ASHFIELD DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
02399094 · ltd · incorporated 1989-06-28
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 Apr 2025
Net worth
£-6.5k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 99999
Sector: Extraterritorial bodies
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed active trading company — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 61). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
Data confidence
Overall: medium (78/100)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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
6 officers (1 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
97 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
80/100Exceptional
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
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Signals from accounts
Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declaredNegative net assets
Liabilities exceed assets by £6,541
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
-£7k
~ YoY
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2025-04-30 | 2024-04-30 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £-6.5k | £-6.5k |
| Net assets | £-6.5k | £-6.5k |
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
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (24 events)Click to expand
- 2025-10-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2024-08-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-07-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-31📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-01-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-04-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-11-11📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2018-08-28📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-10-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2016-11-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2016-01-07📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2015-07-27📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2014-11-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2014-07-18📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2013-12-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2013-06-14➖BURCHELL, Anne resignedsecretary
- 2005-11-01➕HORTON, Carol appointeddirector
- 2005-11-01➖ATWELL, John Stewart resignedsecretary
- 2005-11-01➕BURCHELL, Anne appointedsecretary
- 2004-12-03➖ATWELL, John Stewart resigneddirector
- 2003-08-01➖LOWE, Peter resigneddirector
- 1992-01-09➕ATWELL, John Stewart appointedsecretary
- 1992-01-09➖ATWELL, Maureen Vivienne resignedsecretary
- 1989-06-28🏢Company incorporatedAs ASHFIELD DEVELOPMENTS LIMITED
Owner dependency
93/100
Critical — business is the founderThe 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.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 21 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 61 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
85/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 61. Early succession window.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 21 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 37 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
cleanNo 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%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mrs Carol Horton Individual · British · DOB 09/1965 · age 61 | 75–100% | — | 75-100% shares | 06/04/2016 |
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 →Similar companies
Active · Other · TQ postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BIGBURY GOLF CLUB LIMITED→ 00395744 · est 1945 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 80y | — | — |
| BLAGDON BARTON FLATS MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ 02720518 · est 1992 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 33y | — | — |
| BLISS STAR LIMITED→ 08118861 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| BLOOMFIELD BUSINESS LTD→ 14689989 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| BOVEY FUTURES LIMITED→ 10810911 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| BOWDEN FARM ORGANICS LTD→ 16139091 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BPS WINDOWS AND DOORS LTD→ 16217611 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BRECHIN INVESTMENTS NO.3 LIMITED→ 15921021 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| BRITISH HOMEOWNERS LIMITED→ 04471430 · est 2002 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| BROADFIELD SECURITIES LIMITED→ 00666838 · est 1960 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 65y | — | — |
| BROADHEMPSTON COMMUNITY LAND TRUST CIC→ 07991750 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| BROADPARK COURT MANAGEMENT COMPANY (TORQUAY) LIMITED→ 04000047 · est 2000 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 25y | — | — |
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
7 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
Incorporated1989-06-28
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC99999 — SIC 99999
Registered office
Wood House Farm
West Alvington
Kingsbridge
Devon
TQ7 3QQ
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-31
Last made up to: 2025-04-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-08-22
Last: 2025-08-08
Officers (1 active · 5 resigned)
HORTON, Carol→
Activedirector · ~61y · appointed 2005-11-01
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ATWELL, John Stewart→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 1992-01-09 · resigned 2005-11-01
ATWELL, Maureen Vivienne→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 1992-01-09
BURCHELL, Anne→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2005-11-01 · resigned 2013-06-14
ATWELL, John Stewart→
Resigneddirector · ~80y · resigned 2004-12-03
LOWE, Peter→
Resigneddirector · ~90y · resigned 2003-08-01
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (97 total)
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-10-14
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-08-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-07-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-01-31
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-08-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-01-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-08-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2021-04-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-08-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2019-11-11
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-08-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2018-08-28