuation Votes have been held in 1996, 1999, 2002
and 2005, and all have been passed by overwhelming majorities.

ASCoT's long term record is outstanding having produced since inception in
1990 a compound annual total return in net asset value of 16.0%, compared
with the 11.7% produced by the Hoare Govett Smaller Companies Index
(Excluding Investment Companies).  However, since the last Continuation
Vote three years ago, ASCoT's net asset value has generated a compound
annual total return of 12.2%, compared with 14.5% generated by ASCoT's
investment benchmark.  This underperformance has been made worse for
Shareholders because the discount at which ASCoT's shares have traded
relative to its net asset value has widened.

Your Board recommends that Shareholders vote in favour of ASCoT's
continuation and your Directors intend to do so in respect of their
beneficial holdings.  In doing so, your Board is mindful of the facts that
small companies have recently performed poorly compared with large
companies and that your Managers' "value" investment style has been out of
favour.  The consistent application of this "value" investment style by
your Managers, the seven partners of Aberforth Partners LLP (five of whom
are the founding partners), has served your Company very well over the
longer term but no single investment style performs well in all economic
and stockmarket conditions.  It is clear that the investment styles of
"growth" and "momentum" have performed better than "value" over these last
three years, and especially so recently.  Your Board therefore concludes
that ASCoT's underperformance is more to do with investment style rather
than any other factors.  Some Shareholders may recall that ASCoT
underperformed in 1997, 1998, and 1999 as investors increasingly shunned
"value" investments into the turn of the Millennium.  In each of the
following three years ASCoT produced excellent relative returns so history
shows that no style or set of conditions lasts indefinitely.  It matters
more to remain consistent so that when the environment changes, as it
surely will, the greatest possible investment performance may be obtained.
Your Board believes your Managers will provide that in due course.


SHARE BUY BACK AUTHORITY AND TREASURY SHARES

At the Annual General Meeting in February 2007, the authority to purchase
up to 14.99% of ASCoT's Ordinary Shares was renewed.  No Ordinary Shares
were purchased during the year.  Your Board will be seeking a renewal of
this authority at the Annual General Meeting to be held on 4 March 2008.
Your Board has established, and keeps under careful review, the
circumstances under which such authority may be utilised.  Should these
arise, ASCoT will seek to purchase Ordinary Shares and it is your Board's
current policy to cancel, rather than hold in treasury, any such shares.

As already noted, ASCoT's discount has widened over the last three years.
Your Board has always had as the principal objective of any buy back of
Ordinary Shares, "to seek to sustain as low a discount as seems possible".
Constant monitoring of ASCoT's discount relative to other UK Smaller
Companies specialist investment trusts has suggested that, even over the
periods mentioned, ASCoT's discount has typically been amongst the
narrowest of its peer group and that many of these peers who have bought
shares in have nevertheless experienced wide discounts and in most cases
wider than ASCoT's.  Merely buying in shares therefore has not resulted in
sustaining low discounts in what has clearly been an "out of favour"
investment trust sub sector.  Given this, your Board has been reluctant,
so far, to buy back Ordinary Shares under current market conditions.
Suffice to say, however, that your Board stands ready to use ASCoT's buy
back authority if and when it believes that a sustained and positive
effect on the discount would result.

SUMMARY AND OUTLOOK

I summarised last year:  "There will, sooner or later, be more testing
stockmarket conditions than those ASCoT has enjoyed these last four
years."  I also noted in each of my last two years' Statements that cheap
and abundant debt was causing asset prices to rise, fuelling M&A activity,
and that this could not go on forever.  We now endure tougher times but
(investment) history demonstrates that just as good times end so do tough
times.  However, it is impossible to gauge their length and depth.  Your
Board believes the vast majority of ASCoT's Shareholders are long term
investors, understanding of investment cycles and appreciative of your
Managers' consistency.  We strongly recommend Shareholders should confirm
this belief by supporting the Continuation Vote.


David R. Shaw
Chairman
23 January 2008



The Income Statement, Balance Sheet, Reconciliation of Movements  in
Shareholders'  Funds  and summary Cash Flow Statement  are  set  out
below:-

INCOME STATEMENT
For the Year ended 31 December 2007
(unaudited)
                                 12 months to             12 months to
                               31 December 2007         31 December 2006
                          Revenue  Capital    Total Revenue  Capital   Total
                            £ 000    £ 000    £ 000   £ 000    £ 000   £ 000

Realised gains on sales         -  111,634  111,634       -   85,852  85,852
Unrealised (losses)/gains       - (209,320)(209,320)      -   77,180  77,180

                          ------- -------- -------- ------- -------- -------
(Losses)/gains on               -  (97,686) (97,686)      -  163,032 163,032
investments
Dividend income            19,477      877   20,354  18,290    2,261  20,551
Interest income               258        -      258     797        -     797
Other income                   15        -       15      20        -      20
Investment management fee  (1,094)  (1,823)  (2,917) (2,496)  (4,159) (6,655)
Other expenses               (438)  (4,052)  (4,490)   (402)  (3,230) (3,632)
                          ------- -------- -------- ------- -------- -------
Return on ordinary         18,218 (102,684) (84,466) 16,209  157,904 174,113
activities before
finance costs and tax
Finance costs                 (60)     (99)    (159)      -        -       -
                          ------- -------- -------- -------  ------- -------
Return on ordinary         18,158 (102,783) (84,625) 16,209  157,904 174,113
activities before tax
Tax on ordinary activities      -        -        -       -        -       -
                          ------- -------- -------- ------- -------- -------
Return attributable to
  equity shareholders      18,158 (102,783) (84,625) 16,209  157,904 174,113
                           ======  =======  ======= =======  ======= =======

Returns per Ordinary Share 18.38p (104.03p) (85.65p) 16.40p  159.81p 176.21p


The Board declared on 23 January 2008 a second interim dividend of
10.50p per Ordinary Share (2006 - 9.15p) and the total payable will
be £10,375,000 (2006 - £9,041,000). The Board also declared on 18
July 2007 a first interim dividend of 4.70p per Ordinary Share
(2006 interim dividend of 4.25p) and the total paid was £4,644,000
(2006 - £4,199,000).


NOTES
1.  The total column of this statement is the profit and loss
account of the Company.  All revenue and capital items in the above
statement derive from continuing operations.  No operations were
acquired or discontinued in the period. A Statement of Total
Recognised Gains and Losses is not required as all gains and losses
of the Company have been reflected in the above statement.

2.  The calculations of revenue return per Ordinary Share are based
on net revenue of £18,158,000 (31 December 2006 - £16,209,000) and
on Ordinary Shares of 98,809,788 (31 December 2006 - 98,809,788).

The calculations of capital return per Ordinary Share are based on
net capital losses of £102,783,000 (31 December 2006 - net capital
gains of £157,904,000) and on Ordinary Shares of 98,809,788 (31
December 2006 - 98,809,788).

3.  The 2007 investment management fee expense incorporates the
expected repayment of all VAT paid on investment management fees
since 1 January 2001 as set out in the Chairman's Statement. This
expected repayment amounts to £4,689,000, of which £1,758,000 has
been credited to revenue and £2,931,000 has been credited to
capital.


SUMMARY RECONCILIATION OF MOVEMENTS IN SHAREHOLDERS' FUNDS
For the year ended 31 December 2007
(unaudited)

                                                2007          2006
                                               £ 000         £ 000

Opening shareholders' funds                  833,331       671,174
Total recognised gains and losses            (84,625)      174,113
before dividends
Dividends paid                               (13,685)      (11,956)
                                            --------      --------
Closing shareholders' funds                  735,021       833,331
                                            ========      ========

NOTES
1.  The movements in this statement represent the profit and
 loss of the Company and the equity dividends paid.

BALANCE SHEET
As at 31 December 2007
(unaudited)

                                         31 December   31 December
                                                2007          2006
                                               £ 000         £ 000
Fixed assets:
Investments at fair value through            710,966       801,470
profit or loss
                                            --------      --------
Current assets
Debtors                                        6,354         1,369
Cash at bank                                  18,018        30,554
                                            --------      --------
                                              24,372        31,923
Creditors (amounts falling due                  (317)          (62)
within one year)
                                            --------      --------
Net current assets                            24,055        31,861
                                            --------      --------
Total Net Assets                             735,021       833,331
                                            ========      ========

Capital and reserves: equity
interests
Called up share capital (Ordinary Shares)        988           988
Reserves:
  Special reserve                            197,305       197,305
  Capital reserve - realised                 473,749       367,212
  Capital reserve - unrealised                30,302       239,622
  Revenue reserve                             32,677        28,204
                                            --------      --------
Total Shareholders' Funds                    735,021       833,331
                                            ========      ========

Net Asset Value per Ordinary Share           743.87p       843.37p

NOTES
As at 31 December 2007, the Company had 98,809,788 Ordinary
Shares (2006 - 98,809,788). No Ordinary Shares were bought in
during either year.


SUMMARY CASH FLOW STATEMENT

For the Year ended 31 December 2007
(unaudited)
                                       12 months to        12 months to
                                     31 December 2007   31 December 2006
                                      £ 000     £ 000    £ 000     £ 000

Net cash inflow from operating                 12,296             14,197
activities

Returns on investment and                        (152)                 -
servicing of finance

Capital expenditure and financial
investment
Payments to acquire investments    (311,732)          (244,363)
Receipts from sales of              300,737            262,409
investments
                                   --------           --------
Net cash (outflow)/inflow from capital
expenditure and financial investment          (10,995)            18,046
                                             --------           --------
                                                1,149             32,243

Equity dividends paid                         (13,685)           (11,956)
                                             --------           --------
                                              (12,536)            20,287
Financing                                           -                  -
                                             --------           --------
(Decrease)/increase in cash                   (12,536)            20,287
                                             ========           ========

NOTES(unaudited)
1.   The financial statements have been prepared in accordance
with UK generally accepted accounting practice ("UK GAAP") and the
AIC's Statement of Recommended Practice "Financial Statements of
Investment Trust Companies". The same accounting policies used for
the year to 31 December 2006 have been applied for the year to 31
December 2007.

2.   The foregoing do not comprise statutory accounts (as defined
in section 240(5) of the Companies Act 1985) of the Company. The
statutory accounts for the year to 31 December 2006, which
contained an unqualified Report of the Auditors under section 235
of the Companies Act, have been lodged with the Registrar of
Companies and did not contain a statement required under section
237(2) or (3) of the Companies Act 1985.

3.  The Annual Report is expected to be posted to shareholders on
28 January 2008.  Members of the public may obtain copies from
Aberforth Partners LLP, 14 Melville Street, Edinburgh EH3 7NS or
from its website at www.aberforth.co.uk.


CONTACT:     David Warnock, Aberforth Partners LLP, 0131 220 0733

Aberforth Partners LLP, Secretaries - 23 January 2008

ANNOUNCEMENT ENDS