BLACKWELL HYDRAULICS LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
01458513 · ltd · incorporated 1979-11-01
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 Dec 2024
Net worth
£100
book net assets
Opportunity
79/100
Strong
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 99999
Sector: Extraterritorial bodies
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 90-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 79/100 (strong), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 90). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 2 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 43.3y

30/100
under pressure

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 43.3 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
  • · 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, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
2 years of iXBRL accounts extracted (YoY deltas available) + narrative notes parsed
75
Lenders & charges
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
14 officers (2 active, 14 linked, 9 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
126 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 £100

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
£100
~ YoY
Current Assets
£100
~ YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£20£40£60£80£100Dec 2023Dec 2024

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2024-12-312023-12-31
Total assets£100£100
Current assets£100£100
Debtors£100£100
Net assets£100£100

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

🔒Filing-note intelligence

1 signal 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
1
filing
  • • 1 officers
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 officers
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (41 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-06-23
    ➕
    COOPER, Nigel appointed
    secretary
  2. 2026-06-23
    📄
    appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP03
  3. 2025-06-18
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  4. 2025-06-04
    ➖
    CLOWES, Nick resigned
    secretary
  5. 2025-03-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
    accounts · AA
  6. 2024-04-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
    accounts · AA
  7. 2023-09-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
    accounts · AA
  8. 2022-09-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2021-09-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2020-06-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2019-09-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  12. 2018-09-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2017-09-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  14. 2016-10-27
    ➕
    HOLMSTROM, Bjorn appointed
    director
  15. 2016-10-27
    ➖
    BERGENDAHL, Lars Peter resigned
    director
  16. 2016-10-27
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  17. 2016-10-27
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  18. 2016-09-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  19. 2016-03-30
    📄
    appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP03
  20. 2016-03-23
    ➕
    CLOWES, Nick appointed
    secretary
  21. 2016-03-23
    ➖
    RICHARDSON, James Alexander resigned
    secretary
  22. 2013-12-28
    ➕
    BERGENDAHL, Lars Peter appointed
    director
  23. 2013-12-28
    ➖
    ROLFE, Robert Anthony Samuel resigned
    director
  24. 2013-01-01
    ➖
    NEWNES, Fiona resigned
    secretary
  25. 2013-01-01
    ➕
    RICHARDSON, James Alexander appointed
    secretary
  26. 2012-08-16
    ➖
    BLACKWELL, Freda Mary resigned
    secretary
  27. 2012-08-16
    ➕
    NEWNES, Fiona appointed
    secretary
  28. 2012-08-16
    ➖
    BLACKWELL, Freda Mary resigned
    director
  29. 2012-08-16
    ➖
    NEWNES, Fiona resigned
    director
  30. 2012-08-16
    ➖
    ROBERTS, Nigel Mark resigned
    director
  31. 2012-08-16
    ➕
    ROLFE, Robert Anthony Samuel appointed
    director
  32. 2011-04-01
    ➕
    BLACKWELL, Freda Mary appointed
    director
  33. 2010-07-30
    ➖
    ROBERTS, Hywel Arfon resigned
    director
  34. 2009-10-10
    ➖
    BLACKWELL, Francis John resigned
    director
  35. 2009-09-10
    ➕
    NEWNES, Fiona appointed
    director
  36. 2008-10-13
    ➕
    ROBERTS, Hywel Arfon appointed
    director
  37. 2005-08-02
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Focus Fund Title Company (One) Limited and Focus Fund Title Company (Two) Limited
  38. 2001-08-31
    ➖
    CARPENTER, John Michael resigned
    director
  39. 1992-11-16
    ➕
    ROBERTS, Nigel Mark appointed
    director
  40. 1983-04-29
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Midland Bank PLC
  41. 1979-11-01
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As BLACKWELL HYDRAULICS LIMITED

Owner dependency

90/100
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 age: Director aged approximately 90 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

75/100
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 90 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.

Red flags

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

Group structure

Hydroscand Ltd. is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.

🏛️
Hydroscand Ltd.
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares · board control
ultimate parent
⬇
BLACKWELL HYDRAULICS LIMITED
This company · 01458513

Parent relationships inferred from Persons with Significant Control filings. Full subsidiary tree requires reverse-lookup (coming).

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Hydroscand Ltd.
Corporate entity
75–100%
75–100%board controlsig. influence75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · significant influence06/04/2016

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

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

8 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
Incorporated1979-11-01
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC99999 — SIC 99999

Registered office

Westbury Court Church Road
Westbury On Trym
Bristol
BS9 3EF

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-23
Last: 2025-08-09

Officers (2 active · 12 resigned)

COOPER, Nigel→
secretary · appointed 2026-06-23
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
HOLMSTROM, Bjorn→
director · ~90y · appointed 2016-10-27
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BLACKWELL, Freda Mary→
secretary · resigned 2012-08-16
Resigned
CLOWES, Nick→
secretary · appointed 2016-03-23 · resigned 2025-06-04
Resigned
NEWNES, Fiona→
secretary · appointed 2012-08-16 · resigned 2013-01-01
Resigned
RICHARDSON, James Alexander→
secretary · appointed 2013-01-01 · resigned 2016-03-23
Resigned
BERGENDAHL, Lars Peter→
director · ~71y · appointed 2013-12-28 · resigned 2016-10-27
Resigned
BLACKWELL, Francis John→
director · ~87y · resigned 2009-10-10
Resigned
BLACKWELL, Freda Mary→
director · ~88y · appointed 2011-04-01 · resigned 2012-08-16
Resigned
CARPENTER, John Michael→
director · ~77y · resigned 2001-08-31
Resigned
NEWNES, Fiona→
director · ~56y · appointed 2009-09-10 · resigned 2012-08-16
Resigned
ROBERTS, Hywel Arfon→
director · ~58y · appointed 2008-10-13 · resigned 2010-07-30
Resigned
ROBERTS, Nigel Mark→
director · ~60y · appointed 1992-11-16 · resigned 2012-08-16
Resigned
ROLFE, Robert Anthony Samuel→
director · ~77y · appointed 2012-08-16 · resigned 2013-12-28
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Focus Fund Title Company (One) and Focus Fund Title Company (Two)
Focus Fund Title Company (One) Limited and Focus Fund Title Company (Two) Limited
Rent deposit deed1 property02/08/2005—
outstanding
Midland Bank
Midland Bank PLC
Fixed and floating charge1 property29/04/1983—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (126 total)

appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
officers · AP03
2026-06-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-11
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2025-06-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-03-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-04-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-09-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-09-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-09-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-08-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-08-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-06-08
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2019-09-30