ACORN SERVICES GROUP LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
04543701 · ltd · incorporated 2002-09-24
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 Dec 2024
Net worth
£3.44M
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Renting and leasing of cars and light motor vehicles
Sector: Administrative & support services
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
- 77120Renting and leasing of trucks and other heavy vehicles
- 77320Renting and leasing of construction and civil engineering machinery and equipment
- 77330Renting and leasing of office machinery and equipment (including computers)
Investor take
PursueAsset-holding vehicle with a 68-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 85/100. Strong seller-intent signal (83/100, director aged 68). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Cash flow review and working-capital discipline. Cash down -57% YoY — forensic review of receivables, stock turns, and creditor days. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
1 live charge · oldest 20.4y
45/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 20.4 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, 4 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
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
2 connected companies via shared directors
51
Filing history
77 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 declaredPositive net assets
Net assets £3,436,496
Cash draining
Cash down 57% YoY
Cash YoY
-57%
Year on year
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
£2k
↓ 57% YoY
Net Worth
£3.4m
~ YoY
Current Assets
£2.2m
↑ 108% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · accounting standard unknown| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Total assets | £3.44M | £3.43M |
| Current assets | £2.23M | £1.07M |
| Cash | £2.3k | £5.4k |
| Debtors | £2.22M | £1.06M |
| Net assets | £3.44M | £3.43M |
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 (29 events)Click to expand
- 2025-12-22📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2025-12-22📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2025-09-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2023-09-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-12📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-10-06📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2022-09-26📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2022-06-28📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2021-11-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-23📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2021-09-23📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2020-12-16📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2020-09-16📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2020-08-19📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2019-09-19📄accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-fullaccounts · AA
- 2015-07-16🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2013-11-30➖WITHERS, Terry resigneddirector
- 2013-11-01➕WITHERS, Terry appointeddirector
- 2008-11-07➕WITHERS, Terry appointedsecretary
- 2008-11-07➕WITHERS, Alison Mary appointeddirector
- 2008-11-07➖HARVEY, Terry David resignedsecretary
- 2008-11-07➖LONERGAN, Denis Cornel resigneddirector
- 2006-02-07🔒Charge registered #1Lender: Barclays Bank PLC
- 2002-09-24🏢Company incorporatedAs ACORN SERVICES GROUP LIMITED
- 2002-09-24➕HARVEY, Terry David appointedsecretary
- 2002-09-24➕SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED appointedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2002-09-24➖SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary
- 2002-09-24➕LONERGAN, Denis Cornel appointeddirector
Owner dependency
100/100
Critical — business is the founderThe 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 18 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Founder age: Director aged approximately 68 — succession pressure is live.
Succession & seller-readiness
88/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 68. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- secondary12+ year tenure: Director in role 18 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
cleanNo 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%| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr Terry Withers Individual · British · DOB 09/1956 · age 70 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 14/02/2023 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mrs Alison Mary Withersceased 14/02/2023· significant influence
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 · Professional services · KT postcode area| Company | Est. value | Turnover | Net worth | Staff | Age | Opp | Director |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ACME CLEANTECH VENTURES (UK) PRIVATE LIMITED→ 13257157 · est 2021 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| ACR FINANCIAL CONSULTING LIMITED→ 13953142 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 4y | — | — |
| ACT 5 VENTURES UK LTD→ 15261892 · est 2023 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 2y | — | — |
| ACTIVEGAIN LIMITED→ 02227905 · est 1988 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 38y | — | — |
| ADALTA RECRUITMENT LTD→ 14247168 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
| ADAM KIRKALDY LIMITED→ 11925171 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ADAPTUSLINK LIMITED→ 06697723 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| ADBO LIMITED→ 09430589 · est 2015 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 11y | — | — |
| ADELABU PARK HOLDINGS LIMITED→ 16823006 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ADG SPORT CONSULTANCY LTD→ 11378116 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ADI EXECUTIVE COACHING LTD→ 11705502 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ADIO TECHNOLOGY LTD→ 13103698 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
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
Incorporated2002-09-24
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC77110 — Renting and leasing of cars and light motor vehicles
Registered office
3 The Elms
Church Rd
Claygate
Esher
KT10 0JT
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-01-03
Last: 2025-12-20
Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)
Active
WITHERS, Alison Mary→
Activedirector · ~68y · appointed 2008-11-07
View their other companies + combined net worth →
HARVEY, Terry David→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2002-09-24 · resigned 2008-11-07
SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED→
Resignedcorporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-09-24 · resigned 2002-09-24
LONERGAN, Denis Cornel→
Resigneddirector · ~62y · appointed 2002-09-24 · resigned 2008-11-07
WITHERS, Terry→
Resigneddirector · ~70y · appointed 2013-11-01 · resigned 2013-11-30
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
1
Total charges
0
Outstanding
0
Active lenders
Status:Lender:1 of 1 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| satisfied | Barclays Barclays Bank PLC | Debenture | 1 property | 07/02/2006 | 16/07/2015 |
Recent filings (77 total)
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2025-12-22
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2025-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-12-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-09-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-23
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-19
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-09-19
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-20
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-10-12
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2022-10-06
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-09-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-26
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2022-06-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-11-24