EDWARD BRAIN & SONS LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
03971051 · ltd · incorporated 2000-04-12
Investment thesis
Well-run mature business — low negotiation leverage; premium likely.
Why interesting: Textbook target; clean filings, stable trading.
Why risky: No pressure on seller; any deal likely at full price.
Opportunity decay
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
  • · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Apr 2025
Net worth
£113.7k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 01500
Sector: Agriculture, forestry & fishing
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 38110SIC 38110
  • 42990Construction of other civil engineering projects n.e.c.
Investor take
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle with a 78-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 78). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

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, 3 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 (3 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
64 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 declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £113,731
Very low cash
Cash position: £8
Net assets shrinking
Down £37,471 YoY
Cash YoY
+0%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£8
~ YoY
Net Worth
£114k
↓ 25% YoY
Current Assets
£258k
↓ 17% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£62k£125k£187k£250k£312kApr 2024Apr 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-04-302024-04-30
Total assets£794.1k£551.0k
Current assets£258.5k£312.3k
Cash£8£8
Debtors£169.1k£233.6k
Net assets£113.7k£151.2k

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
1
filing
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 persons-with-significant-control
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (25 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-01-21
    📄
    cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
  2. 2025-10-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-10-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2024-04-04
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  5. 2024-04-04
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  6. 2024-02-19
    ➕
    BRAIN, Margaret Ann appointed
    director
  7. 2024-02-19
    ➖
    BRAIN, Charles Edward resigned
    director
  8. 2023-12-21
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2022-12-19
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2021-12-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2020-10-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2020-01-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2018-09-03
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  14. 2017-09-06
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2016-08-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2016-05-09
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  17. 2015-09-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  18. 2000-04-12
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As EDWARD BRAIN & SONS LIMITED
  19. 2000-04-12
    ➕
    BRAIN, Margaret Ann appointed
    secretary
  20. 2000-04-12
    ➕
    BRAIN, Edward William John appointed
    director
  21. 2000-04-12
    ➕
    BRIGHTON SECRETARY LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  22. 2000-04-12
    ➖
    BRIGHTON SECRETARY LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  23. 2000-04-12
    ➕
    BRAIN, Charles Edward appointed
    director
  24. 2000-04-12
    ➕
    BRIGHTON DIRECTOR LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  25. 2000-04-12
    ➖
    BRIGHTON DIRECTOR LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

100/100
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
  • +Two-director setup: Only two active directors — typical of owner-managed SMEs but limits succession.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "BRAIN" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 26 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

86/100
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 78 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • 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.)

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Edward William John Brain
Individual · British · DOB 09/1948 · age 78
25–50%
—25-50% shares06/04/2016
1 historic (ceased) PSC
  • Mr Charles Edward Brainceased 05/04/2024· 25-50% shares

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
Incorporated2000-04-12
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC01500 — SIC 01500

Registered office

Lordswood
Birmingham Road, Pathlow
Stratford Upon Avon
Warwickshire
CV37 0EP

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-01-31
Last made up to: 2025-04-30
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-05-29
Last: 2026-05-15

Officers (3 active · 3 resigned)

BRAIN, Margaret Ann→
secretary · appointed 2000-04-12
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BRAIN, Edward William John→
director · ~78y · appointed 2000-04-12
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BRAIN, Margaret Ann→
director · ~78y · appointed 2024-02-19
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BRIGHTON SECRETARY LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2000-04-12 · resigned 2000-04-12
Resigned
BRAIN, Charles Edward→
director · ~55y · appointed 2000-04-12 · resigned 2024-02-19
Resigned
BRIGHTON DIRECTOR LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2000-04-12 · resigned 2000-04-12
Resigned

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

Recent filings (64 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-05-15
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2026-01-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-10-20
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-05-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-10-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-05-16
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2024-04-04
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2024-04-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-12-21
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-11
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-17
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-05-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-10-28