ACORN WASTE MANAGEMENT LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
04424868 · ltd · incorporated 2002-04-25
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
approaching window · 12-months
Approaching a transaction window — refinance or sale event plausible in the next 12 months.
  • · Oldest live charge 22.0y old — refinance window within 12 months
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Aug 2025
Net worth
£2.04M
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Other business support service activities n.e.c.
Sector: Administrative & support services
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company with a 65-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.

Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 65). 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

2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 22.0y

50/100
clean up first

Refinance viable after a tidy-up — address the highlighted items first.

  • · Oldest live charge is 22.0 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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
10 officers (2 active, 10 linked, 4 with DOB)
78
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
82 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.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · accounting standard not declared
Positive net assets
Net assets £2,036,709
Cash YoY
+6%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£2.2m
↑ 5.8% YoY
Net Worth
£2.0m
↑ 19% YoY
Current Assets
£4.2m
↑ 16% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£840k£1.7m£2.5m£3.4m£4.2mAug 2024Aug 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2025-08-312024-08-31
Total assets£2.06M£1.73M
Current assets£4.20M£3.62M
Cash£2.17M£2.05M
Debtors£2.03M£1.57M
Net assets£2.04M£1.71M

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
1
filing
  • • 1 accounts
Last 90 days
2
filings
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 180 days
2
filings
  • • 1 accounts
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (36 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-05-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-05-09
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-05-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  4. 2023-05-31
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2022-05-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2021-05-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2021-04-22
    📄
    change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC05
  8. 2021-03-18
    📄
    mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
    mortgage · MR01
  9. 2021-03-15
    🔒
    Charge registered #2
    Lender: Barclays Security Trustee Limited
  10. 2020-05-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2019-05-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  12. 2018-05-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  13. 2017-08-15
    📄
    termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM02
  14. 2017-02-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2017-01-31
    ➖
    BIRCH, Frances resigned
    secretary
  16. 2016-05-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  17. 2016-05-05
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  18. 2010-04-27
    ➕
    DOWNES, Peter John appointed
    director
  19. 2010-01-25
    ➕
    FERRINGTON, Bridget Elizabeth appointed
    director
  20. 2010-01-25
    ➕
    BIRCH, Frances appointed
    secretary
  21. 2010-01-25
    ➖
    FERRINGTON, Bridget Elizabeth resigned
    secretary
  22. 2010-01-25
    ➖
    CAIRNS, Karen Rebecca resigned
    director
  23. 2008-12-15
    ➖
    CAIRNS, Karen Rebecca resigned
    secretary
  24. 2008-12-15
    ➕
    FERRINGTON, Bridget Elizabeth appointed
    secretary
  25. 2008-12-15
    ➖
    CAIRNS, Paul resigned
    director
  26. 2006-01-27
    ➕
    CAIRNS, Karen Rebecca appointed
    secretary
  27. 2006-01-27
    ➖
    OVENDEN, Patricia Anne resigned
    secretary
  28. 2006-01-25
    ➕
    CAIRNS, Paul appointed
    director
  29. 2004-06-04
    🔒
    Charge registered #1
    Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
  30. 2002-04-25
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ACORN WASTE MANAGEMENT LIMITED
  31. 2002-04-25
    ➕
    OVENDEN, Patricia Anne appointed
    secretary
  32. 2002-04-25
    ➕
    WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  33. 2002-04-25
    ➖
    WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  34. 2002-04-25
    ➕
    CAIRNS, Karen Rebecca appointed
    director
  35. 2002-04-25
    ➕
    WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  36. 2002-04-25
    ➖
    WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

83/100
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.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 16 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 65 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

79/100
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 65. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 16 years.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 24 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

Acorn Waste Services Limited is the ultimate parent — holding 75%+ shares. This company sits inside their group.

🏛️
Acorn Waste Services Limited
Corporate parent · holds 75-100% shares · board control
ultimate parent
⬇
ACORN WASTE MANAGEMENT LIMITED
This company · 04424868

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
Acorn Waste Services 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
Incorporated2002-04-25
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC82990 — Other business support service activities n.e.c.

Registered office

Coniston A-C
Upton Magna Business Park
Shrewsbury
Shropshire
SY4 4TT

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-05-31
Last made up to: 2025-08-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-05-09
Last: 2026-04-25

Officers (2 active · 8 resigned)

DOWNES, Peter John→
director · ~65y · appointed 2010-04-27
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
FERRINGTON, Bridget Elizabeth→
director · ~65y · appointed 2010-01-25
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
BIRCH, Frances→
secretary · appointed 2010-01-25 · resigned 2017-01-31
Resigned
CAIRNS, Karen Rebecca→
secretary · appointed 2006-01-27 · resigned 2008-12-15
Resigned
FERRINGTON, Bridget Elizabeth→
secretary · appointed 2008-12-15 · resigned 2010-01-25
Resigned
OVENDEN, Patricia Anne→
secretary · appointed 2002-04-25 · resigned 2006-01-27
Resigned
WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-04-25 · resigned 2002-04-25
Resigned
CAIRNS, Karen Rebecca→
director · ~59y · appointed 2002-04-25 · resigned 2010-01-25
Resigned
CAIRNS, Paul→
director · ~58y · appointed 2006-01-25 · resigned 2008-12-15
Resigned
WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2002-04-25 · resigned 2002-04-25
Resigned

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

Mortgages & charges

2
Total charges
2
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
TypeProperties
outstanding
Barclays
Barclays Security Trustee Limited
A registered charge—15/03/2021—
outstanding
Barclays
Barclays Bank PLC
Guarantee & debenture1 property04/06/2004—
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.

Recent filings (82 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-05-29
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-04-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-05-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-04-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-05-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-04-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-05-31
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-04-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-05-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-04-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-05-27
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-05-07
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC05
2021-04-22
mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-date
mortgage · MR01
2021-03-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-05-29