ABBEYSTEAD PROJECTS (DESIGN AND BUILD) LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
01983608 · ltd · incorporated 1986-01-29
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 Aug 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
73/100
Strong
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: Development of building projects
Sector: Construction
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 68100Buying and selling of own real estate
  • 68209Other letting and operating of own or leased real estate
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 76-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 73/100 (strong), bankability 57/100. Strong seller-intent signal (68/100, director aged 76). 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 (53/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

12 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 39.0y

15/100
under pressure

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 39.0 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
12 charges (12/12 with lender, 12/12 with type)
90
Directors & officers
3 officers (1 active, 3 linked, 2 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 3 total, 3 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
125 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
73/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

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

Business quality
60
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
70
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
74
Few red flags.
Signal strength
100
Good data coverage for analysis.

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£77k£154k£231k£308k£384kAug 2024Aug 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-08-302024-08-30
Total assets—£412.8k
Cash—£1.7k
Net assets—£384.4k
Average employees0—

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
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 90 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (38 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-05-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-08-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-05-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-05-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2022-05-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-05-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2020-05-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2020-05-26
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  9. 2020-05-26
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC05
  10. 2019-05-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2018-11-14
    📄
    accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AAMD
  12. 2018-11-14
    📄
    accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AAMD
  13. 2018-11-14
    📄
    accounts-amended-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AAMD
  14. 2018-08-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2018-07-17
    📄
    second-filing-cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · RP04PSC07
  16. 2018-07-17
    📄
    second-filing-notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · RP04PSC02
  17. 2018-05-31
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  18. 2017-11-30
    ➖
    ROBERTS, John Albert resigned
    secretary
  19. 2017-11-30
    ➖
    ROBERTS, John Albert resigned
    director
  20. 1999-01-15
    🔒
    Charge registered #12
    Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
  21. 1999-01-15
    🔒
    Charge registered #11
    Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
  22. 1994-07-01
    🔒
    Charge registered #10
    Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
  23. 1994-06-24
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #6
  24. 1994-06-24
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #5
  25. 1994-06-24
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #4
  26. 1994-06-24
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #3
  27. 1994-06-17
    🔒
    Charge registered #9
    Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
  28. 1994-06-17
    🔒
    Charge registered #8
    Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
  29. 1994-06-17
    🔒
    Charge registered #7
    Lender: Lloyds Bank PLC
  30. 1991-06-19
    🔒
    Charge registered #6
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  31. 1990-11-07
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  32. 1990-10-26
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #2
  33. 1989-09-01
    🔒
    Charge registered #5
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  34. 1989-04-04
    🔒
    Charge registered #4
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  35. 1989-01-26
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  36. 1988-11-11
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  37. 1987-06-12
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Allied Irish Banks, PLC.
  38. 1986-01-29
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ABBEYSTEAD PROJECTS (DESIGN AND BUILD) 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 76 — 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 76 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 40 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.

Red flags

1 med · 1 low
Charge satisfaction-then-recreation pattern
medium

Multiple instances where a charge was satisfied and a new charge created within 6 months. Suggests active refinancing cycle.

6 live charges
low

Heavily leveraged with multiple live security positions — understand the capital structure before proceeding.

Group structure

Abbeystead Group Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.

🏛️
Abbeystead Group Limited
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares
ultimate parent
⬇
ABBEYSTEAD PROJECTS (DESIGN AND BUILD) LIMITED
This company · 01983608

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
Abbeystead Group Limited
Corporate entity
75–100%
75–100%75-100% shares · 75-100% voting29/11/2017
2 historic (ceased) PSCs
  • Mr Hugh John Mclartyceased 01/06/2019· 25-50% shares
  • Mr John Albert Robertsceased 29/11/2017· 25-50% shares

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

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14515080 · est 2022 · no financials extracted
————3y——
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16580563 · est 2025 · no financials extracted
———————
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14976077 · est 2023 · no financials extracted
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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
Incorporated1986-01-29
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC41100 — Development of building projects

Registered office

20 Wellesley Road
Liverpool
L8 3SU
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-05-30
Last made up to: 2025-08-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-06-10
Last: 2025-05-27

Officers (1 active · 2 resigned)

MCLARTY, Hugh John→
director · ~76y
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
ROBERTS, John Albert→
secretary · resigned 2017-11-30
Resigned
ROBERTS, John Albert→
director · ~71y · resigned 2017-11-30
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

12
Total charges
6
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:12 of 12 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Bank PLC
Debenture deed1 property15/01/1999—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Bank PLC
Mortgage1 property15/01/1999—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Bank PLC
Legal charge1 property01/07/1994—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Bank PLC
Legal charge1 property17/06/1994—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Bank PLC
Legal charge1 property17/06/1994—
outstanding
Lloyds Banking Group
Lloyds Bank PLC
Legal charge1 property17/06/1994—
satisfied
Barclays
Barclays Bank PLC
Legal charge1 property19/06/199124/06/1994
satisfied
Barclays
Barclays Bank PLC
Charge on building agreement1 property01/09/198924/06/1994
satisfied
Barclays
Barclays Bank PLC
Legal charge2 properties04/04/198924/06/1994
satisfied
Barclays
Barclays Bank PLC
Legal charge2 properties26/01/198924/06/1994
satisfied
Barclays
Barclays Bank PLC
Legal charge1 property11/11/198826/10/1990
satisfied
Allied Irish Banks, .
Allied Irish Banks, PLC.
Mortgage1 property12/06/198707/11/1990
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (125 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-05-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-08-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-05-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-05-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-05-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-05-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-05-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-05-27
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2020-05-26
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC05
2020-05-26