A1 TOOLS AND FIXINGS LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
03851305 · ltd · incorporated 1999-09-30
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 46130
Sector: Wholesale & retail
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and acceptable with review structure.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 67/100. Strong seller-intent signal (80/100, director aged 58). 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 (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

3 live charges · 3 lenders · oldest 24.4y

15/100
under pressure

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 24.4 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · 3 lenders named — inter-creditor friction likely.
  • · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.

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
10 officers (1 active, 10 linked, 5 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
3 connected companies via shared directors
54
Filing history
90 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 accounts
Cash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
£0£0£0£0£0£0Mar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Average employees15001500

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
0
filings
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (42 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-12-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-09-30
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  3. 2024-12-24
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2023-01-30
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  6. 2023-01-30
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  7. 2023-01-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2022-12-31
    ➖
    BATES, Maralyn Ann resigned
    secretary
  9. 2022-12-31
    ➖
    BATES, Maralyn Ann resigned
    director
  10. 2021-12-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2021-03-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2021-02-23
    📄
    mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
    mortgage · MR04
  13. 2021-02-23
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #1
  14. 2020-10-21
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  15. 2020-08-06
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  16. 2020-07-31
    🔒
    Charge registered #3
    Lender: Clydesdale Bank PLC (Trading as Both Clydesdale Bank and Yorkshire Bank)
  17. 2019-12-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  18. 2018-11-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  19. 2018-01-23
    📄
    mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
    mortgage · MR04
  20. 2018-01-23
    🔓
    Charge satisfied #2
  21. 2017-12-04
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  22. 2017-10-05
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  23. 2014-09-26
    ➕
    BATES, Maralyn Ann appointed
    director
  24. 2014-09-26
    ➖
    MUSKETT, David Christopher resigned
    director
  25. 2010-06-01
    ➕
    MUSKETT, David Christopher appointed
    director
  26. 2009-11-20
    ➕
    BATES, Maralyn Ann appointed
    secretary
  27. 2009-11-20
    ➖
    WORTH, Paul Andrew John resigned
    secretary
  28. 2005-04-11
    ➕
    WORTH, Paul Andrew John appointed
    secretary
  29. 2004-10-22
    ➖
    BROOKS, John resigned
    director
  30. 2004-04-11
    ➖
    O'FLANAGAN, Paul Timothy resigned
    secretary
  31. 2004-02-20
    ➖
    BROOKS, Madelene Dylorn resigned
    secretary
  32. 2004-02-20
    ➕
    O'FLANAGAN, Paul Timothy appointed
    secretary
  33. 2002-12-12
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland Commercial Services Limited
  34. 2002-01-10
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
  35. 2000-08-16
    ➕
    O'FLANAGAN, Paul Timothy appointed
    director
  36. 1999-10-05
    ➕
    BROOKS, Madelene Dylorn appointed
    secretary
  37. 1999-10-05
    ➖
    LAWSON (LONDON) LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  38. 1999-10-05
    ➕
    BROOKS, John appointed
    director
  39. 1999-10-05
    ➖
    COOPER, Michael Edward resigned
    director
  40. 1999-09-30
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As A1 TOOLS AND FIXINGS LIMITED
  41. 1999-09-30
    ➕
    LAWSON (LONDON) LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  42. 1999-09-30
    ➕
    COOPER, Michael Edward appointed
    director

Owner dependency

93/100
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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 58 — approaching natural succession window.

Succession & seller-readiness

85/100
Likely off-market candidate

Strong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 58. 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 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 27 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

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

Group structure

A1 Tools And Fixings (Holdings) Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.

🏛️
A1 Tools And Fixings (Holdings) Limited
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares · board control
ultimate parent
⬇
A1 TOOLS AND FIXINGS LIMITED
This company · 03851305

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
A1 Tools And Fixings (Holdings) Limited
Corporate entity
75–100%
75–100%board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control06/04/2016

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 →

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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
Incorporated1999-09-30
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC46130 — SIC 46130

Registered office

Ground Floor
45 Pall Mall
London
SW1Y 5JG
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-10-14
Last: 2025-09-30

Officers (1 active · 9 resigned)

O'FLANAGAN, Paul Timothy→
director · ~58y · appointed 2000-08-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BATES, Maralyn Ann→
secretary · appointed 2009-11-20 · resigned 2022-12-31
Resigned
BROOKS, Madelene Dylorn→
secretary · appointed 1999-10-05 · resigned 2004-02-20
Resigned
O'FLANAGAN, Paul Timothy→
secretary · appointed 2004-02-20 · resigned 2004-04-11
Resigned
WORTH, Paul Andrew John→
secretary · appointed 2005-04-11 · resigned 2009-11-20
Resigned
LAWSON (LONDON) LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 1999-09-30 · resigned 1999-10-05
Resigned
BATES, Maralyn Ann→
director · ~73y · appointed 2014-09-26 · resigned 2022-12-31
Resigned
BROOKS, John→
director · ~80y · appointed 1999-10-05 · resigned 2004-10-22
Resigned
COOPER, Michael Edward→
director · ~71y · appointed 1999-09-30 · resigned 1999-10-05
Resigned
MUSKETT, David Christopher→
director · ~74y · appointed 2010-06-01 · resigned 2014-09-26
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

3
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:3 of 3 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Virgin Money
Clydesdale Bank PLC (Trading as Both Clydesdale Bank and Yorkshire Bank)
A registered charge—31/07/2020—
satisfied
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland Commercial Services Limited
Fixed and floating charge1 property12/12/200223/01/2018
satisfied
Lloyds Banking Group
The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
Debenture1 property10/01/200223/02/2021
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (90 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-12-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-30
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-09-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-24
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-10-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-10-26
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2023-01-30
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2023-01-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-01-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-10-03
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-10-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-03-22
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2021-02-23