ACORN ACCOUNTING SERVICES LIMITED

💤Zombieactive
05808031 · ltd · incorporated 2006-05-05
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 May 2025
Net worth
£795
book net assets
Opportunity
72/100
Strong
🔔
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What this business does
Primary activity: Accounting and auditing activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Special-situation opportunity
Distressed professional-services with salvageable qualities — special-situations priority.

Opportunity 72/100 (strong), bankability 65/100. Strong seller-intent signal (78/100, director aged 71). Share purchase looks the cleaner deal structure. Biggest value-creation lever: Resolve: Confirmation statement overdue. Annual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal. Most likely exit: share sale to pe / searcher (73/100).

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
Confirmed no charges registered
85
Directors & officers
3 officers (2 active, 3 linked, 1 with DOB)
77
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
Network not yet resolved
30
Filing history
53 filings on record
85
Gazette notices
No matching gazette notices (standard for active companies)
60
Opportunity Score
72/100Strong
PassWatchWorth a lookStrongExceptional 

Solid opportunity signal. Worth a dedicated memo and management meeting.

Business quality
60
Adequate — check latest filings for context.
Acquirability
80
Strong succession / seller-readiness signals.
Risk profile
67
Some moderate concerns — review flags.
Signal strength
90
Good data coverage for analysis.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Positive net assets
Net assets £795

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
Net Worth
£795
↑ 109% YoY
Current Assets
£41k
↑ 12% YoY
Current Liabilities
£0£8k£17k£25k£33k£41kMay 2024May 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 105 (micro)
Metric2025-05-312024-05-31
Total assets£795£381
Current assets£41.4k£37.0k
Net assets£795£381

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
1
filing
  • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (21 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-02-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-03-23
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  3. 2024-07-24
    📄
    gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
    gazette · DISS40
  4. 2024-07-23
    📄
    gazette-notice-compulsory
    gazette · GAZ1
  5. 2024-02-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-02-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-07-14
    📄
    change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
    officers · CH03
  8. 2022-03-25
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2021-05-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2020-05-06
    📍
    change-registered-office-address-company-with-date-old-address-new-address
    address · AD01
  11. 2020-02-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  12. 2019-02-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  13. 2018-02-17
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  14. 2017-03-01
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  15. 2016-06-30
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  16. 2016-02-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  17. 2011-05-14
    DAVISON, Robert Nicholas appointed
    secretary
  18. 2011-05-09
    SALISBURY, Michele Andrea resigned
    secretary
  19. 2006-05-05
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As ACORN ACCOUNTING SERVICES LIMITED
  20. 2006-05-05
    DAVISON, Robert Nicholas appointed
    director
  21. 2006-05-05
    SALISBURY, Michele Andrea appointed
    secretary

Owner dependency

100/100
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
  • +Sole director: Only one active director — all governance concentrated on one person.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 20 years — deep operational knowledge concentrated in one person.
  • +Founder age: Director aged approximately 71 — succession pressure is live.

Succession & seller-readiness

100/100
Likely off-market candidate

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFounder aged 70+: Senior director is approximately 71 years old. Natural succession window is now.
  • primarySole active director: Only one director in control. No visible successor — buyers solve the succession problem.
  • primary20+ year tenure: Director in role 20 years. Very long tenure is a classic succession signal.
  • secondaryStable-but-static management: Company is 20 years old and no new directors in the last 3 years — succession not yet being planned internally.

Red flags

1 high ·
Confirmation statement overdue
high

Annual confirmation statement not filed on time. Required statutory filing — overdue is a strong discipline signal.

Evidence: Next due: 2026-05-19

Shareholders & ownership

1 active beneficial owner
NameSharesVoting rightsNature of controlNotified
Mr Robert Nicholas Davison
Individual · British · DOB 11/1955 · age 71
2550%
25-50% shares01/01/2017

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

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Peers ranked by estimated value, then turnover, then opportunity score.See all →
🔒Tailored diligence questions

9 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
Incorporated2006-05-05
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC69201 — Accounting and auditing activities

Registered office

7 Hillside
Chard
Somerset
TA20 1JF
England

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-02-28
Last made up to: 2025-05-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2026-05-19OVERDUE
Last: 2025-05-05

Officers (2 active · 1 resigned)

DAVISON, Robert Nicholas
secretary · appointed 2011-05-14
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
DAVISON, Robert Nicholas
director · ~71y · appointed 2006-05-05
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
SALISBURY, Michele Andrea
secretary · appointed 2006-05-05 · resigned 2011-05-09
Resigned

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

Recent filings (53 total)

accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2026-02-28
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-02
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2025-03-23
gazette-filings-brought-up-to-date
gazette · DISS40
2024-07-24
gazette-notice-compulsory
gazette · GAZ1
2024-07-23
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-07-18
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2024-02-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-05-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2023-02-27
change-person-secretary-company-with-change-date
officers · CH03
2022-07-14
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-05-31
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-03-25
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-05-30
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-05-28
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-05-06