ACORN PROCESS CONTROLS LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
04888149 · ltd · incorporated 2003-09-04
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
hardening · 12-months
Already tight — no obvious softening catalysts on the horizon.
  • · Thesis: well-run, low negotiation leverage
🔒Estimated value
—
Upgrade to see
Turnover
—
year to Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Business and domestic software development
Sector: Information & communication
ALSO REGISTERED FOR
  • 62020Information technology consultancy activities
Investor take
Pursue
Strong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and bankable structure.

Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 58). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: strategic trade sale (73/100).

Data confidence

Overall: medium (78/100)

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
6 officers (3 active, 6 linked, 3 with DOB)
80
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
63 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£0Mar 2024Mar 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-03-312024-03-31
Average employees400600

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

Recent activity

Last 30 days
0
filings
Last 90 days
0
filings
Last 180 days
1
filing
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
  1. 2025-10-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-09-22
    📄
    termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
    officers · TM01
  3. 2025-09-10
    ➖
    WOODWARD, William Charles resigned
    director
  4. 2024-12-16
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  5. 2024-09-04
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  6. 2024-09-04
    📄
    change-person-director-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH01
  7. 2023-11-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  8. 2022-12-22
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  9. 2021-12-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  10. 2020-12-18
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  11. 2020-07-29
    📄
    resolution
    resolution · RESOLUTIONS
  12. 2020-07-29
    📄
    memorandum-articles
    incorporation · MA
  13. 2020-07-29
    📄
    statement-of-companys-objects
    change-of-constitution · CC04
  14. 2020-07-29
    📄
    capital-name-of-class-of-shares
    capital · SH08
  15. 2019-12-20
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  16. 2018-12-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  17. 2018-10-15
    ➕
    WOODWARD, William Charles appointed
    director
  18. 2018-10-15
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  19. 2003-09-04
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ACORN PROCESS CONTROLS LIMITED
  20. 2003-09-04
    ➕
    WOODWARD, Helena appointed
    secretary
  21. 2003-09-04
    ➕
    WOODWARD, Helena appointed
    director
  22. 2003-09-04
    ➕
    WOODWARD, Steven Charles appointed
    director
  23. 2003-09-04
    ➕
    SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  24. 2003-09-04
    ➖
    SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-secretary
  25. 2003-09-04
    ➕
    INSTANT COMPANIES LIMITED appointed
    corporate-nominee-director
  26. 2003-09-04
    ➖
    INSTANT COMPANIES LIMITED resigned
    corporate-nominee-director

Owner dependency

84/100
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 23 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 58 — approaching natural succession window.
  • +Family involvement: Multiple officers share a surname — likely family business, which concentrates governance.

Succession & seller-readiness

76/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 58. Early succession window.
  • secondaryTwo-director governance: Small-team governance. Succession depth is thin but not absent.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 23 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 23 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

2 active beneficial owners
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Steven Charles Woodward
Individual · British · DOB 02/1968 · age 58
25–50%
25–50%board controlsig. influence25-50% shares · 25-50% voting · board control · significant influence06/04/2016
Mrs Helena Woodward
Individual · British · DOB 06/1968 · age 58
25–50%
25–50%board control25-50% shares · 25-50% 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

6 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.

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Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2003-09-04
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC62012 — Business and domestic software development

Registered office

Atkins Building
Lower Bond Street
Hinckley
Leicestershire
LE10 1QU

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-03-18
Last: 2026-03-04

Officers (3 active · 3 resigned)

WOODWARD, Helena→
secretary · appointed 2003-09-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WOODWARD, Helena→
director · ~58y · appointed 2003-09-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
WOODWARD, Steven Charles→
director · ~58y · appointed 2003-09-04
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SWIFT INCORPORATIONS LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-secretary · appointed 2003-09-04 · resigned 2003-09-04
Resigned
WOODWARD, William Charles→
director · ~35y · appointed 2018-10-15 · resigned 2025-09-10
Resigned
INSTANT COMPANIES LIMITED→
corporate-nominee-director · appointed 2003-09-04 · resigned 2003-09-04
Resigned

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

Recent filings (63 total)

confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-03-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-10-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-09-22
termination-director-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM01
2025-09-22
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-12-16
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-09-13
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-09-04
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2024-09-04
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-11-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-09-05
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2022-12-22
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-09-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2021-12-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-09-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2020-12-18