ARD PLAYGROUNDS LIMITED
🌳Matureactive
04990862 · ltd · incorporated 2003-12-10
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 Dec 2024
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Non-trading company
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueDormant / non-trading with a 62-year-old founder — textbook succession opportunity.
Opportunity 80/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 62). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (65/100).
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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
5 officers (3 active, 5 linked, 3 with DOB)
82
Ownership & PSC
2 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
5 connected companies via shared directors
60
Filing history
64 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
85
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
82
Few red flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.
Key financials
2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accountsCash
—
Net Worth
—
Current Assets
—
Current Liabilities
—
Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series
Financials
Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102| Metric | 2024-12-31 | 2023-12-31 |
|---|
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
0
filings
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (24 events)Click to expand
- 2026-01-08📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2026-01-08📄change-to-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC04
- 2025-08-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-08-06📄change-person-director-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH01
- 2025-08-06📄change-person-secretary-company-with-change-dateofficers · CH03
- 2025-05-02📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2025-02-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2025-01-13📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2024-09-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2023-08-30📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2022-10-06📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2021-09-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2020-09-24📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-09-10📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2019-02-14📍change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-addressaddress · AD01
- 2018-05-14📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2007-08-20➕ASH, David Barry appointeddirector
- 2007-08-20➖REID, Susan resigneddirector
- 2003-12-10🏢Company incorporatedAs ARD PLAYGROUNDS LIMITED
- 2003-12-10➕ASH, Susan Elizabeth Grace appointedsecretary
- 2003-12-10➕ASH, Susan Elizabeth Grace appointeddirector
- 2003-12-10➕STEVENS, Marian Ann appointedsecretary
- 2003-12-10➖STEVENS, Marian Ann resignedsecretary
- 2003-12-10➕REID, Susan appointeddirector
Owner dependency
76/100
High — earn-out structure requiredMaterial founder dependency. Consider a 2-3 year earn-out and build in a handover plan before completion.
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 62 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
76/100
Likely off-market candidateStrong acquirability signals converging. Worth approaching directly — this is how off-market deals start.
SIGNALS
- secondaryFounder aged 58+: Senior director is approximately 62. 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
1 lowMultiple registered office changes
lowMultiple address changes in a short period can indicate operational instability or admin disorder.
Shareholders & ownership
2 active beneficial owners| Name | Shares | Voting rights | Nature of control | Notified |
|---|---|---|---|---|
Mr David Barry Ash Individual · British · DOB 08/1965 · age 61 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
Mrs Susan Elizabeth Grace Ash Individual · British · DOB 09/1964 · age 62 | 25–50% | 25–50% | 25-50% shares · 25-50% voting | 06/04/2016 |
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 →Similar companies
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| A & M GROUP VENTURES LTD→ 15763345 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
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| ANNA MEDICAL GROUP LTD→ 17002690 · est 2026 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| APL SYNDICATE GROUP LTD→ 16510786 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| ARCHER PROPERTIES LIMITED→ 00298169 · est 1935 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 91y | — | — |
| ARDLE BANK LIMITED→ 11757024 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| ARIADNE ROAD RTM COMPANY LIMITED→ 06779398 · est 2008 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 17y | — | — |
| ARISTONE MANAGEMENT LIMITED→ 16714091 · est 2025 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
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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.
See pricing →Company details
Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2003-12-10
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC74990 — Non-trading company
Registered office
The Barns Dog Trap Lane
Minety
Wiltshire
SN16 9PW
United Kingdom
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-09-30
Last made up to: 2024-12-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-12-24
Last: 2025-12-10
Officers (3 active · 2 resigned)
ASH, Susan Elizabeth Grace→
Activesecretary · appointed 2003-12-10
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ASH, David Barry→
Activedirector · ~61y · appointed 2007-08-20
View their other companies + combined net worth →
ASH, Susan Elizabeth Grace→
Activedirector · ~62y · appointed 2003-12-10
View their other companies + combined net worth →
STEVENS, Marian Ann→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2003-12-10 · resigned 2003-12-10
REID, Susan→
Resigneddirector · ~70y · appointed 2003-12-10 · resigned 2007-08-20
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Recent filings (64 total)
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-01-09
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2026-01-08
change-to-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC04
2026-01-08
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-08-06
change-person-director-company-with-change-date
officers · CH01
2025-08-06
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2025-08-06
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2025-05-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2025-02-18
change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
address · AD01
2025-01-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-13
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2024-09-05
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-15
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2023-08-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-dormant
accounts · AA
2022-10-06