A1 TOOLS AND FIXINGS (HOLDINGS) LIMITED
💤Zombieactive
05023461 · ltd · incorporated 2004-01-22
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 Mar 2025
Net worth
—
book net assets
Opportunity
82/100
Exceptional
What this business does
Primary activity: Activities of head offices
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
PursueStrong opportunity: active trading company with exceptional profile and bankable structure.
Opportunity 82/100 (exceptional), bankability 75/100. Strong seller-intent signal (70/100, director aged 58). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Broaden director team. Sole director creates succession risk and reduces buyer comfort. Appoint a second director or strong #2. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).
🏦
Refinance opportunity
2 live charges · 2 lenders · oldest 12.4y
30/100
under pressure
Refinance would be pressure-driven, not opportunity-driven. Expect tighter margins and covenant scrutiny.
- · Oldest live charge is 12.4 years old — likely at or near maturity.
- · Two lenders — manageable, but coordination required.
- · Distress signals active — lender appetite narrows.
Data confidence
Overall: medium (76/100)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
2 charges (2/2 with lender, 2/2 with type)
90
Directors & officers
4 officers (1 active, 4 linked, 1 with DOB)
75
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 2 total, 2 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
69 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.
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 | 2025-03-31 | 2024-03-31 |
|---|---|---|
| Average employees | 100 | 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
4
filings
- • 2 persons-with-significant-control
- • 1 accounts
- • 1 confirmation-statement
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
- 2026-02-27📄notification-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC01
- 2026-02-26📄cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-controlpersons-with-significant-control · PSC07
- 2026-02-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2024-12-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-12-18📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2023-01-30📄termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-dateofficers · TM02
- 2023-01-23📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2022-12-31➖BATES, Maralyn Ann resignedsecretary
- 2021-12-21📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-03-22📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2021-02-23📄mortgage-satisfy-charge-fullmortgage · MR04
- 2021-02-23🔓Charge satisfied #1
- 2020-08-06📄mortgage-create-with-deed-with-charge-number-charge-creation-datemortgage · MR01
- 2020-07-31🔒Charge registered #2Lender: Clydesdale Bank PLC (Trading as Both Clydesdale Bank and Yorkshire Bank)
- 2019-12-13📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2018-11-09📄accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entityaccounts · AA
- 2017-12-15📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2017-01-05📄accounts-with-accounts-type-dormantaccounts · AA
- 2014-01-08🔒Charge registered #1Lender: The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC
- 2009-11-20➕BATES, Maralyn Ann appointedsecretary
- 2009-11-20➖WORTH, Paul Andrew John resignedsecretary
- 2005-09-26➖NICHOLAS, Tracey resignedsecretary
- 2005-09-26➕WORTH, Paul Andrew John appointedsecretary
- 2004-01-22🏢Company incorporatedAs A1 TOOLS AND FIXINGS (HOLDINGS) LIMITED
- 2004-01-22➕O'FLANAGAN, Paul appointeddirector
- 2004-01-22➕NICHOLAS, Tracey appointedsecretary
Owner dependency
93/100
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 22 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
- +Senior director age: Director aged approximately 58 — approaching natural succession window.
Succession & seller-readiness
85/100
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 58. Early succession window.
- primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
- primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 22 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
- secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 22 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 Paul Timothy O'Flanagan Individual · British · DOB 07/1968 · age 58 | 75–100% | 75–100% | board control75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control | 06/04/2016 |
1 historic (ceased) PSC
- Mr Paul O'Flanaganceased 06/04/2016· 75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · board control
From Companies House Persons with Significant Control filings. Share ranges are banded per the public PSC regime.
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|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| A B HEMMONS LTD→ 14521424 · est 2022 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 3y | — | — |
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| AA DRAFTING SOLUTIONS LTD→ 08063072 · est 2012 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 13y | — | — |
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| AAIM LAGONDA PURCHASER LIMITED→ 06030553 · est 2006 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 19y | — | — |
| AAM BUSINESS SERVICES LIMITED→ 16085898 · est 2024 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 1y | — | — |
| AARDMANN LIMITED→ 04376792 · est 2002 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 24y | — | — |
| AB ACCOUNTANTS LTD→ 12269152 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 6y | — | — |
| AB CAPITAL LTD→ 11325602 · est 2018 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
| AB COMMS LIMITED→ 12932320 · est 2020 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 5y | — | — |
| AB CONSULERE LIMITED→ 11806455 · est 2019 · no financials extracted | — | — | — | — | 7y | — | — |
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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
Incorporated2004-01-22
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC70100 — Activities of head offices
Registered office
Ground Floor
45 Pall Mall
London
SW1Y 5JG
England
Filing status
Accounts
Next due: 2026-12-31
Last made up to: 2025-03-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-02-05
Last: 2026-01-22
Officers (1 active · 3 resigned)
O'FLANAGAN, Paul→
Activedirector · ~58y · appointed 2004-01-22
View their other companies + combined net worth →
BATES, Maralyn Ann→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2009-11-20 · resigned 2022-12-31
NICHOLAS, Tracey→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2004-01-22 · resigned 2005-09-26
WORTH, Paul Andrew John→
Resignedsecretary · appointed 2005-09-26 · resigned 2009-11-20
Click a director name to see their full track record across all companies.
Mortgages & charges
2
Total charges
1
Outstanding
1
Active lenders
Status:Lender:2 of 2 shown
| Type | Properties | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| outstanding | Virgin Money Clydesdale Bank PLC (Trading as Both Clydesdale Bank and Yorkshire Bank) | A registered charge | — | 31/07/2020 | — | |
| satisfied | Lloyds Banking Group The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC | A registered charge | 2 properties | 08/01/2014 | 23/02/2021 |
Click column headers to sort. Use filters above to narrow by status and lender.
Recent filings (69 total)
notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
2026-02-27
cessation-of-a-person-with-significant-control
persons-with-significant-control · PSC07
2026-02-26
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-02-09
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-02-06
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-01-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-12-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-01-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-12-18
termination-secretary-company-with-name-termination-date
officers · TM02
2023-01-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-01-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-01-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-01-25
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-12-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-03-22
mortgage-satisfy-charge-full
mortgage · MR04
2021-02-23