A LOCK & CO LIMITED

🌳Matureactive
05848170 · ltd · incorporated 2006-06-15
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 Jul 2025
Net worth
£466.7k
book net assets
Opportunity
80/100
Exceptional
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What this business does
Primary activity: Accounting and auditing activities
Sector: Professional, scientific & technical
Investor take
Pursue
Asset-holding vehicle. 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 (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, 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
6 officers (2 active, 6 linked, 4 with DOB)
83
Ownership & PSC
1 active PSC(s) of 1 total, 1 with control declared
90
Director network
1 connected companies via shared directors
48
Filing history
50 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.

Signals from accounts

Derived from iXBRL accounts · FRS 102
Positive net assets
Net assets £466,679
Cash YoY
+10%
Year on year

Key financials

2 years extracted from filed iXBRL accounts
Cash
£130k
↑ 10% YoY
Net Worth
£467k
↑ 10% YoY
Current Assets
£343k
↓ 45% YoY
Current Liabilities
—
£0£124k£249k£373k£497k£621kJul 2024Jul 2025

Hover to see exact values · click legend to toggle series

Financials

Extracted from Companies House accounts · FRS 102
Metric2025-07-312024-07-31
Total assets£480.1k£544.9k
Current assets£343.0k£621.4k
Cash£130.1k£118.1k
Debtors£154.0k£133.5k
Net assets£466.7k£424.1k

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
1
filing
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
Last 90 days
2
filings
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 accounts
Last 180 days
2
filings
  • • 1 confirmation-statement
  • • 1 accounts
Counts from Companies House filing history.
Corporate timeline (26 events)Click to expand
  1. 2026-04-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  2. 2025-04-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  3. 2025-02-01
    📄
    appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
    officers · AP01
  4. 2025-01-31
    ➕
    LOCK, Emma Louise appointed
    director
  5. 2024-04-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  6. 2023-04-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
    accounts · AA
  7. 2022-01-13
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  8. 2021-04-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  9. 2020-07-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  10. 2019-04-30
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  11. 2018-04-27
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
    accounts · AA
  12. 2017-06-28
    📄
    notification-of-a-person-with-significant-control
    persons-with-significant-control · PSC01
  13. 2017-04-28
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  14. 2016-07-14
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  15. 2016-04-29
    📄
    accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-small
    accounts · AA
  16. 2015-06-15
    📄
    annual-return-company-with-made-up-date-full-list-shareholders
    annual-return · AR01
  17. 2010-12-17
    ➖
    LOCK, Annmarie resigned
    secretary
  18. 2010-12-17
    ➖
    LOCK, Annmarie resigned
    director
  19. 2007-08-15
    ➕
    LOCK, Annmarie appointed
    director
  20. 2007-06-16
    ➖
    LOCK, Andrew resigned
    secretary
  21. 2007-06-16
    ➕
    LOCK, Annmarie appointed
    secretary
  22. 2007-06-16
    ➖
    LOCK, Annmarie resigned
    director
  23. 2006-06-15
    🏢
    Company incorporated
    As A LOCK & CO LIMITED
  24. 2006-06-15
    ➕
    LOCK, Andrew appointed
    director
  25. 2006-06-15
    ➕
    LOCK, Andrew appointed
    secretary
  26. 2006-06-15
    ➕
    LOCK, Annmarie appointed
    director

Owner dependency

99/100
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.
  • +Founder name in company name: Company name contains director surname "LOCK" — strong identity link between founder and business.
  • +Long-tenure founder: Senior director has been in place 20 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

26/100
Weak signal

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

SIGNALS
  • primaryFamily succession underway: Not a takeover target — LOCK, Emma Louise (same surname) appointed 2025-01-31. Pattern consistent with intra-family handover.
  • 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 20 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
Mr Andrew David Lock
Individual · British · DOB 08/1968 · age 58
75–100%
75–100%sig. influence75-100% shares · 75-100% voting · significant influence · firm interest06/04/2016

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.

See pricing →

Company details

Statusactive
Typeltd
Incorporated2006-06-15
Jurisdictionengland-wales
Primary SIC69201 — Accounting and auditing activities

Registered office

Elmwood House, York Road
Kirk Hammerton
York
YO26 8DH

Filing status

Accounts
Next due: 2027-04-30
Last made up to: 2025-07-31
Confirmation statement
Next due: 2027-06-29
Last: 2026-06-15

Officers (2 active · 4 resigned)

LOCK, Andrew→
director · ~58y · appointed 2006-06-15
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
LOCK, Emma Louise→
director · ~28y · appointed 2025-01-31
View their other companies + combined net worth →
Active
LOCK, Andrew→
secretary · appointed 2006-06-15 · resigned 2007-06-16
Resigned
LOCK, Annmarie→
secretary · appointed 2007-06-16 · resigned 2010-12-17
Resigned
LOCK, Annmarie→
director · ~57y · appointed 2007-08-15 · resigned 2010-12-17
Resigned
LOCK, Annmarie→
director · ~57y · appointed 2006-06-15 · resigned 2007-06-16
Resigned

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

Recent filings (50 total)

confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2026-06-19
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2026-04-29
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2025-06-27
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2025-04-29
appoint-person-director-company-with-name-date
officers · AP01
2025-02-01
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2024-06-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2024-04-30
confirmation-statement-with-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2023-06-20
accounts-with-accounts-type-total-exemption-full
accounts · AA
2023-04-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2022-06-21
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2022-01-13
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2021-06-16
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2021-04-28
accounts-with-accounts-type-micro-entity
accounts · AA
2020-07-30
confirmation-statement-with-no-updates
confirmation-statement · CS01
2020-06-30