ALLEN SIGNS LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
01438790 · ltd · incorporated 1979-07-20
Investment thesis
Established operating company — standard diligence applies, no dominant angle.
Why interesting: Live, filing, normal profile.
Why risky: No standout signals in either direction.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Oct 2025
Net worth
£-9.5k
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 20160
Sector: Manufacturing
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)
Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), 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 (65/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

3 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 31.4y

35/100
too messy

Refinance path is blocked by complexity. Rethink structure or expect bespoke, expensive terms.

  • · Oldest live charge is 31.4 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 (79/100)

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

Company profile
address, 1 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
9 officers (4 active, 9 linked, 7 with DOB)
86
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
106 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
82/100Exceptional
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Strong composite across quality, acquirability, and risk. High-priority target — progress to serious diligence.

Business quality
70
Active, clean filings, stable charge profile.
Acquirability
80
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 · accounting standard not declared
Negative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £9,483
Cash YoY
+485%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£147k
↑ 485% YoY
Net Worth
-£9k
↑ 53% YoY
Current Assets
£488k
↑ 63% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
-£20k£81k£183k£284k£386k£488kOct 2024Oct 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-10-312024-10-31
Total assets£290.7k£126.2k
Current assets£487.5k£299.6k
Cash£147.4k£25.2k
Debtors£322.8k£250.2k
Net assets£-9.5k£-20.2k

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
3
filings
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 officers
  • • 1 address
Last 90 days
3
filings
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 officers
  • • 1 address
Last 180 days
4
filings
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 officers
  • • 1 address
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (30 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-05-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2026-05-11
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  3. 2026-05-11
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  4. 2025-07-11
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2024-04-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-03-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-07-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2022-04-27
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  9. 2022-04-27
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Flex Abl Limited
  10. 2021-05-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2020-05-19
    📄
    mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
    mortgage · MR04
  12. 2020-05-19
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  13. 2020-04-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  14. 2019-07-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2018-05-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2017-06-23
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-current-extended
    accounts · AA01
  17. 2017-01-25
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  18. 2016-04-06
    ➕
    MERRYWEATHER, Glen appointed
    director
  19. 2010-07-13
    ➕
    ALLEN, Helen appointed
    director
  20. 2009-03-04
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Lloyds Tsb Bank PLC
  21. 2007-11-12
    ➕
    ALLEN, Helen appointed
    secretary
  22. 2007-11-12
    ➖
    ALLEN, Clifford John Barry resigned
    secretary
  23. 2007-11-12
    ➖
    ALLEN, Clifford John Barry resigned
    director
  24. 2007-11-12
    ➖
    ALLEN, Daphne Yvonne resigned
    director
  25. 2004-08-06
    ➖
    ARCHER, Keith Derek resigned
    director
  26. 2003-09-10
    ➖
    HARRISON, Peter David resigned
    director
  27. 2003-03-01
    ➕
    HARRISON, Peter David appointed
    director
  28. 1996-01-08
    ➕
    ALLEN, David John appointed
    director
  29. 1995-01-12
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
  30. 1979-07-20
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ALLEN SIGNS LIMITED

Owner dependency

91/100
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
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "ALLEN" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 30 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 60 — approaching natural succession window.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

70/100
Strong succession signal

Multiple signals suggest succession is on the horizon. Candidate for proactive outreach.

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 60. Early succession window.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 30 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 47 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

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

Shareholders & ownership

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr David John Allen
Individual · British · DOB 01/1969 · age 57
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016
Mrs Helen Allen
Individual · British · DOB 10/1966 · age 60
25–50%
25–50%25-50% shares · 25-50% voting06/04/2016

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

🔒Co-director network graph

Radial SVG graph showing every company connected via shared directors, colour-coded by status.

Available from the Pro tier upwards.

See pricing →

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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
Incorporated1979-07-20
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC20160 — SIC 20160

Registered office

Unit 37 Lincoln Enterprise Park
Newark Road
Lincoln
LN5 9FP
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-07-31
Last made up to: 2025-10-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-02
Last: 2026-01-19

Officers (4 active · 5 resigned)

ALLEN, Helen→
secretary · appointed 2007-11-12
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
ALLEN, David John→
director · ~57y · appointed 1996-01-08
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
ALLEN, Helen→
director · ~60y · appointed 2010-07-13
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
MERRYWEATHER, Glen→
director · ~46y · appointed 2016-04-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
ALLEN, Clifford John Barry→
secretary · resigned 2007-11-12
Resigned
ALLEN, Clifford John Barry→
director · ~89y · resigned 2007-11-12
Resigned
ALLEN, Daphne Yvonne→
director · ~83y · resigned 2007-11-12
Resigned
ARCHER, Keith Derek→
director · ~71y · resigned 2004-08-06
Resigned
HARRISON, Peter David→
director · ~57y · appointed 2003-03-01 · resigned 2003-09-10
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

3
Total charges
2
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Flex Abl
Flex Abl Limited
A registered charge—27/04/2022—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Tsb Bank PLC
Debenture1 property04/03/2009—
satisfied
National Westminster Bank
National Westminster Bank PLC
Mortgage debenture1 property12/01/199519/05/2020
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (106 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-05-22
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2026-05-11
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2026-05-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-07-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-02-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-04-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-02-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-03-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-07-20
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2022-04-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-05-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-01-22