BAKEWELL FARMS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
01212285 · ltd · incorporated 1975-05-13
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
- · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to May 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
75/100
Strong
What this business does
Primary activity: Growing of cereals (except rice), leguminous crops and oil seeds
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 01450SIC 01450
- 01629SIC 01629
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with strong profile and acceptable with review structure.
Opportunity 75/100 (strong), bankability 67/100. High owner-dependency — earn-out structure likely required for clean transition. 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 (58/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
4 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 48.6y
35/100
too messy
Refinance path is blocked by complexity. Rethink structure or expect bespoke, expensive terms.
- · Oldest live charge is 48.6 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
- · Legal-friction score 35/100 — workable, but lender will want more DD.
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
4 charges (4/4 with lender, 4/4 with type)
90
Directors & officers
7 officers (2 active, 7 linked, 5 with DOB)
84
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
96 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
75/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.
Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
65
Some acquirability indicators.
Risk profile
77
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-05-31 | 2024-05-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 200 | 200 |
Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.
Recent activity
Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (31 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2025-01-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-10-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-29📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-02-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-03-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2020-02-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2019-02-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-02-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-02-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-02-10📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2016-02-27📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-10-04📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2015-02-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2014-10-24➕MEERS, Clare appointeddirector
- 2014-10-24📄appoint-person-director-company-with-name-dateofficers · AP01
- 2014-10-06➖BIRCHLEY, Charles Adrian resigneddirector
- 2012-08-01➖BIRCHLEY, Margaret resignedsecretary
- 2012-08-01➖BIRCHLEY, Margaret resigneddirector
- 2007-07-18➕BIRCHLEY, Margaret appointeddirector
- 1999-05-01➕BIRCHLEY, Richard James appointeddirector
- 1996-07-08➖BAKEWELL, Mary Elizabeth resignedsecretary
- 1996-07-08➕BIRCHLEY, Margaret appointedsecretary
- 1996-07-02➖BAKEWELL, John Philip resigneddirector
- 1994-03-28🔓Charge satisfied #2
- 1994-03-28🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 1994-03-09🔒Charge registered #4Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 1980-06-04🔒Charge registered #3Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
- 1978-09-04🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
- 1977-12-02🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation Limited
- 1975-05-13🏢Company incorporatedAs BAKEWELL FARMS LIMITED
Owner dependency
68/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
FACTORS
- +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 27 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
Succession & seller-readiness
66/100
Strong succession signalMultiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.
SIGNALS
- secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 27 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 51 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.
- supportingClean filings + long tenure: Disciplined long-tenure operator — classic lifestyle-business pattern that often sells quietly.
Red flags
1 med ·Charge satisfaction-then-recreation pattern
mediumMultiple instances where a charge was satisfied and a new charge created within 6 months. Suggests active refinancing cycle.
Shareholders & ownership
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Richard James Birchley Individual · British · DOB 05/1977 · age 49 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 01/07/2016 |
Mrs Clare Meers Individual · British · DOB 05/1979 · age 47 | 25–50% | — | 25-50% shares | 01/07/2016 |
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
Similar companies
Active · Agriculture · WR postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A R LEWIS TREECARE LTD→ 15695540 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| ABBEY FARMERS LIMITED→ 01561299 · est 1981 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 44y | — | — |
| ABS FORESTRY LTD→ 17056071 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ACTON MILL CARE FARM LIMITED→ 06960349 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| AMIBARA LIMITED→ 07172319 · est 2010 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| AQUAHELIOS LIMITED→ 10618160 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 9y | — | — |
| ASHWOOD HOUSE FARMING AND RENTAL PARTNERSHIP LIMITED→ 16534424 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| AVONDALE FARMS LIMITED→ 03168734 · est 1996 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 30y | — | — |
| BAKERBLUE LIMITED→ 06912963 · est 2009 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 16y | — | — |
| BAYLIS FARMING LIMITED→ 11810511 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| BEMAND WATER ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS LTD→ 16376669 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BENTLEY FARMS LIMITED→ 03297611 · est 1996 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 29y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
6 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
Incorporated1975-05-13
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC01110 — Growing of cereals (except rice), leguminous crops and oil seeds
Registered office
Gate Cottage Grange Lane
Lower Broadheath
Worcester
WR2 6RW
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-02-28
Last made up to: 2025-05-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-07
Last: 2025-07-24
Officers (2 active · 5 resigned)
BIRCHLEY, Richard James→
Activedirector · ~49y · appointed 1999-05-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
MEERS, Clare→
Activedirector · ~47y · appointed 2014-10-24
View their other companies + combined net worth →
BAKEWELL, Mary Elizabeth→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 1996-07-08
BIRCHLEY, Margaret→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1996-07-08 · resigned 2012-08-01
BAKEWELL, John Philip→
Resigneddirector · ~74y · resigned 1996-07-02
BIRCHLEY, Charles Adrian→
Resigneddirector · ~75y · resigned 2014-10-06
BIRCHLEY, Margaret→
Resigneddirector · ~75y · appointed 2007-07-18 · resigned 2012-08-01
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
4
Total charges
2
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:4 of 4 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | Mortgage debenture | 1 property | 09/03/1994 | — | |
| outstanding | Barclays Barclays Bank PLC | Legal charge | 1 property | 04/06/1980 | — | |
| satisfied | Barclays Barclays Bank PLC | Legal charge | 1 property | 04/09/1978 | 28/03/1994 | |
| satisfied | The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation Limited | Mortgage | 1 property | 02/12/1977 | 28/03/1994 |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (96 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-12-10
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-07-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-01-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-10-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-07-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-01-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-07-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-02-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-07-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-03-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-07-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-02-18
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-07-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-02-15