FRED WOOD & SON LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
00605232 · ltd · incorporated 1958-05-28
Investment thesis
Zombie company — trading but stalled; unlikely mover.
Why interesting: Quiet, steady; could be a succession or carve-out candidate with the right conversation.
Why risky: No growth signal; thin margin for error on price.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
£861.3k
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 01500
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 02400SIC 02400
  • 68209Other letting and operating of own or leased real estate
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 85-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 67/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 85). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Consolidate lender relationships. 3 distinct lenders creates friction — refinance into single-lender structure for cleaner diligence. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

3 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 60.9y

15/100
under pressure

Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.

  • · Oldest live charge is 60.9 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

Data confidence

Overall: medium (77/100)

Adequate coverage. AI outputs are reliable for the sections scored high; verify the rest in diligence.

Company profile
address, 3 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
3 charges (3/3 with lender, 3/3 with type)
90
Directors & officers
7 officers (2 active, 7 linked, 5 with DOB)
84
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
97 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
79/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
85
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £861,320

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£861k
↑ 2.8% YoY
Current Assets
£349k
↑ 7.5% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£172k£345k£517k£689k£861kMar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Total assets£995.5k£1.03M
Current assets£349.4k£325.0k
Debtors£185.4k£153.8k
Net assets£861.3k£837.9k

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

2 signals detected in this company's narrative notes — going-concern language, audit opinion, contingent liabilities, related-party transactions.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Recent activity

Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
4
filings
  • • 2 gazette
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 officers
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-04-01
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  2. 2026-03-31
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  3. 2026-03-24
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  4. 2025-12-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2025-12-12
    ➖
    WOOD, Alastair Flindell resigned
    director
  6. 2024-12-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2023-12-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2023-03-08
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  9. 2023-03-07
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  10. 2022-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2021-09-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2021-04-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2020-10-07
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-current-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  14. 2020-02-28
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  15. 2020-02-28
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Barclays Security Trustee Limited
  16. 2020-01-14
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  17. 2019-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  18. 2019-04-06
    ➕
    WOOD, Alastair Flindell appointed
    director
  19. 2018-12-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  20. 2018-01-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  21. 2017-09-11
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  22. 2007-12-05
    ➖
    WISE, Suzanne Flindell resigned
    director
  23. 2007-06-11
    ➕
    WOOD, Susan Catherine appointed
    secretary
  24. 2007-06-11
    ➖
    WOOD, William Roger resigned
    secretary
  25. 2006-07-12
    ➖
    WOOD, Fred Richardson resigned
    director
  26. 1995-12-17
    ➖
    WOOD, Mary Grace resigned
    director
  27. 1965-09-07
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Martins Bank LTD
  28. 1958-05-28
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As FRED WOOD & SON LIMITED

Owner dependency

100/100
Critical — business is the founder

The business appears inseparable from the founder. Acquisition without a serious earn-out or meaningful transition period would likely destroy value.

FACTORS
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "WOOD" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 85 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 85 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 68 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.

Red flags

clean
No red flags detected from available public data. (This is not a clean bill of health — detailed accounts review still recommended.)

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
William Roger Wood
Individual · British · DOB 08/1941 · age 85
75–100%
75–100%75-100% shares · 75-100% voting30/04/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

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FISH AND POND CENTRE LIMITED→
04230942 · est 2001 · no financials extracted
————24y——
FOX HILL GRANGE FARM LTD→
14234385 · est 2022 · no financials extracted
————3y——
FR CONTRACTING SOLUTIONS LTD→
15515554 · est 2024 · no financials extracted
————2y——
GOLDEN GATE NETWORKS UK LTD→
13024697 · est 2020 · no financials extracted
————5y——
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07050789 · est 2009 · no financials extracted
————16y——
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15012939 · est 2023 · no financials extracted
————2y——
GRACE TAYLOR EQUESTRIAN LIMITED→
16775812 · est 2025 · no financials extracted
———————
GRANGE FARM (SPRATTON) LIMITED→
03335895 · est 1997 · no financials extracted
————29y——
GRANGE GROUNDWORKS LTD→
10379132 · est 2016 · no financials extracted
————9y——
GRASS GAINS LTD→
13888210 · est 2022 · no financials extracted
————4y——
GREAT OAKLEY FARMS LIMITED→
02660716 · est 1991 · no financials extracted
————34y——
GREEN ACRES LIVERY YARD LIMITED→
14024310 · est 2022 · no financials extracted
————4y——
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

9 specific questions generated from this company's actual signals — liquidity, leverage, director age, charge count, red flags, age-of-company.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →
🔒Advanced scoring suite

Exit-route ranking, improvement thesis, quiet-distress detector, covenant-pressure proxy, extraction monitor, approaching triggers, ownership drift, local cluster, value trap, debt capacity, archetype classification — 48+ scoring modules.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated1958-05-28
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC01500 — SIC 01500

Registered office

Lamport Manor
Old Road, Lamport
Northampton
Northamptonshire
NN6 9HF

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-28
Last: 2025-12-14

Officers (2 active · 5 resigned)

WOOD, Susan Catherine→
secretary · appointed 2007-06-11
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WOOD, William Roger→
director · ~85y
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WOOD, William Roger→
secretary · resigned 2007-06-11
Resigned
WISE, Suzanne Flindell→
director · ~87y · resigned 2007-12-05
Resigned
WOOD, Alastair Flindell→
director · ~50y · appointed 2019-04-06 · resigned 2025-12-12
Resigned
WOOD, Fred Richardson→
director · ~116y · resigned 2006-07-12
Resigned
WOOD, Mary Grace→
director · ~109y · resigned 1995-12-17
Resigned

Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.

Mortgages & charges

3
Total charges
3
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Barclays
Barclays Security Trustee Limited
A registered charge1 property28/02/2020—
outstanding
Barclays
Barclays Bank PLC
A registered charge1 property11/09/2017—
outstanding
Martins Bank
Martins Bank LTD
Debenture1 property07/09/1965—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (97 total)

gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2026-04-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-31
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2026-03-31
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2026-03-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-22
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2023-03-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-07
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2023-03-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-19
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-09-13