GOSFORTH BAKERY LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
04618267 · ltd · incorporated 2002-12-16
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.
Why now
Window steady · low confidence
Steady and tidy — no seller pressure yet. Approach only if an angle opens.
Opportunity decay
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
  • · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
What changed my view
Last 30 days

No material changes in the last 30 days.

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
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Manufacture of bread; manufacture of fresh pastry goods and cakes
Sector: Manufacturing
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 10821SIC 10821
Investor take
Pursue
Active trading company. Family succession underway — not a classic acquisition target.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Same-surname younger director in place — likely family handover, not open to sale. Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).

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, 2 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
7 officers (3 active, 7 linked, 2 with DOB)
76
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
62 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.

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 · FRS 102
Metric2025-12-312024-12-31
Average employees700700

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
2
filings
  • • 1 officers
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (27 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-04-27
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  2. 2026-04-14
    ➕
    UNSWORTH, Rachel Anne appointed
    director
  3. 2026-03-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  4. 2025-04-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  5. 2024-04-08
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-06-26
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-04-11
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-05-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-08-12
    📄
    appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP03
  10. 2020-07-29
    ➕
    UNSWORTH, Rachel appointed
    secretary
  11. 2020-04-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  12. 2019-06-12
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2018-05-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  14. 2017-08-15
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  15. 2016-11-17
    📄
    capital-allotment-shares
    capital · SH01
  16. 2016-10-18
    📄
    resolution
    resolution · RESOLUTIONS
  17. 2016-10-18
    📄
    resolution
    resolution · RESOLUTIONS
  18. 2011-12-22
    ➖
    UNSWORTH, Richard Norman resigned
    secretary
  19. 2006-09-22
    ➖
    UNSWORTH, Rachel Anne resigned
    secretary
  20. 2006-09-22
    ➕
    UNSWORTH, Richard Norman appointed
    secretary
  21. 2002-12-16
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As GOSFORTH BAKERY LIMITED
  22. 2002-12-16
    ➕
    UNSWORTH, Gillian appointed
    director
  23. 2002-12-16
    ➕
    UNSWORTH, Rachel Anne appointed
    secretary
  24. 2002-12-16
    ➕
    WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  25. 2002-12-16
    ➖
    WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  26. 2002-12-16
    ➕
    WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  27. 2002-12-16
    ➖
    WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

91/100
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 24 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 68 — succession pressure is live.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

36/100
Weak signal

Limited succession signal. Not a near-term off-market candidate.

SIGNALS
  • primaryFamily succession underway: Not a takeover target — UNSWORTH, Rachel Anne (same surname) appointed 2026-04-14. Pattern consistent with intra-family handover.
  • primaryFounder aged 63+: Senior director is approximately 68. Approaching typical UK retirement age — succession thinking likely.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 24 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 · dominant holder ≥75%
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Ms Gillian Unsworth
Individual · British · DOB 02/1958 · age 68
—75–100%75-100% voting06/04/2016

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

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CompanyEst. valueTurnoverNet worthStaffAgeOppDirector
FRANK BIRD (POULTRY) LIMITED→
03310507 · est 1997
£25.46M
£18.76M–£32.16M
——21329y8390y
CRANSTONS QUALITY BUTCHERS LIMITED→
00228917 · est 1928
£4.31M
£3.17M–£5.44M
£17.57M—2400098y8472y
CARRS BILLINGTON AGRICULTURE (SALES) LIMITED→
00189740 · est 1923
———489103y8869y
FIRTH FYNE FISH LTD→
04375720 · est 2002
———024y8361y
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05608409 · est 2005
————20y8364y
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———150018y8266y
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07182961 · est 2010
——£291.0k—16y8261y
GERUISH ENTERPRISES LIMITED→
07503292 · est 2011
———250015y8261y
HIGHLAND FARMS LTD→
06945607 · est 2009 · no financials extracted
————17y8069y
IBIS ORGANICS LIMITED→
05463174 · est 2005 · no financials extracted
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————7y——
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
Incorporated2002-12-16
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC10710 — Manufacture of bread; manufacture of fresh pastry goods and cakes

Registered office

Meadow View, Gosforth
Seascale
Cumbria
CA20 1AS

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-09-30
Last made up to: 2025-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-29
Last: 2025-12-15

Officers (3 active · 4 resigned)

UNSWORTH, Rachel→
secretary · appointed 2020-07-29
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
UNSWORTH, Gillian→
director · ~68y · appointed 2002-12-16
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
UNSWORTH, Rachel Anne→
director · ~47y · appointed 2026-04-14
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
UNSWORTH, Rachel Anne→
secretary · appointed 2002-12-16 · resigned 2006-09-22
Resigned
UNSWORTH, Richard Norman→
secretary · appointed 2006-09-22 · resigned 2011-12-22
Resigned
WATERLOW SECRETARIES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2002-12-16 · resigned 2002-12-16
Resigned
WATERLOW NOMINEES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2002-12-16 · resigned 2002-12-16
Resigned

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

Recent filings (62 total)

appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2026-04-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-03-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-12-24
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-04-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-12-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-04-08
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-12-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-06-26
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-12-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-04-11
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-12-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-05-12
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-12-16
appoint-person-secretary-company-with-name-date
officers · AP03
2020-08-12
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-04-17