WOOD & CRAVEN LIMITED
⚰️Wound downdissolved
03098666 · ltd · incorporated 1995-09-05
Investment thesis
Company dissolved — not a live target.
Why interesting: Historical record only; useful for precedent research.
Why risky: Not transactable.
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
not disclosed
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
51/100
Worth a look
What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 6603
Sector: Financial & insurance
Investor take
Pass (distressed without resilience)Distressed unclear — structural issues outweigh the discount.
Opportunity 51/100 (worth a look), bankability 50/100. Strong seller-intent signal (78/100, director aged 67). Biggest value-creation lever: Resolve: Company dissolved. Company has been dissolved — it no longer legally exists. Any diligence here is historical only. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (58/100). Current lenders should be on monthly review.
Data confidence
Overall: low (45/100)Sparse data coverage. Treat AI-generated outputs as preliminary. Manual diligence essential.
Company profile
address, 1 SIC codes, incorporation date
100
Financials
No iXBRL financials extracted
0
Lenders & charges
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
7 officers (2 active, 7 linked, 4 with DOB)
81
Ownership & PSC
No PSCs filed (unusual — worth investigating)
35
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
54 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
51/100Worth a look
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional
Mixed signal. Worth opening the full target workup before deciding to pursue.
Business quality
10
Concerning — overdue filings or status flags present.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
49
Multiple red flags — proceed with caution.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
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 (39 events)Click to expand
- 2014-06-07⚠️gazette-dissolved-liquidationgazette · GAZ2
- 2014-06-07🏁Company dissolved
- 2014-03-07⚠️liquidation-compulsory-completioninsolvency · L64.07
- 2010-12-14📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2010-12-13⚠️liquidation-compulsory-winding-up-orderinsolvency · COCOMP
- 2010-05-14📄dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspendeddissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
- 2010-05-11📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2009-10-09📄annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholdersannual-return · AR01
- 2009-02-02📄legacyannual-return · 363a
- 2009-01-31📄gazette-filings-brought-up-to-dategazette · DISS40
- 2009-01-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2009-01-27📄gazette-notice-compulsorygazette · GAZ1
- 2008-06-27📄legacyannual-return · 363a
- 2008-01-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2007-04-19📄legacyannual-return · 363a
- 2007-04-18📄legacyannual-return · 363a
- 2006-08-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2006-02-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-smallaccounts · AA
- 2005-02-03📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2004-10-05📄legacyannual-return · 363s
- 2004-10-05📄legacyofficers · 288c
- 2004-05-07📄legacyofficers · 288b
- 2004-04-14➖TAYLOR, Graeme resigneddirector
- 2004-02-26📄legacyannual-return · 363s
- 2004-02-26📄legacyannual-return · 363s
- 2004-02-04📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 2003-02-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-smallaccounts · AA
- 1996-10-31➖GREENWAY, Brian Martin resigneddirector
- 1995-12-20➖FERGUSON, John Michael resigneddirector
- 1995-12-20➕GREENWAY, Brian Martin appointeddirector
- 1995-12-20➕TAYLOR, Graeme appointeddirector
- 1995-11-06➕FERGUSON, John Michael appointedsecretary
- 1995-11-06➕FERGUSON, Gary Wade appointeddirector
- 1995-11-06➖BRITANNIA COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1995-11-06➕FERGUSON, John Michael appointeddirector
- 1995-11-06➖DEANSGATE COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-director
- 1995-09-05🏢Company incorporatedAs WOOD & CRAVEN LIMITED
- 1995-09-05➕BRITANNIA COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 1995-09-05➕DEANSGATE COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-director
Owner dependency
100/100
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 31 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 67 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
95/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 67. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 31 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 31 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
2 high ·Company dissolved
highCompany has been dissolved — it no longer legally exists. Any diligence here is historical only.
Evidence: Dissolved on 2014-06-07
3 insolvency-related filings on record
highFilings relating to insolvency, liquidation, or administration exist in the company's history. Review before proceeding.
Evidence: 2014-06-07: gazette-dissolved-liquidation; 2014-03-07: liquidation-compulsory-completion
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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions
11 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
Statusdissolved
Typeltd
Incorporated1995-09-05
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC6603 — SIC 6603
Registered office
27 Park Street
Lytham
Lytham St Annes
Lancashire
FY8 5LU
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: —
Last made up to: 2008-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: —
Last: —
Officers (0 active · 5 resigned)
FERGUSON, John Michael→
Activesecretary · appointed 1995-11-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
FERGUSON, Gary Wade→
Activedirector · ~67y · appointed 1995-11-06
View their other companies + combined net worth →
BRITANNIA COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1995-09-05 · resigned 1995-11-06
FERGUSON, John Michael→
Resigneddirector · ~92y · appointed 1995-11-06 · resigned 1995-12-20
GREENWAY, Brian Martin→
Resigneddirector · ~73y · appointed 1995-12-20 · resigned 1996-10-31
TAYLOR, Graeme→
Resigneddirector · ~75y · appointed 1995-12-20 · resigned 2004-04-14
DEANSGATE COMPANY FORMATIONS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-director · appointed 1995-09-05 · resigned 1995-11-06
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (54 total)
gazette-dissolved-liquidation
gazette · GAZ2
2014-06-07
liquidation-compulsory-completion
insolvency · L64.07
2014-03-07
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2010-12-14
liquidation-compulsory-winding-up-order
insolvency · COCOMP
2010-12-13
dissolved-compulsory-strike-off-suspended
dissolution · DISS16(SOAS)
2010-05-14
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2010-05-11
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2009-10-09
legacy
annual-return · 363a
2009-02-02
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2009-01-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2009-01-30
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2009-01-27
legacy
annual-return · 363a
2008-06-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2008-01-16
legacy
annual-return · 363a
2007-04-19
legacy
annual-return · 363a
2007-04-18