CHRISTOPHER H SMITH DECORATING SERVICES LTD

⚰️Wound downdissolved
04506402 · ltd · incorporated 2002-08-08
Investment thesis
Company dissolved — not a live target.
Why interesting: Historical record only; useful for precedent research.
Why risky: Not transactable.
Why now
Window steady · medium confidence
Mixed signals — 1 changes over 30 days, no clear direction yet.
  • · Distress / opportunity: speculative → attractive
What changed my view
Last 30 days

Mixed signals in the last 30 days — 0 improved, 0 worsened.

  • ·Distress / opportunity: speculative → attractive
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 Aug 2019
Net worth
£166
book net assets
Opportunity
63/100
Worth a look
🔔
Follow this company (free)
Email alerts on filings, charges, director changes, gazette notices. No account needed.

Unsubscribe any time from any email. GDPR-respectful.

🔒Generate AI memo →🔒Outreach pack →🔒Corporate story →📑 Reports →Sign in to watch
What this business does
Primary activity: Painting
Sector: Construction
Investor take
Special-situation opportunity
Distressed construction with salvageable qualities — special-situations priority.

Opportunity 63/100 (worth a look), bankability 70/100. Strong seller-intent signal (78/100, director aged 66). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. 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 (73/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (75/100)

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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
5 officers (2 active, 5 linked, 1 with DOB)
74
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
49 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
63/100Worth a look
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Mixed signal. Worth opening the full target workup before deciding to pursue.

Business quality
30
Concerning — overdue filings or status flags present.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review 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 £166

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£4k
Net Worth
£166
Current Assets
£4k
Current Liabilities
—
£0£889£2k£3k£4k£4kAug 2018Aug 2019

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown
Metric2019-08-312018-08-31
Total assets£166—
Current assets£4.4k—
Cash£4.4k—
Net assets£166—
Average employees—100

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
0
filings
Last 180 days
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (31 events)Click to expand
  1. 2020-11-17
    📄
    gazette-dissolved-voluntary
    gazette · GAZ2(A)
  2. 2020-11-17
    🏁
    Company dissolved
  3. 2020-09-01
    📄
    gazette-notice-voluntary
    gazette · GAZ1(A)
  4. 2020-08-19
    📄
    dissolution-application-strike-off-company
    dissolution · DS01
  5. 2020-03-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2019-04-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2018-02-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2017-08-01
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  9. 2017-01-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  10. 2016-02-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  11. 2015-08-17
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  12. 2015-04-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  13. 2014-08-21
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  14. 2013-11-06
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  15. 2013-08-10
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2013-01-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  17. 2012-08-10
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  18. 2011-12-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  19. 2011-08-09
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  20. 2011-02-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  21. 2010-09-06
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  22. 2010-09-06
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  23. 2005-11-16
    ➕
    SMITH, Catherine Ann appointed
    secretary
  24. 2005-11-16
    ➖
    QUEEN SQUARE SECRETARIES LTD resigned
    corporate-secretary
  25. 2002-12-05
    ➖
    DOLAN, Paul Vincent resigned
    secretary
  26. 2002-12-05
    ➕
    QUEEN SQUARE SECRETARIES LTD appointed
    corporate-secretary
  27. 2002-08-08
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As CHRISTOPHER H SMITH DECORATING SERVICES LTD
  28. 2002-08-08
    ➕
    SMITH, Christopher appointed
    director
  29. 2002-08-08
    ➕
    DOLAN, Paul Vincent appointed
    secretary
  30. 2002-08-08
    ➕
    QUEEN SQUARE HOLDINGS LIMITED appointed
    corporate-director
  31. 2002-08-08
    ➖
    QUEEN SQUARE HOLDINGS LIMITED resigned
    corporate-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.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "SMITH" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 24 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 66 — 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 66. 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 24 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • 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

1 high ·
Company dissolved
high

Company has been dissolved — it no longer legally exists. Any diligence here is historical only.

Evidence: Dissolved on 2020-11-17

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Christopher Smith
Individual · British · DOB 02/1960 · age 66
75–100%
75–100%board controlsig. influence75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control · significant influence06/04/2016

From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.

Similar companies

Active · Construction · BA postcode area
CompanyEst. valueTurnoverNet worthStaffAgeOppDirector
AEQUUS CONSTRUCTION LIMITED→
10832066 · est 2017 · no financials extracted
————8y——
ALL ELECTRICAL (SW) LTD→
10761304 · est 2017 · no financials extracted
————8y——
ALMOND ELECTRICS LIMITED→
08873795 · est 2014 · no financials extracted
————12y——
ALPENHAUS LTD→
12002454 · est 2019 · no financials extracted
————6y——
ALU ROOFING (UK) LTD→
13154186 · est 2021 · no financials extracted
————5y——
AMENZ CONSTRUCTION LTD.→
03518865 · est 1998 · no financials extracted
————28y——
AMH BUILDING SERVICES LTD→
09619624 · est 2015 · no financials extracted
————10y——
AMP ELECTRICAL (SW) LIMITED→
07511063 · est 2011 · no financials extracted
————15y——
AMR BRICKWORK LTD→
15829318 · est 2024 · no financials extracted
————1y——
ANCHOR ACCESS LTD→
11641559 · est 2018 · no financials extracted
————7y——
ANCHORMILL LTD.→
02255619 · est 1988 · no financials extracted
————37y——
ANCHORMILL MANAGEMENT LTD→
05133036 · est 2004 · no financials extracted
————21y——
Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

9 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
Incorporated2002-08-08
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC43341 — Painting

Registered office

20 Langdon Road
Bath
BA2 1LS
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: —
Last made up to: 2019-08-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: —
Last: —

Officers (0 active · 3 resigned)

SMITH, Catherine Ann→
secretary · appointed 2005-11-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SMITH, Christopher→
director · ~66y · appointed 2002-08-08
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
DOLAN, Paul Vincent→
secretary · appointed 2002-08-08 · resigned 2002-12-05
Resigned
QUEEN SQUARE SECRETARIES LTD→
corporate-secretary · appointed 2002-12-05 · resigned 2005-11-16
Resigned
QUEEN SQUARE HOLDINGS LIMITED→
corporate-director · appointed 2002-08-08 · resigned 2002-08-08
Resigned

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

Recent filings (49 total)

gazette-dissolved-voluntary
gazette · GAZ2(A)
2020-11-17
gazette-notice-voluntary
gazette · GAZ1(A)
2020-09-01
dissolution-application-strike-off-company
dissolution · DS01
2020-08-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-03-23
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2019-08-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2019-04-18
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2018-08-09
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2018-02-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2017-08-22
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2017-08-01
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2017-01-25
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2016-08-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2016-02-13
annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
annual-return · AR01
2015-08-17
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
accounts · AA
2015-04-23