DRAINRITE ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
04029876 · ltd · incorporated 2000-07-10
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.
Why now
Window closing · medium confidence
Getting harder to buy cheaply — 1 signals strengthening over the last 30 days.
  • · Hygiene score: 77 → 82
What changed my view
Last 30 days

Picture improved over the last 30 days — 1 positive signal vs 0 negative.

  • ↑Hygiene score: 77 → 82
Last 90 days

No snapshot from 90 days ago — start tracking from today.

Last 180 days

No snapshot from 180 days ago — start tracking from today.

🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Dec 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: SIC 37000
Sector: Water supply & waste
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 69-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 80/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 69). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Discharge stale live charges. 1 live charge(s) created 15+ years ago — likely paid but undischarged. Clean register. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

🏦

Refinance opportunity

1 live charge · oldest 24.7y

45/100
under pressure

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

  • · Oldest live charge is 24.7 years old — likely at or near maturity.
  • · Single lender — cleanest path to refinance.
  • · 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
1 charges (1/1 with lender, 1/1 with type)
90
Directors & officers
7 officers (1 active, 7 linked, 4 with DOB)
81
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
74 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£0Dec 2024Dec 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-12-312024-12-31
Average employees23002300

Amounts extracted automatically from iXBRL. Fields left blank were not reported or not mapped. Values in GBP unless stated.

🔒Filing-note intelligence

3 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
1
filing
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
3
filings
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 persons-with-significant-control
Last 180 days
3
filings
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 persons-with-significant-control
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (30 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-05-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2026-05-21
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
  3. 2025-08-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2025-07-07
    ➖
    BENT, Michael Alan resigned
    secretary
  5. 2025-07-07
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  6. 2025-01-30
    ➖
    BENT, Michael Alan resigned
    director
  7. 2025-01-30
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  8. 2024-12-04
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2024-09-30
    📄
    change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
    accounts · AA01
  10. 2023-07-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2023-07-12
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  12. 2022-07-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2021-08-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  14. 2020-10-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  15. 2019-08-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2018-10-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2017-09-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  18. 2016-09-14
    ➖
    BENT, Michael Alan resigned
    director
  19. 2009-12-08
    ➕
    BENT, Michael Alan appointed
    director
  20. 2009-12-08
    ➕
    BENT, Michael Alan appointed
    director
  21. 2001-10-31
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Bibby Factors Northwest LTD
  22. 2001-06-01
    ➖
    BENT, Michael Alan resigned
    director
  23. 2000-07-10
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As DRAINRITE ENVIRONMENTAL SERVICES LIMITED
  24. 2000-07-10
    ➕
    FLETCHER, Richard William appointed
    director
  25. 2000-07-10
    ➕
    BENT, Michael Alan appointed
    secretary
  26. 2000-07-10
    ➕
    WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  27. 2000-07-10
    ➖
    WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  28. 2000-07-10
    ➕
    BENT, Michael Alan appointed
    director
  29. 2000-07-10
    ➕
    WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  30. 2000-07-10
    ➖
    WATERLOW NOMINEES 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
  • +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.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 69 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

95/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 69. 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 26 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 26 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.)

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Richard William Fletcher
Individual · British · DOB 11/1957 · age 69
75–100%
—75-100% shares01/07/2016

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 · Energy & utilities · WN postcode area
CompanyEst. valueTurnoverNet worthStaffAgeOppDirector
BIBBY HYGIENE LIMITED→
07960311 · est 2012
£1.25M
£902.2k–£1.60M
——330014y7961y
AQUASPEED LIMITED→
03632981 · est 1998
——£391.9k—27y8163y
FAIRWAY CLEARANCE AND HARBOUR SERVICES LIMITED→
05746416 · est 2006
———020y8163y
LAKES & DALES WATER SUPPLIES LIMITED→
03947901 · est 2000
——£60.6k—26y8065y
BITHELLS WASTE MANAGEMENT LIMITED→
03765087 · est 1999
——£712.1k—27y7958y
COLLINS CONTAINERS LIMITED→
07192500 · est 2010
———50016y7960y
HIGHFIELD ELECTRICAL SERVICES LIMITED→
09204141 · est 2014
——£60.2k—11y7961y
MJA DRAINAGE SOLUTIONS LTD→
09026531 · est 2014
———10012y7961y
PACKAGING REUSE & DISPOSAL SERVICES LTD→
07123631 · est 2010
——£120.5k—16y7963y
MP ECO SKIPS WIGAN LTD→
16971521 · est 2026 · no financials extracted
———————
PHILBIN GLASS RECYCLING LIMITED→
10850081 · est 2017 · no financials extracted
————8y——
POLYWASTE UK LTD→
07630501 · est 2011 · no financials extracted
————14y——
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
Incorporated2000-07-10
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC37000 — SIC 37000

Registered office

Suite 10 Vermont House Bradley Lane
Standish
Wigan
Lancashire
WN6 0XF
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-09-30
Last made up to: 2025-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-07-31
Last: 2026-07-17

Officers (1 active · 6 resigned)

FLETCHER, Richard William→
director · ~69y · appointed 2000-07-10
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BENT, Michael Alan→
secretary · appointed 2000-07-10 · resigned 2025-07-07
Resigned
WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2000-07-10 · resigned 2000-07-10
Resigned
BENT, Michael Alan→
director · ~59y · appointed 2009-12-08 · resigned 2016-09-14
Resigned
BENT, Michael Alan→
director · ~59y · appointed 2009-12-08 · resigned 2025-01-30
Resigned
BENT, Michael Alan→
director · ~59y · appointed 2000-07-10 · resigned 2001-06-01
Resigned
WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2000-07-10 · resigned 2000-07-10
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

1
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Bibby Financial Services
Bibby Factors Northwest LTD
Fixed and floating charge1 property31/10/2001—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (74 total)

confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-07-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-05-27
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2026-05-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-08-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-08-04
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2025-07-07
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2025-01-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-04
change-account-reference-date-company-previous-shortened
accounts · AA01
2024-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-08-15
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-08-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-07-28
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2023-07-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-07
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-07-22