BRYAN READ LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
02496878 · ltd · incorporated 1990-04-27
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.
Opportunity decay
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
- · Oldest live charge 36.0y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 01500
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
Investor take
PursueActive trading company with a 78-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (63/100, director aged 78). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 3 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
3 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 36.0y
50/100
clean up first
Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.
- · Oldest live charge is 36.0 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Legal-friction score 25/100 — 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
8 officers (5 active, 8 linked, 6 with DOB)
85
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
114 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.
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 · FRS 102| Metric | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 9 | 900 |
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
0
filings
Last 90 days
1
filing
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
4
filings
- • 2 officers
- • 1 confirmation-statement
- • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (28 events)Click to expand
- 2026-03-13📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2026-03-13📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-12-17📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-03-07📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2024-03-07📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2023-12-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-08-10📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2022-08-10📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2022-08-10📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2022-08-10📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2022-03-03📍change-sail-address-company-with-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD02
- 2021-12-20📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-12-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2019-12-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2018-12-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2014-04-24➕READ, Samuel Bryan appointeddirector
- 2004-05-24➕READ, Jacqueline appointedsecretary
- 2004-05-24➕READ, Jacqueline appointeddirector
- 2004-05-24➕READ, James Courtney appointeddirector
- 2004-05-24➖READ, Bryan James Luscombe resignedsecretary
- 2004-03-15➖JONES, Alison Heather resigneddirector
- 2004-01-26➖READ, James Montague resigneddirector
- 1994-04-14🔒Charge registered #3Lender: The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation PLC
- 1990-07-03🔒Charge registered #2Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 1990-06-06🔒Charge registered #1Lender: National Westminster Bank PLC
- 1990-04-27🏢Company incorporatedAs BRYAN READ LIMITED
Owner dependency
88/100
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
- -4 active directors: Broader management team in place — suggests transferable governance.
- +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "READ" — strong identity link between founder and business.
- +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 22 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 78 — succession pressure is live.
- +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.
Succession & seller-readiness
90/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 78 years old. Natural succession window is now.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 22 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 36 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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Bryan James Luscombe Read Individual · British · DOB 04/1950 · age 76 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 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 · Agriculture · SN postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| BAKER'S AGRICULTURAL CONTRACTING LIMITED→ 05214160 · est 2004 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 21y | — | — |
| BUTLER BROS.(AVEBURY)LIMITED→ 00554429 · est 1955 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 70y | — | — |
| D.W. PICKFORD & SON LIMITED→ 04665620 · est 2003 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 23y | — | — |
| DA & MDM AWRE LIMITED→ 16033442 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| DANIELL AND HOLE LIMITED→ 10800750 · est 2017 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 8y | — | — |
| DAVID NEWMAN CONTRACTORS LIMITED→ 08007972 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 14y | — | — |
| DAWSON'S TREE & GARDENING SERVICES LTD→ 16527686 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| DAY HOUSE FARMS LIMITED→ 08103760 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
| DENCHWORTH LIMITED→ 05998243 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| DEPARTMENT 83 LIMITED→ 04265144 · est 2001 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 24y | — | — |
| DEVIZES EQUESTRIAN LTD→ 17034939 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| DHS SERVICES LTD→ 11950640 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
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
Incorporated1990-04-27
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC01500 — SIC 01500
Registered office
Church Farm
Stanton St.Bernard
Marlborough
Wiltshire
SN8 4LJ
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-17
Last: 2026-03-03
Officers (5 active · 3 resigned)
Active
Active
READ, Jacqueline→
Activedirector · ~78y · appointed 2004-05-24
View their other companies + combined net worth →
READ, James Courtney→
Activedirector · ~48y · appointed 2004-05-24
View their other companies + combined net worth →
READ, Samuel Bryan→
Activedirector · ~36y · appointed 2014-04-24
View their other companies + combined net worth →
READ, Bryan James Luscombe→
Resignedsecretary · resigned 2004-05-24
JONES, Alison Heather→
Resigneddirector · ~70y · resigned 2004-03-15
READ, James Montague→
Resigneddirector · ~104y · resigned 2004-01-26
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
3
Total charges
3
Outstanding
2
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation The Agricultural Mortgage Corporation PLC | Collateral charge | 1 property | 14/04/1994 | — | |
| outstanding | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 03/07/1990 | — | |
| outstanding | National Westminster Bank National Westminster Bank PLC | Legal mortgage | 1 property | 06/06/1990 | — |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (114 total)
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-14
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2026-03-13
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2026-03-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-17
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-03-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-03-15
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-03-07
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2024-03-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-20
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-03-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-21
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2022-08-10
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2022-08-10
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2022-08-10